"...Ever since I came here people have been shouting 'F***ing Jew' and 'Heil Hitler' at me." - Rabbi Shneur Kesselman, Malmö, Sweden
Malmö, Sweden’s third largest city was once a haven for Holocaust survivors. In 2012, itsrabbi and his family suffer continual anti-Semitic abuse and hate attacks which Malmö’s police ignore. At the same time, Malmö’spowerful mayor, Ilmar Reepalu scapegoats Jews as loyal only to Israel. Instead of protecting the small Jewish community,hedenies any responsibility for the outrageous situation, dismissingcriticism his record as the work of the "Israel lobby".
The Simon Wiesenthal Center has called out Reepalu’s bigotry and stood with Malmö’s tinyembattled Jewish community. In the last few years, the SWC has:
• Met with Swedish Justice Minister Beatrice Ask in Stockholm in 2010 to express our concerns forthe Jewish citizens of Malmö
• Confronted Mayor Reepalu in a face-to-face meeting, and alsomet with Malmö’s Police Chief Ulf Sempert (middle) and other senior officials
• Issued a travel advisory to Malmö urging extreme caution as a result of the failure of Malmö’s officials to provide basicprotection to its Jews—the travel advisory remains in place.
• Urged measures be taken against rampant anti-Semitism in Malmö during an address in Prague delivered to the 56 countryOrganization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
• Helped secure government funding for Swedish Jewish institutions to better protect the community frompotential terrorist threats
• Briefed the US State Department Special Envoy on Anti-Semitismin Washington, DC and in Malmö prior to her meeting with Malmö’s mayor
• Published articles and op/ed pieces on the situation in Malmö in blogs, through social networking, and in newspapers andpublications around the world
• Screened the Center’s Academy Award™-winning documentary,Genocide to community activists in Malmö
• Participated in a seminar at Malmö University on "Anti-Semitism and Islamophobia" which prompted a heateddebate
• Distributed Swedish language brochures of the Center’sTop Ten Anti-Israel Lies
All of this has beenaccomplished against the backdrop of meetings with Jewish, Muslim, and Roma community leaders, city officials, and Malmo’s Police Chief.
