A negative hand sign, a polite refusal, “we don’t want to talk about it”… This Tuesday in November, leaving the office of the Beth Hamidrach synagogue of the fraternity in Villeurbanne, few of the faithful accept to speak. “It’s not like usual. Now, people no longer linger when leaving the synagogue. Everyone leaves straight away,” notes Salomon.
He who lost his brother on October 7 in the Hamas attack in Israel learned with shock, like the rest of the Jewish community of Villeurbanne (the 3rd largest in France), the presence of anti-Semitic inscriptions on an establishment located just opposite the synagogue, rue Malherbe.
Anti-Semitic tags found on a business in Villeurbanne
It was 8 a.m. on Sunday, November 5, when the manager of the pizzeria discovered the inscriptions “Death” accompanied by Stars of David on the back facade of her business. “I was shocked, I felt angry. It’s really human stupidity…” laments manager Daphna Benyamin. Having lived in Gratte-Ciel for 19 years, she emphasizes the multi-faith character of the neighborhood: “We had never had a problem before. Look, this customer is the former manager of a kebab shop which previously operated on the street! “.
Anti-Semitic graffiti discovered on November 5 on a pizzeria in Grattes-Ciels in Villeurbanne. Photo: DR
Unfortunately, the restaurant manager is not the only victim of anti-Semitism. At the beginning of October, the La Duchère synagogue (Lyon 9) filed a complaint for insults and spitting. Tags were also discovered on the facade of a public school in the 6th arrondissement of Lyon. According to the Rhône prefecture, 46 anti-Semitic acts (tags, verbal, physical attacks, etc.) were reported to it in one month, between October 7 and November 6. Six people were arrested.
If we have not been able to obtain data confirming a possible recent increase in these actions in the Rhône, at least we know that on the scale of France, we can speak of an explosion of anti-Semitic acts. Indeed, the Minister of the Interior has made state on November 14 of 1,500 incidents recorded since October 7. In comparison, over the entire year 2022, the Ministry of the Interior and the SPCJ (Service for the Protection of the Jewish Community, created in 1980 following the anti-Semitic attack on Rue de Copernic, in Paris) recorded 436 acts anti-Semites in France. There were therefore, in one month, almost three times more than in the whole of 2022.
“We don’t talk politics with just anyone”
“It’s always a tragedy to discover this kind of act, especially right in front of our synagogue, but unfortunately there is nothing new under the sun,” laments Rabbi Simon Ohayon of the Beth Hamidrach synagogue.
“The faithful are outraged, but they do not want to succumb to fear. However, they feel that things are taking a complicated turn for the Jews of France. They worry about having to relive the early 1930s,” continues the rabbi. Caution is therefore required in the community, as Salomon summarizes: “Let’s say that we don’t talk politics with just anyone.”
In the neighborhood, the concern and anguish are particularly palpable in the exchanges with members of the community who agree to express themselves. The attack on a Jewish woman – the investigation is still underway to establish the motive for the attack – on November 4 in the 3rd arrondissement of Lyon, only contributed to this climate of fear. Isaac (first name changed) tells us to make sure “to lock his door” and wants his boys to take off their yarmulkes. He himself, like several other men interviewed, swaps his yarmulke for a cap when he goes out into the street.
This is also the case for Serge Dahan, manager of the kosher supermarket Lilly Market. Having lived in Gratte-Ciel for 30 years, he has already experienced several periods of tension and nevertheless wants to keep a cool head: “For the moment, we remain calm and we hope that things will not escalate. The worst was really at the time of the Charlie Hebdo attacks and Hyper Kosher. People were very afraid, the army was present at every prayer exit from the synagogues,” he recalls.
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Following anti-Semitic acts, fewer visitors to community businesses in Villeurbanne
Since October 7, to protect its 12 employees and reassure its customers, Serge Dahan has hired a security agent stationed at the entrance to the store and in permanent contact with the SPCJ. “His presence reassures customers,” he notes. But we still see that people come less to do their shopping physically and that they do them more online. »
Less physical attendance at community places: the observation is the same for Samy Moyal, a supplier of kosher products for grocery stores throughout France, met while delivering cheeses to a restaurant. He explained to Rue89Lyon that he had smaller orders from certain customers, who are facing a drop in traffic.
In another kosher business in the neighborhood, the manager installed a bell at the entrance to the store in recent weeks, in order to filter entries. “It’s a deterrent and reassures regulars,” notes an employee. This is the first time that the store has used such a device.
3,000 people at the rally against anti-Semitism in Lyon
On this Shabbat eve, at the time of leaving the Jewish school on rue Alexandre Boutin, the atmosphere is tense. When discussing the subject with the parents present, many are suspicious, some hostile. Estelle, mother of three children, evokes a “heavy” climate and confirms:
“We no longer hang out in places like shops, restaurants… we go to the essentials. The threat is there, we know it. Besides, the army comes every day when school is out to make sure everything is going well.”
About ten days ago, Estelle claims to have been the victim of an anti-Semitic insult while she was walking in the street. “This time, it’s different from other periods of tension we’ve experienced, I have the impression that we are being asked to take a side in the conflict. »
Last Sunday, rallies “against anti-Semitism and for the Republic” took place. In Lyon, it brought together around 3,000 people, including elected officials and representatives of the Jewish community, such as the Chief Rabbi of Lyon and its region or the Crif (representative council of Jewish institutions in France) of Auvergne-Rhône -Alps.
“Even if on the scale of France, 180,000 participants is not enormous, it is still a great success to show that France and the Republic are mobilized so that Jews live peacefully,” analyzes Rabbi Simon Ohayon, present Sunday November 12 at Place Bellecour. To tell you the truth, this gathering calmed me down and since then, I have put my kippah back on to go out into the street. »
2023-11-16 05:18:39
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