Prejudice in Past Pandemics

Accompanying the spread of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) across the globe was a proliferation in anti-Asian hate crimes and political rhetoric. These discriminatory actions mirrored the prejudice exhibited towards other groups in past pandemics, such as Jewish populations in Europe during the Black Death between 1346 and 1353. This study aimed to determine similar patterns relating to and underlying the prejudice seen in past pandemics, focusing on three categories: hate crimes, political rhetoric, and religiosity. Prejudice against Jewish people during the Bubonic plague, Immigrants in America during the 1918 Flu, and Asian Americans during COVID-19 were investigated in this study because of the historical record of existing prejudice against these groups before the start of the pandemics. Overall, this study found that there was no general pattern of hate crimes during past pandemics without accompanying political rhetoric. In addition, there was no general pattern in religiosity in the pandemics studied, suggesting that the prejudice was not fueled by religious motivations. Given the small selection of pandemics analyzed in this study, further analysis with more pandemics could present more robust conclusions.

The Mediterranean Jewish Diaspora of Late Antiquity

No known literary sources survive from Jews living in the Mediterranean diaspora from the early fourth to the end of the sixth century. Mining the writings of non-Jews (primarily Christians), late Roman laws, the physical remains of a few synagogues, donor inscriptions, and numerous epitaphs, this chapter sketches aspects of their lives, including geographic distribution, economics, participation in ancient civic life, communal organizations, communication between Jewish populations, and their possible homogeneity or diversity. It also examines the pressures exerted on Jews to convert to Christianity, including the destruction of synagogues and exclusions from public offices and elite professions, and considers both the efficacy of such pressures and possible Jewish responses.

Perceived injustice, perceived group threat and self-reported right-wing violence: An integrated approach

The present study seeks to explain individual differences in self-reported politically motivated violence and vandalism, and participation within an extreme right-wing group. While violent extremism is highly debated, few criminological studies explicitly test factors that can trigger violent extremism. The present study addresses this gap by integrating two different frameworks: a perceived injustice and group threat-initiated model and an impulsivity-initiated model. We also investigate several intervening mechanisms. We draw on a sample of 705 adolescents and young adults living in Flanders, Belgium to test the strength of direct and intermediary effects of perceived injustice, perceptions of out-group threat from Jewish populations, ethnocentrism, feelings of superiority, moral support for right-wing extremism, and exposure to racist peers on politically motivated violence and vandalism. Results of structural equation models (SEM) indicate various direct and intermediary effects between both perceived injustice and violent extremism, and between impulsivity and violent extremism. Our model reveals the complex and intricate antecedents of violent extremism. Importantly, we find that feelings of injustice and unfair treatment are a major source of extremist violence, as they easily trigger often debated causes such as high in-group identification and ethnocentrism. Implications of these findings for preventing violent extremism are discussed, given the centrality of perceptions of injustice and threat.

JEWISH SOCIAL SCIENCE AND THE ANALYSIS OF JEWISH STATISTICS IN THE EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY

The late nineteenth century saw the multiplication of statistical studies on Jewish populations. This literature is now known as “Jewish Statistics” or “Jewish Social Science” (JSS). This article focuses on the articles published in Zeitschrift für Demographie und Statistik der Juden (Journal for Demography and Statistics of the Jews, ZDSJ). The ZDSJ was the main journal in JSS and appeared from 1905 until 1931.Existing scholarship on JSS has either focused on the influence of Zionism (Hart 2000) or eugenics and race theory (Efron 1994). This article proposes to relate JSS to the history of economics and statistics. As is suggested by the intellectual profile of the main contributors to the ZDSJ, we argue that JSS was a by-product of the German historical school in economics. Though JSS was intended for a mostly Jewish audience, its organization and methods were clearly inspired by those of German economists.

