In a deeply troubling development, fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv have been banned from attending an upcoming match at Aston Villa’s stadium in Birmingham, UK, because authorities claim they cannot protect them from potential hostility.
In a separate incident, the heavy metal band Disturbed had their concert in Belgium canceled last Friday by the mayor of the Forest municipality, Charles Spapens, due to what he called “safety concerns.” The cancellation came amid threats by anti-Israel groups to protest the band led by pro-Israel artist David Draiman, who has been very outspoken about his support for Israel and against terror and the holding of hostages by Hamas.
Both of these instances are dangerous capitulations to intimidation and set precedents that should alarm anyone concerned with civil liberties and equal protection under the law.
When a police force or mayor recommends that citizens should be banned from society because their safety cannot be guaranteed, we have entered truly disturbing territory.
Normalizing discrimination
The fundamental principle that all citizens deserve equal protection has been abandoned. Authorities have chosen to punish the potential victims rather than address the actual threat of violent mobs attacking cultural events.
The absurdity of this situation recalls darker chapters in history. We seem to be reviving an ethos where certain people are excluded from public spaces based on their identity. Banning Jewish fans and performers normalizes discrimination instead of preventing violence.
Emily Damari, a UK citizen and former hostage who was held captive by Hamas for over 15 months in Gaza, expressed her shock at being unable to attend the match as a Maccabi Tel Aviv supporter. “This is like putting a big sign on the outside of a stadium saying, ‘No Jews allowed,’” she wrote.
This is how segregation begins, through seemingly practical “safety measures” that normalize exclusion. If safety is the paramount issue, then put safeguards up to stop those threatening the safety of citizens; don’t penalize those being attacked. That is backward thinking that only serves to embolden the bullies.
MP Ayoub Khan, representative of the Birmingham Perry Barr constituency, celebrated this decision. However, Prime Minister Keir Starmer took the moral high ground and called it “the wrong decision,” stating: “We will not tolerate antisemitism on our streets. The role of the police is to ensure all football fans can enjoy the game without fear of violence or intimidation.”
It would be nice for Belgium to do the same and reverse their decision prohibiting Disturbed from performing. However, Mayor Spapens believes the opposite is true, that due to so-called “safety concerns,” the concert had to be shut down after those who were leading the protest effort stated clearly that they were doing so because Draiman is a supporter of Israel.
Erasure of Jews from public sphere
The role of law enforcement must be to neutralize threats, not accommodate them. Protesters threatening violence against Jewish fans or Jewish performers should be addressed directly. Removing Jewish fans and performers from public spaces concedes to intimidation and only fuels the flames of antisemitism. When you let a bully win once, they will just come back and try again.
This is another step in the attempted erasure of Jews from the public sphere. However, these bans go beyond harming Jews and set a dangerous precedent for other minorities, as they effectively give the rule of law over to mobs, and whichever way the mobs decide to protest, they will succeed at trampling the minorities. Today, it is the Jews. Who will be next? Which other religious or ethnic groups will be banned from attending sporting events or performing in concerts because their presence might provoke hostility?
Soccer has historically unified people of all backgrounds. As Damari eloquently stated, the sport should bring “people together irrespective of their faith, color, or religion.” Disturbed issued a statement making much the same claim about music. Yet these bans clearly say otherwise.
According to the people who called for the bans and those who enforce them, sports, music, or any other cultural events are no longer safe and no longer places for people to forget their differences; rather, they are places where being different can get one canceled. This is another step on the road to the breakdown of inclusive cultures and Western democracy.
What's next?
Societies that exclude people “for their protection” have begun a dangerous slide toward normalized discrimination. Civil societies erode through small concessions that gradually compromise fundamental principles of equality.
The review ordered by the police and crime commissioner in the UK offers hope that Aston Villa’s misguided decision might be reversed. Our shared values of equality and protection under the law demand it. Addressing those making threats preserves the right of all groups to participate safely in public life. Sadly, it seems that the ship has sailed for Belgium.
The question remains: Do Belgium and the UK, as well as other countries or cities pondering the cancellation of Jews based on their ethnicity, still hold firm to the belief that all citizens deserve equal protection and access to public life regardless of their identity? If not, what have they become? Are curfews for minorities or special clothing or identity requirements backed by claims of being for their safety next? We’ve been down this road too many times before to let it happen again.
Steven Burg, a rabbi, is the CEO of Aish, a global Jewish educational institute and movement. He also serves on the Board of Governors of the Jewish Agency. He is a former eastern director of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, where he oversaw the Museum of Tolerance in New York City and contributed to the center’s fight against antisemitism.