Media Release
Wednesday 30 March 2022
Known as the oldest form of racism, a new study about the views of New Zealanders towards Jewish people shows concerning levels of antisemitism in Aotearoa New Zealand today.
The Antisemitism Survey of New Zealand 2021 was conducted by Curia Research and put 18 internationally recognised statements to just over one thousand New Zealanders to measure antisemitism sentiment.
It found that 63% of New Zealanders agree with at least one antisemitic view and 6% hold nine or more antisemitic views out of the 18 questions posed to quantify antisemitic views.
Former New Zealand Chief Science Advisor Sir Peter Gluckman wrote the foreword for the survey which follows a sharp rise in antisemitic incidents in New Zealand in the past few years.
“This survey shows that classic antisemitism has re-emerged – particularly during the pandemic – as Holocaust denial and has become conflated with conspiracy theories and alt-right politics.
“Another recent trend is the global emergence of left wing antisemitism. While most forms of discrimination are unacceptable in progressive thinking, antisemitism does not seem to count as racism because Jews can be accused of ‘white privilege’ and hatred can be hidden under a cloak of Zionophobia, or anti-Israel sentiment.
“History tells us that whenever societal cohesion breaks down or is at risk, antisemitic attitudes, memes and actions soon surface,” Sir Peter Gluckman says.
The survey was undertaken on behalf of the New Zealand Jewish Council with funding from the Ministry of Ethnic Communities.
Jewish Council spokesperson Juliet Moses says it shows some New Zealanders still believe in stubborn and dangerous myths, or tropes, about Jewish people.
“About one in five New Zealanders, or 17%, believe Jews have too much power in international financial markets, and one in 10 believe Jews have too much control over the global media.
“This survey is an important tool in exposing these alarming beliefs. These falsehoods make Jewish communities a target when people are looking to lay blame for tough times.
“History has taught us this hatred doesn’t stop at Jewish communities. It spreads to other ethnic communities,” Juliet Moses says.
The survey also asked about New Zealanders’ understanding of what occurred during the Holocaust.
Of those surveyed only 42% could correctly identify that six million Jewish people were killed in the Holocaust. One fifth, or 17%, said they knew virtually nothing about the Holocaust.
Holocaust Centre of New Zealand chair Deborah Hart says the survey shows the need for Holocaust education.
“This survey represents the views of everyday New Zealanders. We recently saw an extreme side of this lack of understanding in the gross misuse of Holocaust references at the protest at Parliament.
“If people understand what the Holocaust actually was, it is a significant buffer against the rise of antisemitism and other forms of racism that can lead to genocide. Holocaust education is a safeguard for civil society. Deborah Hart says.
Wellington Jewish Council chair and one of the founders of the National Interfaith Forums, David Zwartz, says the survey offers a solution to racism.
“Perhaps unsurprisingly, it found that warmth towards ethnic and religious groups increases when people personally know a member of that community.
“The simplest way to fight racism is to get to know each other, and do things together. When communities understand each other, they build trust and are able to put their judgements aside. They can embrace their similarities as well as their differences.
Juliet Moses says the Jewish Council thanks the Ministry for Ethnic Communities for their support, pointing out that such a survey has important lessons for all Aotearoa New Zealand’s minority ethnic and religious communities, not just the Jews.
“Many New Zealanders may be surprised to learn the Muslim and Jewish communities have had a close relationship for many years and the 2019 Mosque attacks brought us even closer together. Trust and understanding are the most powerful antidotes to racism,” Juliet Moses says.
Background information:
- The New Zealand Jewish Council is the representative body of Jewish communities in New Zealand. There are congregations in Auckland, Waikato, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch and Dunedin. There are approximately 10,000 Jews in New Zealand with the largest population in Auckland followed by Wellington.
- The New Zealand Jewish community works with a number of other ethnic and faith communities including the Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand, the Bahá’í Faith of New Zealand and through interfaith forums.
- The New Zealand Jewish Council is working closely with the Government on its social cohesion programme in response to the Royal Commission into the Mosque Attacks.
- The Holocaust Centre of New Zealand is the country’s national Holocaust education and remembrance centre. It inspires and empowers action against antisemitism, discrimination, and apathy by remembering, educating, and bearing witness to the Holocaust.
- A copy of the Antisemitism Survey of New Zealand 2021 report can be found at www.nzjc.org.nz/AntisemitismNewZealand2021.pdf
Media contact: Danya Levy 021 996 010
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