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| Passover in Glasgow: gefilte fish, rising fear and fewer Jews | Passover in Glasgow: gefilte fish, rising fear and fewer Jews |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| Stocks of Doreen Cohen’s legendary home-made gefilte fish were running low in Scotland’s only kosher delicatessen this week, as customers filled baskets and trolleys with traditional Passover foods. | Stocks of Doreen Cohen’s legendary home-made gefilte fish were running low in Scotland’s only kosher delicatessen this week, as customers filled baskets and trolleys with traditional Passover foods. |
| Despite retiring five years ago as caterer to Glasgow’s Jewish community, Cohen spent three days this week making 250kg of the delicacy ahead of the eight-day Jewish holiday which starts at sundown on Friday. | Despite retiring five years ago as caterer to Glasgow’s Jewish community, Cohen spent three days this week making 250kg of the delicacy ahead of the eight-day Jewish holiday which starts at sundown on Friday. |
| Related: A new exodus? The reality of being Jewish in Europe today | Related: A new exodus? The reality of being Jewish in Europe today |
| “We basically empty the North Sea of fish for one week a year,” said Doreen’s son Mark, 41. “Everyone wants our gefilte fish because it’s very, very good – and no one wants to stink out their house making it themselves.” And, he added, “people of my age and younger don’t know how to make gefilte fish from scratch. The traditional recipes and skills are dying out with the older generation.” | “We basically empty the North Sea of fish for one week a year,” said Doreen’s son Mark, 41. “Everyone wants our gefilte fish because it’s very, very good – and no one wants to stink out their house making it themselves.” And, he added, “people of my age and younger don’t know how to make gefilte fish from scratch. The traditional recipes and skills are dying out with the older generation.” |
| The Cohens supply kosher food to their local community in south Glasgow and deliver to Jewish homes across Scotland. Parcels from Mark’s Deli have been dispatched to Inverness and Aberdeen in recent days; the shop has been heaving with customers all week. | The Cohens supply kosher food to their local community in south Glasgow and deliver to Jewish homes across Scotland. Parcels from Mark’s Deli have been dispatched to Inverness and Aberdeen in recent days; the shop has been heaving with customers all week. |
| But frenetic preparations for Passover mask an underlying picture of declining numbers of Jews in Scotland. In Glasgow, the community’s traditional heartland, the fall has been particularly marked. Between the censuses of 2001 and 2011, the number of people in Glasgow declaring they were Jewish dropped by about 20%, from 4,222 to 3,396. Even though many dispute the accuracy of census figures, no one denies a significant shrinkage. | But frenetic preparations for Passover mask an underlying picture of declining numbers of Jews in Scotland. In Glasgow, the community’s traditional heartland, the fall has been particularly marked. Between the censuses of 2001 and 2011, the number of people in Glasgow declaring they were Jewish dropped by about 20%, from 4,222 to 3,396. Even though many dispute the accuracy of census figures, no one denies a significant shrinkage. |
| Another profound change has occurred in the last couple of years: unease and fear have crept into the community, triggered by hostility generated by the 2014 Gaza war and reinforced by terrorist attacks against Jewish targets in Europe. | Another profound change has occurred in the last couple of years: unease and fear have crept into the community, triggered by hostility generated by the 2014 Gaza war and reinforced by terrorist attacks against Jewish targets in Europe. |
| “There has been a palpable shift in people’s attitudes,” said Ephraim Borowski, director of the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities (ScoJeC). “Significant numbers have been telling us they don’t feel safe, that for the first time ever they are wondering whether to stay in Scotland, or they’re reluctant to tell people they’re Jewish. People are feeling anxious, alienated and fearful.” | “There has been a palpable shift in people’s attitudes,” said Ephraim Borowski, director of the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities (ScoJeC). “Significant numbers have been telling us they don’t feel safe, that for the first time ever they are wondering whether to stay in Scotland, or they’re reluctant to tell people they’re Jewish. People are feeling anxious, alienated and fearful.” |
