Antisemitism in UK has been ‘off the rails’ for more than a decade, director of US campuses film warns
A FILM director has slammed levels of antisemitism in the UK, saying they have been “off the rails” for a decade.
Wendy Sachs’ documentary, October 8, which released in the US on Friday, tackles the explosion of violence seen on American university campuses in the wake of the October 7 attacks.
It comes as the Trump administration cancelled $400 million of funds to New York’s Columbia University, claiming it failed to protect Jewish students amid pro-Palestinian protests on campus.
Sachs has said there were “a lot of parallels” between these events and the UK.
The director, who is also serving as the film’s executive producer, said: “As someone who is very much entrenched in Democratic politics and progressive causes, I can tell you what’s happening on the left here in America really mirrors what’s been happening on the left in the UK for more than a decade.
“You have a very large Muslim population, the demonstrations are significant in the UK, the antisemitism is off the rails in your country as well — what we’re seeing, the difference here in America is it feels a little bit more new.”
She also pointed blame at former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, saying his tenure led to “an explosion of antisemitism in the UK”, reports The Times.
Sachs added: “Although we see it both on the left and the right … the only place where the far left and far right agree is on antisemitism, and we see that.“
The director says her film aims to look at antisemitism today, including looking at how groups such as Hamas have found praise in certain circles.
A recent report by the Community Security Trust (CST) recorded a sharp increase in antisemitic incidents on UK university campuses in the two years following the October 7 attack.
The charity, which aims to protect British Jews from terrorism and antisemitism, recorded 272 university-related incidents in the academic year 2023-24.
This was the highest total ever recorded for a single year, and was a steep increase from 53 in the previous period, and 55 before that.
Major protests were seen across countless US university campuses in the aftermath of Israel’s response to the October 7 attacks.
Some of these protests saw Jewish students verbally attacked and, in some cases, physically assaulted.
Many societies at these prestigious institutions co-signed statements blaming Israel for the October 7 massacre.
Controversy arose after nearly three dozen Harvard student groups signed a statement saying they held “the Israeli regime entirely responsible for all unfolding violence”.
Sachs film shows one professor at Cornell University, in New York state, referring to the Hamas attack as both “exhilarating” and “energising”.
She hopes the film could be screened in the UK before the end of summer this year.
A spokesperson for CST said: “Rising campus antisemitism is a big problem and we welcome anything that raises awareness of this.”
Reviews of the film have been mixed from critics, with one saying the film should be “avoided”.
Michael O’Sullivan of the Washington Post said: “Without demonising either side, it shows how Israel’s pattern of mistakes, if not arrogance, may have helped set a pot on the stove that is now boiling over with venom.”
Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter added: “Like many advocacy documentaries, October 8 does some cherry-picking of facts and draws some questionable conclusions, but there’s no denying the importance of its message.”
Christopher Campbell gave a scathing review, saying: “An important documentary to avoid.
“The film comes off as defensive, fearmongering, and self-victimizing propaganda, regardless of whether some of its concerns are true.”