| | NEWS
Neo-Nazism in Europe
By R. Hofner
The forum for coordinating a battle plan against anti- Semitism which deals with closely following anti-Semitic occurrences throughout the world and working together with various government bodies and Jewish organizations throughout the world, publicized a study dealing with the connection between the rise in unemployment among youth and the rise of the extreme rightist and Neo-Nazi's in Europe. Many commentators attempt to explain the rise in recent years in the number of Neo-Nazi demonstrations and groups by the ills of the economy, such as cuts in expenditures, painful austerity measures and especially because of the rise in unemployment among youth.
According to the Danish Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, the roots of this Neo-Nazi phenomenon, which arose after WWII, are to be found in the `traditional' Nazism, which is comprised mainly of extreme bigotry, racism and chauvinism. Jews are still targeted and many Neo-Nazis deny the Holocaust. One of the major Neo-Nazi parties is the NPD in Germany, where some 6,000 Neo-Nazis live. Despite the ban on Nazi organizations, the uses of the swastika and other symbols, and the denial of the Holocaust in Germany, the federal government in Berlin does not outlaw the activities of the NPD, mainly so that it can keep tabs on their activities and avoid granting them too much publicity.
|
