The new Jewish resilience

The relentless waves of antisemitism and anti-Zionism that flood our community daily no longer shock or astonish us. What once provoked disbelief is now, disturbingly, part of the ordinary fabric of British Jewish life.

Consider only recent weeks: disruption forcing the postponement of a Jewish cultural event at the British Museum; protesters hounding an Israeli property event in Edgware; Parliament preparing to debate the supposed influence of a “Zionist lobby” on British politics; and the National Association of Muslim Police describing the Israeli Defence Forces as a “Zionist terrorist group” on an official police.uk website.

These are merely a handful of the incidents that have crossed my desk as chair of the Jewish Leadership Council. Beyond them lie countless others, unreported or unremarked, each eroding, in small but cumulative ways, the fabric of Jewish life in this country.

In that context, it is hardly surprising that many members of our community speak, quietly but increasingly openly, of leaving the United Kingdom, disheartened by demographic trends and by the sense that we will become ever more marginal in a landscape where hostile forces grow in number and confidence.

Yet that is not the whole story.

From my vantage point at the centre of communal life, I see something else emerging, something no less real, and perhaps more consequential. I see resilience taking root, and with it a new steel. I see an extraordinary, interwoven network of organisations and individuals collaborating strategically: fundraising, campaigning, innovating, and crucially, refusing to yield ground. I see new institutions being founded, new leadership stepping forward and grassroots movements animated by strength, confidence and determination.

Antisemitism, of course, is not a new phenomenon. It has been a constant through Jewish history and, regrettably, it is unlikely ever to disappear. The struggle against it ebbs and flows. We witnessed this during the battle against Corbynism, when it seemed, for a moment, that a decisive turning point had been reached. In retrospect, however, we addressed only the visible manifestation of a much deeper malaise. The removal of the outward symptom did not cure the underlying condition.

I see new institutions being founded, new leadership stepping forward and grassroots movements animated by strength, confidence and determination

This recognition now drives us to engage at a deeper level, and it is precisely this deeper struggle that I see taking shape. More than two years ago, the Jewish Leadership Council, working alongside communal leaders and professionals, launched the Forge the Future programme: a set of coordinated workstreams designed to strengthen our position across media, law, and civil society. It is a strategic effort to build alliances, develop the next generation of leadership, and modernise our communal infrastructure through digitisation, an initiative we will advance further later this year.

There remains, however, much work to be done. Anti-Zionism continues to permeate the cultural landscape, framing Israel as a uniquely malevolent force in global affairs. This framing, while deeply troubling, is not entirely surprising given the historical tendency to cast Jews, collectively or symbolically, as the source of broader societal grievances. However Israel’s right to exist as a sovereign nation cannot be a subject of debate. It is a moral and political given that is beyond repudiation.

None of this diminishes the reality of suffering in the Middle East. Many within our community continue to hope that a two-state solution might, however imperfectly, offer a path forward in a conflict that has defied resolution for generations.

There is also a clear recognition of the need to condemn violence wherever it occurs, including settler violence in the West Bank and the increasing rate of settlements. Yet it remains equally necessary to acknowledge that durable peace will require a rejection of terror and absolutist rejectionism by Palestinians and their backers without which compromise is politically and psychologically untenable.

The singular focus on this conflict, among many global crises, and the readiness to hold diaspora Jewish communities collectively accountable for it point to a deeper and more troubling reality: that ancient patterns of antisemitism remain alive often, as David Hirsch describes, ‘dressed in the clothes of reason’.

These patterns are amplified, and accelerated, by the unrestrained reach of social media: largely unregulated, susceptible to manipulation, and shaped by malign actors, including states and individuals intent on sowing division. It is a force that not only threatens our community but corrodes the broader civic fabric of western civilisation.

And yet, despite all this our community continues to flourish. Synagogues are fuller, Jewish life remains vibrant, and younger generations are actively seeking deeper engagement and connection. Our charities operate at a high level of excellence, and communal leaders and professionals demonstrate extraordinary commitment.

Certainly, there are challenges ahead. Economic pressures are intensifying, and communal resources are not immune to the broader financial strains facing the country. But we remain a community capable of generating both wealth and purpose, and we remain committed to securing a confident Jewish future in the United Kingdom. And our government must increase its efforts to protect Jewish life and it must cease the relentless demonising of Israel.

At such a moment, our core values have never been more important: caring for others, investing in the next generation, and critically sustaining a belief in ourselves as a community that contributes to the common good. These principles must guide us as we navigate the current environment.

We must neither succumb to despair nor retreat from engagement. Instead, we must remain resolute, clear-eyed about the challenges, confident in our response, and planning, always, for better days ahead.

Keith Black is chair of the Jewish Leadership Council