Innovative, Independent, Inclusive

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.

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Seminars, conferences, workshops, public lectures

Study

Public courses, undergraduate and postgraduate teaching, MPhil/PhDs

Resources

Books, essays, reports, comment, podcasts

Research

Projects, partnerships, networks, fellowships

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WORLD LEADING EXPERTISE

Birkbeck Institute for the Study of Antisemitism

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. 

 Explore the Institute

Activity

What's On

Old and New Antisemitism in France

SEMINAR SERIES | ANTISEMITISM NOW

23rd May, 2023

Old and New Antisemitism in France

Nonna Mayer, Centre d’études européennes et de politique comparée, Sciences Po/CNRS

In this seminar, Nonna Mayer addresses the question whether “old” antisemitism in France has been replaced by the rise of new forms of prejudice emanating from the far left and from among Muslims, driven by hatred of Israel and Zionism.

Antisemitic Conspiracy Theories

Antisemitic Conspiracy Theories

David Feldman

Research Project

In the global present, antisemitism thrives on conspiracy theories, yet to date scholars have paid little attention to their content. This project will provide a pathbreaking inventory and analysis of global antisemitic conspiracy theories and their claims to comprehend power relations both locally and globally. It will shed a unique light on the contemporary threat to democratic life and its connection to antisemitism.

The Jewish Guard in Kraków 1918-1919

The Jewish Guard in Kraków 1918-1919

Jan Rybak

Galitzianer, December 2022

Jan Rubak explores the Jewish militia established in Kraków during the collapse of the Habsburg Empire and the establishment of the Second Polish Republic, situating it in the context of local state building and anti-Jewish violence and self-defence.

The Holocaust and the British Empire: Detention, Displacement and the Legacies of Britain’s Colonial Camps

Throughout the twentieth century, Britain used its network of imperial holdings as sites of detention, not only for migrants and refugees, but for civilians and political insurgents. One of the largest cohorts to be interned across the Empire were European Jews. This research project seeks to uncover the neglected histories of these detention sites and explores interconnections with the legacies of empire and decolonisation.

Europe’s Jewish Battalions: Jewish Self-Defence and the Making of Europe’s Long Nineteenth Century

Seminar | For Scholars

25th January, 2023

Europe’s Jewish Battalions: Jewish Self-Defence and the Making of Europe’s Long Nineteenth Century

Jan Rybak, Birkbeck Institute for the Study of Antisemitism, University of London

In the upheavals, wars, and revolutions that shaped Central and Eastern Europe in the long nineteenth century, Jews found themselves both as victims of violence and as active participants. Dr Jan Rybak analyses the recurring phenomenon of Jewish armed self-organisation and self-defence. Jews participated in the violent transformation of the region, fighting simultaneously for their own protection and their emancipation and to reshape the societies in which they lived.

The Yiddish Press 1890-1920: A Global History

The Yiddish Press 1890-1920: A Global History

William Pimlott

Research Project

This research project studies the growth of the Yiddish press internationally in the years 1890-1920 and the extent of its capacity to articulate, mediate, contribute to, and delimit modern Jewish politics and culture, as well as intervene in transnational phenomena such as antisemitism and the White Slave Trade.

Professor David Feldman, Director – 2

In an age of populism and nationalism it is more important than ever to understand the connections between antisemitism and other forms of racialization.

Professor David Feldman, Director

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