The meanings of antisemitism in the UK

In recent years accusations of antisemitism have figured in British political debate as never before. Invariably, the people charged with antisemitism deny the accusation. In this lecture David Feldman argues that these arguments are built upon larger conceptual disagreements over how to define and recognise antisemitism. He will explore the historical roots of these divergent conceptions of antisemitism and explore their implications for academic research and political conflict in the present.

David Feldman is Director of the Pears Institute for the study of Antisemitism and Professor of History at Birkbeck, University of London. He is the author of Englishmen and Jews: Social Relations and Political culture, 1840-1914 (1994). He is the co-editor of a number of volumes including Paths of Integration: Migrants in Western Europe, 1880-2004 (2006), Post-War Reconstruction in Europe. International Perspectives, 1945-49 (2011), Structures and Transformations in Modern British History (2011) and Blood: Uniting and Dividing (2015).

Moderation: Professor Dr. Cordelia Heß