Saturday, November 24, 2007

Paris Jews face growing anti-Semitism

"Jewish residents of neighborhood mainly populated by Muslims subjected to repeated assaults of anti-Semitic nature."
"The neighborhood had already experienced a tragedy linked to racial tensions four years ago, when a Muslim resident of the area murdered a Jewish resident, 23-year-old Sebastian Selam. "Mom, I have killed my Jew and I'm going to heaven," the killer told his mother after he committed the crime."
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3474776,00.html

Ilan Halimi was not the end....All French Jews should make Aliya ASAP!

I remember when I visited France this summer and I visited to the Grand Synagogue in Marseilles. It was a beautiful place with great acoustics. But when I was walking around the synagogue, I was stopped several times and asked what I was doing here and whether I was Jewish (it was an Orthodox synagogue and I was wearing a sleeveless dress.) Outside of the synagogue, I said "Shalom" to a Orthodox couple, but they looked at me fearfully and hurried away.
I think one of the biggest obstacles is money for these Jews. I talked to one lady at the synagogue who said she would love to make aliya, but she simply did not think she could afford it as a single mother.
In Nice, I met a Parisian Jew and to my surprise, he said they "have no problems." How can people be so deeply in denial? Maybe it is the Parisian pride, because the Marsellies Jews warned me not to wear my star-of-David in public. The synagogue in Nice would not even let me in, and told me to come back during visiting hours (although clearly, someone was in there. Guess they were too concerned about security).

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