Last week I wrote about Simona Mohammson, thw Swedish Labor Party minister who wore a Star of David during a televied debate.
Why doesn’t the left confront antisemitism?
CULTURAL DEBATE. Antisemitism is growing again in Europe. Parents hide or remove the Star of David from their children when it is time to leave for school. Pupils hear antisemitic remarks from classmates. Students are harassed on their way to university.
In a survey by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, 96 percent say they have been subjected to antisemitism in some form in recent years. Reports from the Living History Forum indicate that antisemitic attitudes in Sweden increased between 2020 and 2025. According to the Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention (Brå), Jewish organisations report a rise in antisemitism. Children and young people are described as a particularly vulnerable group.
Since 7 October 2023, we have also seen demonstrators cross new boundaries for what is decent and acceptable in a democratic society. There have been protests outside synagogues and at commemorations for the victims of the Holocaust — to draw attention to issues that have nothing to do with Sweden’s Jewish minority.
Swedish society cannot allow this to pass. And we elected politicians have a particular responsibility to keep the public sphere free of antisemitic currents.
For more than 100 years, my party has combined the struggle for democracy with the protection of minorities’ security. Liberals have done so with the firm conviction that a society cannot call itself free as long as its smallest minority lives in unfreedom.
That is why I chose to wear the Star of David at Expressen’s party leaders’ debate. To raise my voice for those who are subjected to antisemitic threats and hatred in our country — every day. To take a stand against the forces that want to normalise hatred.
After the debate I have been asked what I think about the war in Gaza, about other vulnerable groups in Sweden, or about statements by Sweden Democrat politicians. I believe that reaction is part of the problem — why can we never talk about antisemitism in Sweden? Why does the conversation immediately shift focus to other conflicts or social problems? Why can a politician, after a wave of antisemitism, not wear a Star of David without receiving insinuating questions about also wearing a Sámi kolt? I believe this is a relativisation that we as politicians should not accept.
Where is the broad commitment to protect vulnerable Jews in Sweden?
And to raise a warning finger — if we do not stop the antisemitism that is flourishing here and now, Sweden will remain an unsafe country for the Jewish minority.
The Liberals and I do not intend to let Sweden go down that path. In government we have made important efforts to strengthen Jewish life and combat antisemitism. We have strengthened support for security-enhancing measures for Jewish congregations and for more remembrance trips. The Living History Forum and the Segerstedt Institute have been given assignments to strengthen the schools’ work against antisemitism. The Swedish National Council of Adult Education has received funding to increase knowledge about Jewish life and Jewish languages. We have introduced state grants to enable Jewish studies in more schools.
But of course more must be done. The Liberals want to give security classification to synagogues and Jewish schools. Double the support for remembrance trips. Carry out new educational initiatives in schools with democratic outdoor days. Introduce exclusion lists to keep foreign hate preachers out of Sweden.
Historically, Social Democrats have joined forces with Liberals to strengthen Jewish life in Sweden and combat hatred against Jews. During his time in power, Göran Persson carried out important educational efforts to strengthen public knowledge of the Holocaust and society’s resilience against antisemitism. Social Democrats have played an important role in keeping antisemitic attitudes and tendencies within the Swedish left-wing movement in check.
But where is this engagement today? Where is the broad commitment to protect vulnerable Jews in Sweden?
But where is the courage and backbone within S and V?
Instead of a categorical rejection, the Swedish left has shown itself incapable of handling the new antisemitism that has grown in Sweden. This applies both to the inability to distance itself from aggressive demonstrators and from coalition partners with representatives who praise pogroms against Jews.
Developments in several European countries show what the Swedish left’s strategists fear. A split between the traditional left and Islamist-friendly socialists is emerging as an electoral threat. But where is the courage and backbone within S and V? Should the fear of new radical parties prevent you from acting forcefully for the security of Jewish children?
I therefore once again urge all politicians — regardless of colour — to stand up for Jews’ security in Sweden. This should not be a party-political issue — it is about fundamental rights. To Sweden’s Jews I therefore want to say: You should feel safe and free in your country. That is a promise I will not back down from.
By Simona Mohamsson
|
Reclaiming the Covenant on America's 250th (May 2026) "He's an Anti-Zionist Too!" cartoon book (December 2024) PROTOCOLS: Exposing Modern Antisemitism (February 2022) |
 |
Buy