The Combat Anti-Semitism Movement’s global campaign

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With the Coronavirus crisis fueling an increase in antisemitism often directed at Israel, the Combat Anti-Semitism Movement (CAM) has launched a global campaign enabling individuals and organizations across the world to highlight Israel’s outstanding contribution towards the international battle against COVID-19.

Recent reports have documented how the Coronavirus pandemic has seen a worrying increase in age-old antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes, targeting Jews and the State of Israel.  Numerous examples have been recorded in the United States, while an Oxford University study found that almost 20 per cent of adults in Britain believe Jews are behind the spread of the virus for financial gain.

In a direct challenge to these antisemitic allegations, many of which take the modern-day form of anti-Zionism, the #IsraelFights4Humanity campaign showcases Israel’s outstanding efforts to combat Coronavirus. The campaign is designed to enable the participation of individuals and organizations across the world, including the 250 Jewish and non-Jewish organizations which have joined the Combat Anti-Semitism Movement by signing its pledge.

Participants are encouraged to use a series of easy-to-share visual tools created by CAM. They include a specially-produced video highlighting Israeli tech companies developing new tools to diagnose the disease, Israeli pharmaceutical companies donating medicines, Israeli researchers sharing their knowledge with colleagues around the world, the Israeli military mobilizing to help those most at risk of contracting Covid-19, and Israel’s national airline delivering millions of masks to an American city.

Meanwhile, Facebook and Twitter posts promoting the #IsraelFights4Humanity hashtag centre on a specially curated album of 19 images, telling the story of Israeli ingenuity and innovation in tackling COVID-19. The album includes information on Israeli efforts to patent a promising new vaccine design, embark on a US FDA-approved trial of a new treatment, advance the effectiveness of surgical masks, enable contact-free monitoring of coronavirus patients, share proprietary information to manufacture more ventilators and more. 

Sacha Roytman-Dratwa, The Combat Anti-Semitism Movement Director commented, “Too often, Jews have been a convenient scapegoat in times of crisis. Sadly, the age of Coronavirus is no different. Just as the pandemic has spread, so has the disease of antisemitism, often in its contemporary form of anti-Zionism. The best way to combat this is through education. That is why it is so important for as many people as possible to understand that Israel is one of humanity’s greatest assets in overcoming COVID-19.

“We encourage as many people as possible to share this important message far and wide. The #IsraelFights4Humanity campaign gives everyone the tools to make a real difference, to change perceptions and ultimately, to defeat the scourge of antisemitism across the world.” 

The Combat Anti-Semitism Movement is a non-partisan, global grassroots movement of individuals and organizations, across all religions and faiths, united around the goal of ending antisemitism in all its forms. Since its launching in February 2019, 250 organizations and 260,000 individuals have joined the Combat Anti-Semitism Movement by signing the campaign’s pledge. The CAM Pledge draws upon the IHRA international definition of anti- Semitism and its list of specific behaviours used to discriminate against the Jewish people and the Jewish State of Israel.

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