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Date: 2016
Abstract: Following the unprecedented number of antisemitic incidents in the summer of 20141, the Scottish Government funded the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities (SCoJeC) to carry out a small-scale inquiry into ‘What’s changed about being Jewish in Scotland’ since our 2012 inquiry into the experience of ‘Being Jewish in Scotland’. Our principal findings were: - 38 respondents to our survey (32%) explicitly talked about a heightened level of anxiety, discomfort, or vulnerability, despite not having been directly asked. - 20 respondents (17%) – many more than in 2012 – told us that they now keep their Jewish identity secret. - As a result there is less opportunity for Jewish people to develop resilient and supportive networks and communities. - 76% of respondents said that events in the Middle East have a significant impact on the way they are treated as Jews in Scotland. - 80% of respondents said that the events in the Middle East during summer 2014 had negatively affected their experience of being Jewish in Scotland. - 21 respondents (18%) mentioned the raising of Palestinian flags by some Local Authorities as having contributed to their general sense of unease. - 16 respondents (13%) told us that they no longer have confidence in the impartiality of public authorities, including the police. - Several respondents said that, for the first time, they were considering leaving Scotland. - Antisemitism in social media was a much greater concern than in our 2012 inquiry. - 12 respondents (11%) told us they found it difficult to find anything good to say about being Jewish in Scotland. Commenting on the preliminary findings of our inquiry into What’s Changed About Being Jewish in Scotland, Neil Hastie, head of the Scottish Government Community Safety Unit, said: “The emerging themes from this report are particularly valuable; as is the data on how the international context can impact very palpably on the experience of being Jewish in Scotland. There is much in this for us (and Ministers) to consider.” We are disturbed by the extent to which this inquiry shows that Jewish people’s experience in Scotland has deteriorated as a result of the wider community’s attitudes towards events in the Middle East. But despite the negativity and level of discomfort expressed by many respondents, and the fact that some are, for the first time, wondering whether they should leave Scotland, the vast majority of Scottish Jews are here to stay, and we therefore welcome the Scottish Government’s willingness to listen to the concerns of Jewish people in Scotland to ensure their safety and well-being
Date: 2015
Abstract: This short term study into people’s experiences of being Jewish in Scotland has been
carried out by the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities (SCoJeC) and funded by the
Community Safety Unit of the Scottish Government. The inquiry was a direct response to
the large increase in the number of antisemitic incidents in Scotland in the third quarter of
2014. This increase came as an unwelcome shock, not only to the Jewish Community, but
to civil society at large. The terrorist incidents in Paris and in Copenhagen that deliberately
targeted Jewish people occurred during the course of the inquiry, and these also affected
people’s feelings about being Jewish in Scotland.
This new study has enabled us to go back to many of the people who contributed to our
2012 Being Jewish in Scotland inquiry to ask whether, and if so, how and why, their
experiences and opinions have changed. It has also reached a significant number of
additional participants around Scotland.
We have gathered data through a combination of online and paper surveys, focus groups,
and informal discussions at events in locations throughout Scotland. We know from our
experience of running the initial inquiry, that when we hold events to discuss the
experience of being Jewish, especially outside the larger Jewish communities in the central
belt, these events and activities themselves serve to provide support and reassurance, and
build a sense of community and engagement.
We are currently preparing a detailed report of responses to the inquiry, and a special
edition of our quarterly newsletter Four Corners will be published around the end of April.
The present report outlines the methodology, summarises the main themes that are
emerging, and gives a flavour of the findings of the inquiry.
Date: 2013