The Birkbeck Institute for the Study of Antisemitism is a centre of innovative research and teaching on antisemitism, racialization and religious intolerance. It contributes to knowledge and understanding, policy formation and public debate.
The Birkbeck Institute for the Study of Antisemitism was established in 2010 by Birkbeck, University of London and Pears Foundation.
We are the only university centre in the UK dedicated to the study of antisemitism and one of only two in Europe. The Institute is renowned internationally for its innovative research and teaching.
Our work is framed by our conviction that antisemitism is a distinctive form of racism. Through our research and public activity we establish points of connection between the problem of antisemitism and the challenge of racisms more broadly.
Our scholarship contributes to public debate on antisemitism, racialization and religious intolerance and we provide expertise and advice to a wide range of institutions in the UK, Europe and the wider world.
The Birkbeck Institute for the Study of Antisemitism is both independent and inclusive.
This lecture will bring together the narratives and memories of two suffering groups of people: the victims of the concentration camps and ghettos in Europe and the slave plantations in the American South.
In this talk, Professor Arie Dubnov will explore the multifaceted perception of Gaza within Israeli culture, revealing the complex dynamics within Israeli responses to October 7th.
In this talk, Magda Teter, the author of ‘Christian Supremacy: Reckoning with the Roots of Antisemitism and Racism’, will explore the interplay between Christian theology and law that led to the creation of social hierarchies, legal exclusion of and a denial of equality to Jews and Black people. She will argue that this troubling legacy still haunts us today.
David Feldman discusses how stereotypes and conspiracy theories about Jews have become a part of our common culture.
As part of the international academic community, Birkbeck academics express their grave concern about the destruction of educational and academic institutions in Gaza and the loss of life experienced by academics and researchers, some of whom were University of London alumni.
The war in Gaza reverberates globally. One consequence is renewed controversy over when criticism of Israel and support for Palestinian rights becomes antisemitic. This debate has been crystallized by two definitions of antisemitism: the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance Working Definition of Antisemitism and the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism.
In this talk, Professor Frank Trentmann draws on his new book, ‘Out of the Darkness’, to put current developments in historical perspective. Through this book, he seeks to answer a central question: How have the Germans changed since 1942 and why? And who are they now?
The Birkbeck Institute for the Study of Antisemitism is the only centre in the UK, and one of only two centres in Europe, whose mission is to promote understanding of antisemitism.
