Rising antisemitism worldwide boils over at Pittsburgh synagogue

It was the deadliest assault on Jews in US history. Eleven people gunned down as they attended their local synagogue on Shabbat, the Jewish sabbath. Synagogues across the country locked their doors and an icy fear spread through Jewish communities.

The US is often thought to be the safest country in the world for Jews. The long shadow of the Holocaust still hangs over Europe, where antisemitism flourishes on the far right and parts of the far left. Jews in Israel are permanently on guard against attack.

In the great melting pot of the US, it was perhaps easier. In Squirrel Hills, the Pittsburgh neighbourhood that is home to the Tree of Life synagogue, local residents have spoken since Saturday’s shooting of harmonious relations between communities.

Last year, however, antisemitic and white supremacist stickers were found on car windscreens, park benches and playground slides. A 2017 study of the city’s Jewish community found that 63% of those in Squirrel Hill were “a little or somewhat” concerned about antisemitism, and 18% were “very much” concerned. Overall in Pittsburgh, 16% of Jews had directly experienced some form of antisemitism in the previous year.

Some blame the rise in hate speech and hate crime on a culture under Donald Trump’s leadership in which people are emboldened to express prejudice and hatred.