The new interdisciplinary research project ‘Making Jewish voices audible: Documenting antisemitism from a Jewish perspective in Germany since October 7, 2023’ has started and is conducted by two fellows of the Martin Buber Society of Fellows in the Humanities and Social Sciences: Jasmin Spiegel and Anne-Christin Klotz.
Aim of the study
The research project aims to build on the tradition of witnessing. Similar to documentation and oral history projects in Israel and theUSA, which have already begun to systematically document the massacre of October 7 and collect the voices of victims and eyewitnesses, the research team is primarily concerned with the systematic collection, documentation and evaluation of the experiences of Jews in response to the antisemitism that has been spreading in Germany since October 7.
The interdisciplinary research team consists of Dr. Anne-Christin Klotz, historian, and cultural scientist with a focus on the history of the Shoah in Eastern Europe and Yiddish culture, and Dr. Jasmin Spiegel, psychologist, and psychoanalyst with a clinical focus on post-traumatic stress disorder. As an interdisciplinary research team that operates at the interface between psychology, history and cultural studies, they have set themselves the goal of collecting, recording and bearing witness to Jewish perspectives on and experiences with antisemitism after the massacre of October 7 within the German context. The interviews are to be conducted using interview guidelines and will be analysed scientifically. The questions that will be asked relate, among other things, to the experience of various forms of antisemitism, the perceived safety as Jews in Germany and the relationships with the respective non-Jewish environment. Furthermore, a possible transmission of familial traumas, influences, and changes on the individual’s own Jewish identity as well as possible coping strategies will also be examined.
Study procedure
The interviews are scheduled to last around 60 minutes. They will be conducted via Zoom, recorded for analysis and – given the consent of the interviewees – archived in an anonymised way. The resaerch team is explicitly addressing all people who either feel affected by antisemitism or would like to share their perspectives on this topic. The interviews will usually be conducted in German, English or Hebrew and are subject to confidentiality. If it is not possible to conduct the interview in one of these languages, interviews can also be conducted in other relevant languages such as Russian, Ukrainian, Yiddish, Polish, Spanish or French on request.
Data confidentiality
Only the employees involved in the study have access to the material collected and are subject to strict confidentiality without exception. Your data will be encrypted, meaning that reference data such as name and date of birth will be deleted and replaced by a key (code) (pseudonymisation).The key list remains exclusively with the employees involved in the study. You have the right to view your data at any time. The data will be archived in an anonymised way. The researchers comply with all data protection regulations and will not make your name public anywhere, neither in a publication nor on the Internet. You can end your participation in the project at any time if you wish. This will not result in any disadvantage for you. Unfortunately, the interviews cannot be remunerated.
Contact
If you are interested in participating in the project and being interviewed, please contact the following address: interviewproject@savion.huji.ac.il. The team will contact you as soon as possible and arrange an interview date.
Research team
Dr Anne-Christin Klotz, (annechristin.klotz@mail.huji.ac.il)
Dr Jasmin Spiegel, (jasmin.spiegel@mail.huji.ac.il)
Source: The Martin Buber Society of Fellows in the Humanities and Social Sciences (PDF English call for participation)