| There have been Jews in Scotland since the end of the 18th century, but the modern community derives largely from eastern European immigrants arriving from the beginning of the 20th century. The community reached a peak of 20,000 with the arrival of refugees from Nazi Europe. The majority settled in Glasgow, mainly in the Gorbals area. | There have been Jews in Scotland since the end of the 18th century, but the modern community derives largely from eastern European immigrants arriving from the beginning of the 20th century. The community reached a peak of 20,000 with the arrival of refugees from Nazi Europe. The majority settled in Glasgow, mainly in the Gorbals area. |
| But in recent decades, demographics, relocation and assimilation have combined to turn the trajectory downwards. Younger Jews have left to work in London, Manchester or the US; some have decided to make their home in Israel. Increasingly, their parents have followed to be near to children and grandchildren. A rising number of younger Jews are marrying or creating families with non-Jews, which can weaken their Jewish identity. A growing rejection of organised religion, seen across almost all faith groups, means falling attendances at synagogues. Several in Glasgow have been sold for redevelopment; another closure is imminent. | But in recent decades, demographics, relocation and assimilation have combined to turn the trajectory downwards. Younger Jews have left to work in London, Manchester or the US; some have decided to make their home in Israel. Increasingly, their parents have followed to be near to children and grandchildren. A rising number of younger Jews are marrying or creating families with non-Jews, which can weaken their Jewish identity. A growing rejection of organised religion, seen across almost all faith groups, means falling attendances at synagogues. Several in Glasgow have been sold for redevelopment; another closure is imminent. |
| But Glasgow is still the fourth largest Jewish community in the UK, after London, Manchester and Leeds. “Our numbers may be falling, but we are a strong, vibrant community,” said Paul Morron of the Glasgow Jewish Representative Council. He pointed to Calderwood Lodge primary, Scotland’s only Jewish school, as a cohesive factor. Alongside the standard curriculum, it teaches Hebrew and Judaism, holds Shabbat (Jewish sabbath) ceremonies on Friday afternoons and organises its terms around Jewish holidays. | But Glasgow is still the fourth largest Jewish community in the UK, after London, Manchester and Leeds. “Our numbers may be falling, but we are a strong, vibrant community,” said Paul Morron of the Glasgow Jewish Representative Council. He pointed to Calderwood Lodge primary, Scotland’s only Jewish school, as a cohesive factor. Alongside the standard curriculum, it teaches Hebrew and Judaism, holds Shabbat (Jewish sabbath) ceremonies on Friday afternoons and organises its terms around Jewish holidays. |
| Despite a rise in registrations of Jewish children in the past two years, a third of the pupils are Muslim. “There has never been an opt-out, all the Muslim kids learn Hebrew and the Talmud [Jewish instruction],” said Morron. | Despite a rise in registrations of Jewish children in the past two years, a third of the pupils are Muslim. “There has never been an opt-out, all the Muslim kids learn Hebrew and the Talmud [Jewish instruction],” said Morron. |
| The school will relocate to new purpose-built site next summer, which it will share with a Catholic primary in what is claimed to be a world first. “This is a big filip for the community, and sends a great message in this day and age, that we can all cooperate with each other.” | The school will relocate to new purpose-built site next summer, which it will share with a Catholic primary in what is claimed to be a world first. “This is a big filip for the community, and sends a great message in this day and age, that we can all cooperate with each other.” |
| Calderwood Lodge nevertheless hired a security guard a few months ago. The move was part of a UK-wide Home Office-funded programme to tighten security at Jewish schools in the wake of terror attacks in Europe. “When you see an attack at a kosher supermarket in Paris, you think ‘I go to kosher supermarkets’,” said Borowski. “You think, if it can happen in Paris or Copenhagen or Brussels, it can happen here.” | Calderwood Lodge nevertheless hired a security guard a few months ago. The move was part of a UK-wide Home Office-funded programme to tighten security at Jewish schools in the wake of terror attacks in Europe. “When you see an attack at a kosher supermarket in Paris, you think ‘I go to kosher supermarkets’,” said Borowski. “You think, if it can happen in Paris or Copenhagen or Brussels, it can happen here.” |
