Dangerous for Jews in Poland??
 

I suppose this isn't your typical question but here goes: We have been repeatedly warned that there is open anti-semitism in Poland. When we go this summer we will be wearing modern clothing but my husband does have a beard and will wear a hat of some sort (here in the States he wears a yarmulka at all times). We would appreciate feedback from those who know what we will encounter and if we have cause for concern. We will be in Warsaw (briefly) Krakow, Lodz and Gdansk (Stuthof)and hopefully a few other places (Zakopane) Thanks.

Personally , if it were me, I would NOT advertise that I was Jewish anywhere in Europe these days.....

I know it may be an inconvenience, but unless you are orthodox, I would not bring any attention to myself...

Leave all relgious jewelry at home also.

Maybe it is just me, but I find these threads sooo sad.
That people in this day and age are still worried about being attacked for being Jewish. That they are being advised to hide their religion.
deejw, this is unfortunately beginning to be a typical question, asked often. Most people are being told to hide any signs of their religion or country of origin. Which would make me just want to stay home, rather than be so worried.

deejw,
i agree with scarlett, that it would be sad, if such necessities were real.
i cannot comment on poland, as i have not been there, however i feel i have to oppose to andy's comment here.
europe (and we are talking about central, northern, southern and most eastern parts) is in my opinion an absolutely safe place to travel regardless of the religion of travellers.
i would rather say that it would nice if the amount of tolerance usually existent among people in europe could be found in other places of the world, too.
being german and well aware of sins committed in the frightful past, i do hope you will have an enjoyable time in europe!
regards
hsv

And don't forget France where hate crimes have increased 4-fold in the last year. An even greater increase against French Jews, especially around Paris. Many of the haters and nut-cases use the Middle East situation as an excuse to attack Jewish school children.

I'll be interested to see the longevity of this thread; discussions of anti-semitism seem to have a short lifespan on the Fodors boards...

I suspect that you won't encounter any difficulties in the big cities; they are too cosmopolitan and familiar with foriegn Jews, and the authorities are increasingly sensitive. There may be uncomfortable moments in some smaller towns or the countryside, but again, it's unfair to generalize. When we've traveled to areas that once had substantial Jewish populations but no longer do, what we've seen more often is that people don't know anything about Jews or Judaism; not antipathy, just ignorance.

All that said, it stands to reason that you should exercise normal travelers' caution, and don't go looking for dark alleys or gatherings of bald youth...

This is ridiculous!

I'm Jewish, have lived in Europe all my life, including in Paris in 97-98 and again 2000-2001 and have NEVER experienced open antisemitism or actually met anyone who had.

I'm not denying it happens - where doesn't it - but it's an absolutely marginal thing and extremely unlikely to affect you. Just follow Gardyloo's advice, which is valid for travelers of any religion.

When visiting the US a few weeks ago I was repeatedly asked by friends & relatives about all the supposed antisemitic violence in Europe, especially France. What kind of crap is being reported in the US media anyway? Beware of being brainwashed - remember that everyone has an agenda.

Please do not stay at home in fear - if you do, the isolationists and hatemongers (whatever their religion and politics) will have won. The rest of the world is still basically the same as it was pre-9/11 - it's the US that has changed...

Andre

I really appreciate everyone who took time to respond to this touchy subject. We will certainly go on our journey, there was never a question about that, and we will, as always, use common sense caution. I am, however, still interested in the perspective of anyone on this list who currently lives in Poland. Thanks.

deejw-

I answered the way I did as my niece, who is jewish, spent 6 mos in FRANCE last year and 6 mos in LONDON this year...

She was told by her University NOT to wear anything religious..Nor to advertise that she was from the states....

She wanted to go to a Holocaust Rememberance in the city she was studying- the FRENCH college there told her NOT to go as there would NOT be police protection for her and they feared for her safety.....

SO she did NOT go to services....

Yet,when she went to London, she forgot to take off her Jewish Star and went into a cafe to get a phone card-the woman selling the card was Arabic and asked her if she was from Israel...She answered "NO " -- the woman didn't believe her, told her she could not buy the phone card from her and my niece left----She was extremely taken aback at the outward hostility but she did hide her star and had no other problems in London...

These are only 2 instances and they are REAL...but only you can decide....

I would not hesitate to go to Poland at all, but like the other poster said, steer clear of BALD youths ( commonly known as skinheads) and do not call attention to yourself....

Bravo Andre!

And steer clear of skinheads in the USA also...whether you are Jewish or black or gay or a treehugger or any other thing that sets them off!

Report: Violent Hate Crimes Up in France
NATHALIE SCHUCK Associated Press

PARIS - Violent hate crimes quadrupled in France in 2002 to the highest level in a decade, with more than half the assaults aimed at Jews, a national study has found.

Assailants carried out 313 acts of racially and religiously motivated violence last year, compared with 71 in 2001, according to the study by the independent National Consulting Committee on Human Rights.

In accepting the report Thursday, Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin said he was worried the war in Iraq would increase religious tensions in France.

"We must prevent international tensions from transferring to our national community," he said.

In the report, the committee said 193 of 313 attacks were against Jews in a "real explosion" of anti-Semitic violence. Last year, the group reported 32 acts of anti-Jewish violence.

The committee said increased anti-Semitic attacks came against a backdrop of fighting between Israel and the Palestinians, and added that many attackers came from rough neighborhoods on the outskirts of France's cities.

In the last two years, France has suffered a wave of violence against Jewish schools, temples and cemeteries that coincided with new fighting in the Middle East.

The violence, which peaked a year ago when a Marseille synagogue was burned to the ground, has decreased. But Muslim-Jewish relations remain tense. France has the largest Jewish community in western Europe and one of the continent's biggest Muslim populations.

France's large North African community also was targeted.

Of 47 attacks against them, 25 of those were attributed to the extreme-right. One person of North African origin was killed - the only death mentioned in the report. The Sept. 11, 2001, attacks stirred anti-Muslim sentiment, the report said.

Violence by France's far-right groups dropped in 2002. Nine percent of the reported attacks were blamed on the far right, compared with 14 percent in 2001, the report said.

France Adopts Bias Crimes Legislation

Posted: December 12, 2002

The French National Assembly has unanimously adopted legislation making it an ?aggravated crime? to commit acts of violence on the basis of race, religion or ethnic background.

The lower house of parliament on December 10 ordered special penalties for such crimes in the wake of more than 400 attacks on Jews and Jewish institutions, mostly by young Arab immigrants, between the fall 2000 and spring 2002. The action is seen as a reflection of a get-tough policy of the conservative government and parliamentary majority elected this year, and the new interior minister, Nicholas Sarkozy.

The legislation requires confirmation by the Senate, which is considered all but certain.

Before the vote, a high official of the Justice Ministry, Pierre Bedier, made clear that the legislation was requested by the government because ?recent events indicate a worrisome increase in the number of crimes inspired by anti-Semitism.?

Over the past two years, as attacks on individual Jews, synagogues, school buses or Jewish shops mounted, French and American Jewish agencies, including the Anti-Defamation League, repeatedly called for tougher action by law enforcement against anti-Semitic violence.

The attacks decreased markedly after the election this spring. But they have not ceased entirely. In early December, vandals ransacked a synagogue in Perigueux in southwestern France, destroying holy books, artwork, and stealing money from the synagogue office.

The new legislation calls for higher penalties when a crime is committed against a person because of his or her racial, religious or ethnic background.