The Antisemitism in Comparative Perspective Seminar Series

Anti-Judaism, or the controversial term coined in the 1870s by Wilhelm Marr, Antisemitism, is one of the most complex and, at times, perplexing forms of hatred. It spans history, infecting different societies, religious and philosophical movements, and even civilizations. In the aftermath of the Holocaust, some contend that Antisemitism illustrates the limitations of the Enlightenment and modernity itself. Manifestations of Antisemitism emerge in numerous ideological based narratives and the constructed identities of belonging and otherness such as race and ethnicity, nationalisms, and anti-nationalisms.

The ISGAP seminar series aims to explore this subject matter in a comprehensive, interdisciplinary framework from an array of approaches and perspectives as well as regional contexts. Eminent scholars and researchers are invited to present seminar papers in an informal setting.

Given ISGAP’s commitment to digitizing our research and seminars, ISGAP will release one of its leading seminar series videos from our vast archive every Friday. In this period of uncertainty, this weekly feature will serve as an important reminder of the origins of the contemporary challenges we all face in battling antisemitism.
 
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Released July 3, 2020
Prof. Dr. Emeritus Bassam Tibi, University of Goettingen
“The Islamist Islamization of Antisemitsim”
Location: Yale University
YIISA/IASA “Global Antisemitism: A Crisis of Modernity” Conference
August 24, 2010
 
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Released June 26, 2020
Melanie Phillips, British Journalist, Broadcaster and Author
“Islamophobia and Antisemitism: A Dangerous Comparison”
Location: ISGAP Center, New York City
“ISGAP Antisemitism in Comparative Perspective Seminar Series”
April 4, 2016
 
 
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Released June 19, 2020
Justice Elyakim Rubinstein, Supreme Court Justice of Israel, 2005-2017; Attorney General of Israel, 1997-2004
“Reflections on Antisemitism and Israel”
Location: Harvard Law School
“Harvard Law School Event, as part of the YIISA/ISGAP Antisemitism in Comparative Perspective Seminar Series”
April 3, 2013
 
 
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Released June 12, 2020
Professor David Patterson, Hillel Feinberg Chair in Holocaust Studies, Ackerman Center for Holocaust Studies, University of Texas at Dallas
Professor Dr. Bassam Tibi, Professor Emeritus for International Relations, University of Goettingen
Joseph Braude, Advisor, Al-Mesbar Studies and Research Center, Strategic Advisor, America Abroad Media, Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy Research Institute
“The Issue of Islamist Antisemitism”
Location: St. John’s College, Oxford University
“2019 ISGAP-Oxford Summer Institute for Curriculum Development in Critical Antisemitism Studies”
July 7, 2019
 
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Released June 5, 2020
Dr. Charles Asher Small, Executive Director, ISGAP; Research Scholar, St. Antony’s College, Oxford
“The Silence of the Human Rights Community Amid the Threat of Contemporary Global Antisemitism, Demonisation and Incitement Against the Jewish People”
Location: United Nations Headquarters, New York
“The Human Rights Dimension: Addressing the “new” Antisemitism and Related Intolerance”, sponsored by the Engr Eze Foundation, Proclaiming Justice to The Nations (PJTN), and the World Council of Independent Christian Churches (WCICC)
April 28, 2014
 
 
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Released May 28, 2020
Professor Alberto Nisman, Universidad Nacional de Buenos Aires; General Prosecutor in the Terrorist Attack Against the Argentine Jewish Community Center
“International Terrorism and Antisemitism: The Islamic Fundamentalism’s Attacks in Argentina”
Translation by Samuel Eppel, Director, Human Rights Commission, B’nei Brith Venezuela
“Global Antisemitism” Plenary Session as part of the YIISA/IASA “Global Antisemitism: A Crisis of Modernity” Conference
August 24, 2010
 
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Released May 22, 2020
Dr. Charles Asher Small, Executive Director, ISGAP; Research Scholar, St. Antony’s College, Oxford
“The Roots of Contemporary Antisemitism, the Alt-Right, the Muslim Brotherhood and the Iranian Revolutionary Regime”
Columbia University event as part of YIISA/ISGAP Antisemitism in Comparative Perspective Seminar Series
February 23, 2017
 
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Released May 15, 2020
Professor Deborah Lipstadt, Emory University: “The Iranian President, the Canadian Professor, the Literary Journal and the Holocaust Denial Conference that Never Was”
Professor Walter Reich, George Washington University: “The Rabbi and the President: Don’t Give Us the Holocaust at the Expense of Israel”
Professor Dina Porat, Tel Aviv University: “Are Events in the Middle East Indeed the Source of Global New Antisemitism?”
“Contemporary Antisemitism and the Delegitimization of Israel”
Yale University event as part of YIISA/ISGAP “Global Antisemitism: A Crisis of Modernity Conference”
August 24, 2010
 
 
At the “Global Antisemitism: A Crisis of Modernity Conference”, in August 2010 at Yale University, a special panel was held on the topic of “Contemporary Antisemitism and the Delegitimization of Israel”. The panel featured Professor Deborah Lipstadt, Professor Walter Reich and Professor Dina Porat. The esteemed scholars assessed how contemporary antisemitic forces were attempting to delegitimize the state of Israel. The discussion covers a range of issues that continue to shape events.
 
