French President Emmanuel Macron is not the first French president to give a speech at the annual memorial ceremony commemorating the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup in July 1942, when some 13,000 Parisian Jews – a third of them children – were rounded up and taken to a local stadium and subsequently expelled to Nazi concentration and death camps. This operation was the first stage in the flagrant murder of a quarter of French Jewry at the time by the Nazis and their French collaborators.
Indeed, it took France decades to contend with its role in the Holocaust. It has been convenient for France to adopt a historical narrative that the entire country was a part of the anti-German underground resistance. It was only 22 years ago that then-French President Jacques Chirac recognized his country's role in aiding the Nazi extermination machine and officially began revising history. This allowed the public to face the scope of France's collaboration with the Nazis, as well as the fact that the Germans did not need to prod the French authorities too hard to send tens of thousands of Jews to their deaths.
Senior government officials at the time initiated the "purging" of France, mostly from "foreign Jews." Police officers followed their orders efficiently and zealously. This confrontation with history has not been without opposition, as demonstrated by far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen's recent declarations challenging the French Republic's responsibility in the crimes of the Holocaust. As she would have it, the state ceased existing when France fell to Germany – the complicit Vichy government did not represent the "real France."
Anti-Semitism, Macron emphasized, wasn’t born with the Vichy regime, nor did it die after the liberation of France.
Macron's speech at the Vel D'Hiv Roundup memorial ceremony is the most important speech ever given by a French president on anti-Semitism. Macron did not stop at completely rejecting the historical opinion espoused by Le Pen – "We cannot build pride upon a lie" – he expanded on the matter as it pertains to the past and the present.
In his speech, Macron remarked that the Vichy regime's anti-Semitism did not sprout up out of nowhere, but was rather deeply rooted in the political and social realities of the Third Republic that existed before the Nazi occupation. Anti-Semitism and racism, Macron emphasized, were not born with the Vichy regime, nor did they die with its disappearance after the liberation of France from the German occupation. In a brave step, Macron spoke about the murders of Jews in France in recent years. He also called on the French judicial system to explain why the most recent murder, of 65-year-old Sarah Halimi by a Muslim shouting "Allahu akbar," was not recognized as an anti-Semitic hate crime.
Moreover, Macron declared, without embellishing, that anti-Zionism is the new face of anti-Semitism. Macron thus justified his inviting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the memorial ceremony by showing the connection between anti-Semitism and opposing the existence of Israel, the Jewish state.
However, Macron's historic speech contained an especially jarring comparison between the murder of Jews by Muslims and the racism Muslims themselves suffer in France. These are actually two very different phenomena that require different approaches. An attempt to placate the Muslim community and portray it as a victim of modern French society, without calling on this community to combat the radicals within it, is equivalent to the day-to-day silence in the face of racism that Macron himself denounced. Indeed, the modern murderous anti-Semitism in France and Europe is rooted in Islamic circles, and this must be stated clearly, as the president of the Representative Council of French Jewish Institutions did.
Muslims must take responsibility for the radicalism in their communities and integrate into European societies.
Macron has taken it upon himself to bring about an all-encompassing internal reconciliation so that all the French may find their place. This reconciliation necessitates bravely coping with big problems facing immigrant Muslim communities in France and Europe. But it must be stated that those who wish to see us abandon humanity, democracy and liberty all generally come from a specific religious background. Ignoring this fact or denying it will only exacerbate the problem. Internal reconciliation will be facilitated not just by acknowledging that Muslims are victims of European racism, but also by demanding that Muslims take responsibility for the radicalism in their communities and encouraging them to integrate into European societies rather than trying to change them.
(6) Bobby5000, July 27, 2017 12:35 AM
some skepticism
My recollection is Macron combined his speech on France's role with a renewed request for negotiation that would involve Israel's return of all 1967 land. The obvious problem is that this would decrease Israeli security and the underlying problems which prompted the 1967 war itself have not been eliminated. Giving up everything for vague commitments is questionable.
