Ronson: ‘We are not a community in crisis – we are thriving’

The CST’s chair has said it “infuriates” him when “some Israelis and Americans tell us that there is no future for this community” writes Justin Cohen.

In a passionate address to guests at the charity’s annual dinner, Gerald Ronson highlighting the threats facing Anglo-Jewry but urged community members to refuse to be defined by hatred against anti-Semitism.

“Look at everything we have built in the last ten years – the schools, the community centres, the old age homes and the new synagogues. You all play a part in that, donating to charities, giving your time.

“That is why it infuriates me when some Israelis and Americans tell us that there is no future for this community, and when they even dare to imply that we simply take it all lying down. This is not a community in crisis, actually it is a thriving community – but it is a critical time for this community.”

Ronson hailed the heroism of Muslim shop worker Lassana Bathily during the attack on a kosher supermarket in Paris and pledged that CST “always has and always will” vwork with Muslims fighting anti-Semitism and extremism.

“But it is also correct to say that levels of anti-semitism in Muslim communities in Britain, France and elsewhere is far too high. It is correct to say their belief in scapegoat conspiracy theories about Jews, Zionists and Israel are not only ridiculous, but frankly deranged.

“It is correct to demand that people stop talking about anti-Semitism and Islamophobia as if they are two sides of the same coin. Above all, it is correct to say that Jihadi terrorism poses a serious threat to the life and limbs of Jews and all Western countries.”