From the BBC:
“Swiss antisemitism shock at
Davos shop sign saying no skis for Jews”
Swiss police have opened an
investigation into a ski hire shop's announcement it would no longer rent skis
and sledges to Jewish customers. The shop, in the famous resort of Davos, has
now reversed its decision. It has taken down the signs, translated into Hebrew,
which informed customers of the ban. But many have argued the case is a clear
violation of Switzerland's laws against discrimination and incitement to racial
or religious hatred.
The Swiss Federation of Jewish
Communities has launched its own legal action, condemning the signs as clearly
discriminatory. Posters in the sports shop window informed customers that,
because of incidents, including theft, "we no longer rent sports equipment
to our Jewish brothers".
The shop in question, part of the
Pischa mountain restaurant, said in an initial statement that equipment was
often not being returned, and its staff no longer wanted "the hassle"
of scouring the mountain sides trying to find abandoned sledges. But just 24
hours after putting the posters up, they were taken down after a storm of
protest. Davos Mayor Philipp Wilhelm told Swiss media: "Any and all forms
of antisemitism, racism and discrimination must be condemned. This does not
belong in Davos." The manager of the shop has apologised, agreeing that
the poster had been "badly worded". Jewish customers were welcome, he
said, with immediate effect. But Swiss anti-racism groups point out that
targeting an entire racial, religious or ethnic group because of the alleged
bad behaviour of a few is more serious than clumsy wording; in fact it's a
classic sign of racism and discrimination. A better way to prevent theft and
damage, they say, would be to do what many ski hire shops already do: take an
ID and a credit card from customers. It is also not the first time Davos, home
to the annual World Economic Forum, has been mired in difficulties with its
Jewish visitors. The resort has become popular with Israel's Orthodox Jewish
community, which has been visiting in growing numbers, and the head of the
tourist board said there had been cases of guests behaving disrespectfully
towards their hosts.
A taskforce was set up recently
to address perceived tensions between the tourists and the hosts, with
agreement on both sides that there had been difficulties. But with rising
incidences of antisemitism across Europe in the wake of the 7 October Hamas
attacks on Israel and the war in Gaza, the ski hire shop's blunder looks, to
many, not just stupid, but racist. After all, Swiss resorts, Davos among them,
have over the years hosted large groups of whom some may not have behaved
impeccably. From Russian oligarchs and oil magnates from the Gulf states to
young Zurich bankers noted for their wild partying and cocaine habits, or
British package holiday makers, with their propensity to partake, loudly, in
après-ski fun all night long. None, it seems, have been specifically targeted
the way the Pischa ski hire shop targeted its Jewish customers.
^ Even the "Neutral"
Swiss aren't neutral when it comes to being Anti-Jewish these days. ^
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