Antisemitism and Jewish children and youth in Australia’s Capital Territory schools

Issues pertaining to religion and Australian schools have generated a significant amount of controversy and scholarly attention in recent years, and much of the attention in the religion and schools debate has focused on Muslim and non-religious children’s experiences (Erebus International, 2006; Halafoff, 2013). This article, by contrast, explores the manifestations of antisemitism as experienced by Jewish children and youth in Canberra schools. It considers the characteristics of antisemitism; when and why it occurs; its impact on the Jewish children and young people; and also the responses to it by them, the schools and the Jewish community. Based on focus groups with the Jewish students and their parents, the study reveals that antisemitism is common in Canberra schools, as almost all Jewish children and youth in this study have experienced it. The findings from this study suggest that there is a need for more anti-racism education. Specifically there is an urgent need for educational intervention about antisemitism, alongside education about religions and beliefs in general, to counter antisemitism more effectively and religious discrimination more broadly in Australian schools

The new anti-semitism

The new Anti-Semitism is a term that came into use to describe attacks on Jews across the world that erupted in the aftermath of the outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian fighting in September 2000 after the collapse of the Camp David peace talks. The conflict unleashed a wave of suicide bombings in Israel and led to Israel reoccupying Palestinian areas. This fighting triggered an outburst of antiSemitism not seen since the end of the World War II. Nearly 100 synagogues were attacked across the world in the four weeks from the end of September to October 2000; more were burnt down at any time since Kristallnacht, when Nazis attacked Jewish institutions in Germany in 1938

Jewish diaspora engagement with Israel

From the outset of Zionism, the Diaspora has had a distinct role to play with developing the homeland, raising funds, mobilizing political activity, and providing&nbsp;immigrants. Today, particularly since 1948, Israel continues to play an unequivocally essential role in Diaspora Jewish identity. This centrality is expressed through&nbsp;many areas of Jewish life, such as education, community, philanthropy, and political activism. These deepseated&nbsp;attachments to Israel are also evident through&nbsp;growing rates of aliyah, participation in Israel programs, and visits to the Jewish state.&nbsp;Since 1967, a time when the Jewish world was gripped by the realization that the State of Israel could be destroyed, and people were then caught up in Israel&rsquo;s&nbsp;jubilation at her survival, Israel has been a central factor in Diaspora Jewish life and identity. Israel is seen as playing a central role in maintaining Jewish identity&nbsp;throughout the Diaspora. The existence of Israel is important to world Jewry, as is illustrated by the following data: 87 percent of Canadian Jewry believes Israel is&nbsp;&ldquo;important to being a Jew&rdquo;; more than 80 percent of American Jews in the 2000 National Jewish Population Survey were very or somewhat familiar with social and&nbsp;political events in Israel, and over 80 percent strongly or somewhat agreed that Israel is the spiritual center of the Jewish people; 81 percent of British Jews were,&nbsp;according to a 1997 survey, strongly or moderately attached to Israel; and 86 percent of respondents to a 2002 survey of French Jews said they felt &ldquo;very close or&nbsp;close&rdquo; to Israel. The importance of Israel in the identity of world Jewry today is manifested through various means of engagement with the Jewish State.</div

Diasporas in Australia: current and potential links with the homeland

This paper is the outcome a three year Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage project Diasporas in Australia: Current and Potential Links with the Homeland conducted from 2009-2012. The research involved a comparatives study of the Italian, Macedonian, Tongan, and Vietnamese diaspora in Australia. The broad purpose of the project was to consider how the different &ldquo;type&rdquo; of diaspora affected the nature and extent of their ties to the Homeland. This was explored from an interdisciplinary perspective into five broad areas: citizenship, identity and langue; personal ties through visits, communication and media use; political and communal involvement and philanthropy; family/kinship, caregiving and remittances; and business and professional ties. These are the levels of analysis within this article which consider the evaluation of diaspora typologies

Refugee access and participation in tertiary education and training

This report includes recommendations about refugee access to tertiary education and training and is based on research conducted by ICEPA to identify best practice relating to issues faced by refugees in, or seeking access to, the tertiary education and training sector. The research project also evaluated the education and training programs, alternative entry schemes and any other support services which assist refugees to realise their educational goals in Victorian universities and TAFE institutes