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Released May 8, 2020
Professor Ruth Wisse, Harvard University, Co-Chair of International Academic Board of Advisors, ISGAP 
“How do we put an End to Antisemitism: No, really. How do we?”
Yale University event as part of YIISA/ISGAP “Global Antisemitism: A Crisis of Modernity Conference”
August 23, 2010
 
 
Professor Ruth Wisse attempted to address a profound question at the “Global Antisemitism: A Crisis of Modernity Conference”, in August 2010 at Yale University. An idea that is rarely ever considered, Professor Wisse introduced this question, and of why antisemitism remains as persistent as ever, while other political scourges, such as fascism and communism, have diminished. She explains how antisemitism’s misdirection is allowing it to continue to thrive in the 21st century.
 
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Released May 1, 2020
Haras Rafiq, Quilliam CEO, Founding Director of CENTRI (Counter Extremism Consultancy, Training, Research and Interventions)
“Pathways to Extremism and Radicalisation”
Columbia University event as part of YIISA/ISGAP Antisemitism in Comparative Perspective Seminar Series
November 6, 2013
 
 
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Ambassador Ephraim Halevy, Head of the Center for Strategic Policy Studies, Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s School of Public Policy (2003-2011); Former Director of Mossad, Israel
“Sovereignties and Players Local and International – Old and New – Struggling to Reshape a Crumbling Middle East Landscape. Quo Vadis?”
Antisemitism in Comparative Perspective Seminar Series at Columbia University
April 2, 2014
 
 
Today’s Middle East is a geopolitical flashpoint involving numerous regional actors and international players. During a Columbia University seminar in April 2014, Ambassador Ephraim Halevy displayed his wide-ranging expertise on the region’s affairs, dissecting the realities of the complex environment, and making important observations that carry weight in understanding the Middle East’s path forward.
 
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Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Founder, AHA Foundation, Author and Women’s Rights Activist
Dr. Charles Asher Small, Executive Director, ISGAP; Research Scholar, St. Antony’s College, Oxford
“Keynote Interview with Ayaan Hirsi Ali: The Special Case of Islamist Antisemitism”
2019 ISGAP-Oxford Summer Institute for Curriculum Development in Critical Contemporary Antisemitism Studies
July 11, 2019
 
 
As part of the 2019 ISGAP-Oxford Summer Institute, a keynote interview was organized between the founder of the AHA Foundation, Women’s Rights Activist Ayaan Hirsi Ali, and ISGAP Executive Director Dr. Charles Asher Small. The conversation explores crucial aspects of Islamist Antisemitism, including the origins of the ideology, the West’s failure to unite against this dangerous worldview, and Ayaan Hirsi Ali’s efforts to battle the ideology.
 
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Professor Alan Dershowitz, Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law at Harvard Law School
Daniel Sibony, French Philosopher and Psychoanalyst
Dr. Charles Asher Small, Executive Director, ISGAP; Research Scholar, St. Antony’s College, Oxford
“Is A Legal Remedy to Iran’s Nuclear Weapons Program and Incitement to Genocide Still Possible?”
YIISA/ISGAP Antisemitism in Comparative Perspective Seminar Series
October 17, 2012
 
 
An intractable dilemma that has mystified the global community, Iran’s nuclear weapons program has been an international crisis decades in the making. Back in October 2012, when the Joint Comprehensive Plan Of Action was on the cusp of being signed by the P5+1, including the Obama Administration, ISGAP organized a program at Harvard Law School to assess whether a legal remedy was possible. The engaging conversation examined the ideological roots of the Iranian Regime. The event featured ISGAP Executive Director, Dr. Charles Asher Small, ISGAP Chair of the Academic Board of Advisors, Professor Alan Dershowitz, and French Philosopher and Psychoanalyst, Daniel Sibony.
 
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Professor Robert S. Wistrich, Former Director, the Vial Sassoon International Center for the Study of Antisemitism (SICSA)
“A Lethal Obsession: Antisemitism From Antiquity to the Global Jihad”
YIISA/ISGAP Antisemitism in Comparative Perspective Seminar Series
January 22, 2010
 
 
Professor Robert S. Wistrich provides a broad outline of the key themes in his book, A Lethal Obsession: Antisemitism From Antiquity to the Global Jihad. Wistrich’s book, which took two decades to complete, examines the long and ugly history of antisemitism. The author’s lecture reveals the causes behind this shameful and persistent form of hatred and offers a sobering look at how it may shake and reshape the world for years to come.
 
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Dr. Charles Asher Small, Executive Director, ISGAP; Research Scholar, St. Antony’s College, Oxford
“Islamist Funding of U.S. Universities”
Department of Justice Summit on Combatting Antisemitism
July 15, 2019
 
 
Dr. Small presented findings from ISGAP’s seven-year research project called “Follow The Money”, which examines political radical Islamist funding of U.S. universities. The project was led by Dr. Small, with Dr. Glen Feder, an expert on the Muslim Brotherhood in the United States, and a top investigative accountant, Michael Bass. The research discovered funds entering U.S. universities from Middle Eastern and domestic corporations. The findings ascertained that some of the funds provided to the universities were not reported in full to the IRS or the Department of Education.
The Conference was held under the aegis of the U.S. Department of Justice in DC, featuring remarks by Attorney General William P. Barr, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, Elan S. Carr, Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, Secretary of the Treasury Steven T. Mnuchin and FBI Director Christopher A. Wray.