Taste sensitivity to phenylthiocarbamide found in South Sinai Bedouin tribes

The aim of this work was to study taste sensitivity to phenylthiocarbamide (PTC) amongst Bedouin tribes and compare the Bedouins with Arab and Jewish populations. Data obtained by the classic method of serial dilutions in 317 healthy male Bedouins, aged 16–70 belonging to different tribes, were examined. We discovered significant differ­ences in chemosensitivity to PTC in the Bedouin communities. A high frequency of the t allele was documented in the Bedouin tribes of Hamada, Muzeina, and “other Bedouins” and a relatively low level of the t allele frequency in the Gebelia tribe. The frequencies of non-tasters amongst Arab groups were similar in values to those of the Gebelia tribe. Three other Bedouin tribes showed very high values for the non-tasters’ frequencies. The revealed intertribal differ­ences can be explained by the genetic drift in isolated populations, on the other hand, this may be the result of endog­amy.

The Consequences of the Lviv Pogrom on November 22–23, 1918, in Light of the Findings and Actions of the Jewish Rescue Committee

In the areas that became part of the Second Polish Republic, manifestations of antisemitism became more pronounced at the end of World War I and at the beginning of the interwar period. These manifestations often turned into acts of violence against Jews, as became apparent in many towns with Jewish populations. The Lviv pogrom on November 22–23, 1918 was particularly devastating. The Jewish Rescue Committee, established at Lviv at that time, was very active in providing help to the injured, determining the number of casualties and wounded, and determining the extent of material damage resulting from the robberies and acts of destruction, including arson. According to the findings of the Jewish Rescue Committee, 73 people died and 443 were wounded as a result of the pogrom. The estimated material damage amounted to 102,986,839 Kr,[1] with a total of 13,375 people affected. The actions taken by the Jewish Rescue Committee to help the victims were extremely important and effective, but they did not fully satisfy the existing social needs.

Can population BRCA screening be applied in non-Ashkenazi Jewish populations? Experience in Macau population

BackgroundPathogenic mutation in BRCA genes causes high cancer risk. Identifying the mutation carriers plays key roles in preventing BRCA mutation-related cancer. Population screening has demonstrated its power for comprehensive identification of the mutation carriers. However, it is only recommended for the Ashkenazi Jewish population with high prevalence of three founder mutations, but not for non-Ashkenazi Jewish populations as the cost-effectiveness could be too low due to their lower mutation prevalence and lack of founder mutation. Population screening would not benefit the majority of the human population for BRCA mutation-related cancer prevention.MethodsWe used population BRCA screening in 6000 residents, 1% of the Macau population, an ethnic Chinese population with unique genetic, linguistic and cultural features, and its BRCA mutation has not been analysed before.ResultsWe called BRCA variants, identified 18 carriers with 14 pathogenic mutations and determined the prevalence of 0.29% in the population (95% CI 0.15% to 0.42%). We compared the testing cost between the Ashkenazi Jewish population, the Sephardi Jewish population and the Macau population, and observed only a few fold differences.ConclusionOur study shows that testing cost is not the most important factor in considering population BRCA screening, at least for the populations in the developed countries/regions, regardless of the status of mutation prevalence and founder mutation.

Conclusion

This chapter summarizes how the Jews of Europe were in a very different position by the end of the seventeenth century compared to where they had been at the start of the sixteenth century. It points out how Spain had still not reversed its policy on Jews while most parts of Europe had become rather more welcoming to Jews in the interim. It also looks into the Jewish communities of Amsterdam, Frankfurt am Main, Prague, and Venice that exceeded 2,000 people for the first time in the seventeenth century, joining other cities, such as Rome that had already achieved that population in the sixteenth century. The chapter recounts how Jewish communities sprung up in places which had not traditionally been a home to Jews, especially in Eastern Europe. It talks about England and France, which had been the first territories to expel their Jewish populations back in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries but had begun to reverse that policy in the seventeenth century.

Caught in the Crossfire

This chapter focuses on relations between Jews and Christians in the first half of the seventeenth century, which was the era of the Thirty Years War. It highlights the conflict of the Thirty Years War that provided the backdrop to further religious and political developments that shaped Jewish experiences. The chapter describes how the combative form of Catholicism took shape in the wake of the Catholic Reformation in various places, including the Holy Roman Empire. It looks into parts of northern Europe, particularly Germany and the Low Countries, that began to be more welcoming to Jewish populations. It also illustrates the contrast between repressive Catholicism and a more welcoming form of Protestantism.