‘Yellow Vest’ Protester Convicted for Attack on Jewish Philosopher Finkielkraut
by Israel Hayom / JNS.org
JNS.org – A man who was put on trial for an antisemitic attack on Jewish philosopher Alain Finkielkraut was found guilty and given a two-month suspended sentence on Friday, French media reported over the weekend.
The attacker, a 36-year-old man from the Alsace region, was convicted of having violated France’s anti-racism laws, which prohibit verbal attacks that are based on religion, ethnicity or race.
Finkielkraut, 69, was attacked during a “yellow-vest” protest in Paris in February this year. The insults included phrases like “Dirty race!” “Dirty Zionist!” “Go back to Tel Aviv!” and “France is ours!”
Finkielkraut, who is the son of Holocaust survivors and a staunch defender of Israel, was initially supportive of the yellow vest movement’s anti-establishment and pro-reform message, but later criticized it because of its violent acts.
Some yellow-vest protesters have expressed racist or antisemitic views online and on the sidelines of protests.