| Fear of a terrorist attack has compounded a gnawing anxiety about antisemitism, some of it explicit and some of it entangled with criticism of Israel’s policies towards the Palestinians. During the war between Israel and Hamas in the summer of 2014, antisemitic attacks rose in Glasgow as elsewhere in the UK. Morron says graffiti was sprayed on three synagogues, a rabbi had “Sieg Heil” shouted at him in the street, hate messages on social media multiplied and an Israeli theatre group had its show at the Edinburgh festival cancelled amid protests. The word “Zionist” was twisted into a term of abuse. | |
| The tipping point, said Morron, came when Glasgow city council flew a Palestinian flag from its main building for a day in what it said was a show of solidarity for the people of Gaza. “It triggered a wave of insecurity in an already fevered situation,” he said. “The Jewish community had contributed so much to the city, and this felt like a betrayal.” | The tipping point, said Morron, came when Glasgow city council flew a Palestinian flag from its main building for a day in what it said was a show of solidarity for the people of Gaza. “It triggered a wave of insecurity in an already fevered situation,” he said. “The Jewish community had contributed so much to the city, and this felt like a betrayal.” |
| Related: Why I’m becoming a Jew and why you should, too | Nick Cohen | Related: Why I’m becoming a Jew and why you should, too | Nick Cohen |
| Community leaders held meetings with local and national politicians, and felt their concerns were heard. But the incident shook a strong partnership, and created a sense of vulnerability that has persisted. “It’s now under the surface, rather than on the surface, but it’s still there,” said Morron. | |
| Last year, ScoJeC updated an earlier survey on “Being Jewish in Scotland”. Its findings dismayed Borowski. “One woman said she’d stopped wearing her Star of David necklace. We heard of people who had taken down their mezuzah [Jewish doorpost]. A health worker said she had started referring to ‘church’ rather than ‘synagogue’ to her colleagues. A significant number of people said they no longer felt comfortable declaring their Jewishness,” he said. | Last year, ScoJeC updated an earlier survey on “Being Jewish in Scotland”. Its findings dismayed Borowski. “One woman said she’d stopped wearing her Star of David necklace. We heard of people who had taken down their mezuzah [Jewish doorpost]. A health worker said she had started referring to ‘church’ rather than ‘synagogue’ to her colleagues. A significant number of people said they no longer felt comfortable declaring their Jewishness,” he said. |
| Almost one in five of those responding to ScoJeC’s survey said they had been a victim of hate crime, and more than half said the 2014 war had affected the way they were viewed by non-Jews. The Community Security Trust, which monitors antisemitism in the UK, recorded 31 incidents in Scotland in 2014 – a significant spike compared to 14 the previous year. In 2015, the number of antisemitic incidents fell back to eight, but the community’s residual insecurity lingered. | Almost one in five of those responding to ScoJeC’s survey said they had been a victim of hate crime, and more than half said the 2014 war had affected the way they were viewed by non-Jews. The Community Security Trust, which monitors antisemitism in the UK, recorded 31 incidents in Scotland in 2014 – a significant spike compared to 14 the previous year. In 2015, the number of antisemitic incidents fell back to eight, but the community’s residual insecurity lingered. |
| “There’s an undercurrent,” said Helen, 91, shopping in Mark’s Deli for Passover treats. “It makes people feel uneasy.” She declined to give her full name. | “There’s an undercurrent,” said Helen, 91, shopping in Mark’s Deli for Passover treats. “It makes people feel uneasy.” She declined to give her full name. |
| But Cohen was untroubled, saying he had never experienced antisemitism. “Of course when you see things happening, like in Paris, it crosses your mind that there could be a risk. But Glasgow is a tolerant place,” he said. | But Cohen was untroubled, saying he had never experienced antisemitism. “Of course when you see things happening, like in Paris, it crosses your mind that there could be a risk. But Glasgow is a tolerant place,” he said. |
| By the time he shuts early on Friday, he will be ready for a few days’ break. “There will be about 20 of us sitting down for the seder [ceremonial meal] at my mum’s,” he said. “All my happiest memories are sitting round that table, eating. It’s a totally Jewish thing.” | By the time he shuts early on Friday, he will be ready for a few days’ break. “There will be about 20 of us sitting down for the seder [ceremonial meal] at my mum’s,” he said. “All my happiest memories are sitting round that table, eating. It’s a totally Jewish thing.” |