(5) Zehava, July 25, 2017 2:28 AM
Just words
It matters much more what he does than what he says, and the same is true for every politician. Macron continues to allow the mass invasion of people into France who hate Jews and believe murdering us is doing Allah's work, and the outcome is more murder, violence and genocide against Jews. So who cares what Macron says? Le Pen, on the other hand, was for stopping the Islamic invasion...which would have translated into saved Jewish lives. Please be smart my brothers and sisters: open season has been declared against us and we must be smarter than more courageous than our enemies. Not falling for a politicians words, untethered to any meaningful action, is aa good first step.
(4) Anonymous, July 22, 2017 6:38 AM
Plenty of European anti-Semites are not Muslims
There is more than enough anti-Semitism in Europe outside the Muslim immigrant community to justify deep concern. Le Pen, pere et fille, are but two obvious examples. Laying blame solely and broadly on Muslims seems foolish, strategically short-sighted and morally contrary to Jewish principles. Better to follow the example of the U.S. Anti Defamation League and Southern Poverty Law Center: Condemn any and all anti-Semitism, by anyone, of any religious persuasion, period.
(3) Faye Warren, July 21, 2017 6:49 PM
Macron cannot speak od anti-Semitism in the same speech with Muslim radicals who refuze to embrace French society.
Pres. Macron should have kept his comments only to the Jewish people.
(2) Mary, July 21, 2017 5:42 PM
One can not build pride upon a lie.
President Macron spoke out bravely on the problems facing Europe. He took responsibility for the French governments complicity in the deportation of Jews during the Holocaust. He failed to recognize that Antizionism is the new face of antisemetism While there is racism against the Muslims; they must take responsibility for the radicalism of their own people and for the murders of Jews and others.
Zehava, July 25, 2017 2:33 AM
Macron is complicit
It is cowardly to be brave about the past, while allowing the Islamic invasion into France of people whose ideology call for Jewish murder.
(1) Lsrry Schnebly, July 20, 2017 8:20 PM
IT IS BIGOTRY ... NO MATTER WHO SHOWS IT.
to quote from AISH.....
it must be stated that those who wish to see us abandon humanity, democracy and liberty all generally come from a specific religious background. Ignoring this fact or denying it will only exacerbate the problem. Internal reconciliation will be facilitated not just by acknowledging that Muslims are victims of European racism, but also by demanding that Muslims take responsibility for the radicalism in their communities and encouraging them to integrate into European societies rather than trying to change them.
Doug, July 22, 2017 11:51 AM
57 Muslim nations to integrate into
You are a large majority and have persecuted many minorities.
Islam is a dictatorial theology that while all Muslims don't practice it allows for the murder and genocides and wars taught in the Koran and practiced by Mohammad. While crying victim you have conquered the middle east with fire and sword
I say to those who claim the "Palestinian" arm of Islam is a victim --
Let me see if I understand correctly --
Jews, 1/3 of 1% of earth's people 1/2 of whom are defending themselves against genocide on a tiny oil barren piece of land are behind everything evil trying to take over the world
But
Islam, 23% of earth's people who committed the Armenian Genocide, the Bangladeshi, the Southern Sudan, the Darfur, the Western Sahara, the Yazidi, the Bahai, the Parsi and the genocide of all Jews and Christians in Arabia in the 7th Century and conquered the middle east "with fire and sword", committed the Hebron 1929 massacre, ....... The 2015 Paris Massacre, who own the richest nation on earth Qatar, and all the sweet oil wells and Dubai and who got rich on being the biggest slave traders on earth (and still own slaves), the recent genocide of hundreds of thousands of peaceful Christian communities and 112,000 Christian women taken as sex slaves -- they're the religion of peace's innocent victims of the big bad Jooz.
Note -- 20,375 terrorist attacks since 9/11/01 to 2015 by the religion of peace.