NOA Italian Report Card Findings Now Available!
22/11/2023
Jewish people throughout Europe must be guaranteed full enjoyment of democratic life and citizenship. Greater coordination of all institutional and civil society actors engaged in the fight against antisemitism is essential to improve governmental responses. Recognition of the Jewish contribution to European societies and the promotion of Jewish life are essential pillars for overcoming prejudice and creating inclusive spaces in which Jewish communities can flourish.
Melissa Sonnino, Senior Programme Manager at CEJI and Director of the Facing Facts Network.
The national scorecard on government measures to counter antisemitism and promote Jewish life was presented on 22 November. The NOA Italy scorecard illustrates the current policy landscape in 10 areas: culture, education, hate crimes, hate speech, Holocaust remembrance, intercultural dialogue, media, religious freedom, security and sport. The research shows that there is still much that the Italian government can and must do to combat antisemitism.
The report highlighted the following key findings:
- The country holds strength in legislation addressing the most serious and growing forms of antisemitism, such as security laws, hate crimes and hate speech; however, it is weaker in implementing measures to prevent discrimination against Jewish individuals and communities.
- The highest-scoring policy area is religious freedom, with a longstanding policy framework in place despite a legislative landscape that is not fully defined; this is probably a reflection of the particular nature of Church-State relations in Italy.
- The next two policy areas receiving the highest scores are security and the memory of the Shoah. This shows that significant steps have been taken towards the country’s recognition of its responsibility towards Jewish citizens throughout history to date.
- The areas with the greatest opportunities for improvement and impact are education, culture, sports, intercultural dialogue, media and the monitoring of hate speech and hate crimes. These areas of political action are essential to strengthen society’s resilience to extremism and prevent the escalation of antisemitism.
- Coordination and communication are often identified as ‘weak points’ in the implementation of the Italian National Strategy for Combating antisemitism.
Katarina Von Schnurbein, European Commission Coordinator for Combating Antisemitism and Promoting Jewish Life, noted that “it is great to see this EU-funded project coming to fruition. The NOA scorecards help to identify strengths and weaknesses in preventing and combating antisemitism in 10 policy areas, from education to security and sports. This will enable targeted and specific actions to be taken”.
You can find the NOA Italy Report Card here in English, and here in Italian.
INFORMATION ON THE NOA PROJECT
NOA (Networks Overcoming Antisemitism) uses a pioneering approach to tackling the problem of growing antisemitism in Europe: through a unique partnership with leading Jewish networks, it shapes EU Member States’ policies in all areas, helping them to develop holistic national action plans to tackle and prevent antisemitism and promote Jewish life. For more information, please visit: www.noa-project.eu
ABOUT CEJI – MAIN PARTNER OF THE NOA PROJECT
CEJI – A Jewish Contribution to an Inclusive Europe stands with people from all backgrounds to promote a Europe based on diversity and respect. A Jewish voice at the European level, our activities include: providing education to promote diversity, strengthening interreligious and intercultural dialogue, and working within the European Union against antisemitism and discrimination of all kinds. For more information, please visit: www.ceji.org
