# What are the specific laws protecting Jews/Jewish rights in Germany today? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 21, 2016, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-specific-laws-protecting-jews-jewish-rights-in-germany-today/772620 "2016-11-21T02:04:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-specific-laws-protecting-jews-jewish-rights-in-germany-today/772620/21 "2016-11-23T23:15:11Z")
> [@Mops](#): > > The special dispensation of § 1631d (2), however looks like it was meant to specifically accomodate Jewish circumcision: ‘In the first six months after birth of the child also persons assigned by a religious community may do circumcisions, provided that the person is specifically trained for the task and are qualified for it comparably to a physician without being a physician’. This looks like a specific accommodations for mohels - Muslims and Yazidis typically circumcise at kindergarten or primary school age, and also seem not to mind a physician requirement. Because several years ago the debate about circumcision started up again in Germany (unlike the US, it’s not common for male babies to be routinely circumcised for health reasons, only for religious/ cultural reasons): with more Muslim families, who routinely do the circumcision not shortly after birth, but when the child is 5 or 7 years old, some people started raising the question of whether this was more harmful than beneficial to the child. This discussion attracted the right-winger xenophobes who don’t like Muslims, which made the whole debate difficult for doctors to sort out. Some Jewish experts also chimed in that circumcision even shortly after birth might not be necessary any longer, esp. if new medical evidence pointed to it being more harmful to the baby than previously thought. ---
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-specific-laws-protecting-jews-jewish-rights-in-germany-today/772620/22 "2016-11-23T23:20:50Z")
> [@davidmich](#): > > Thanks UDS. I have see German police posted outside Jewish synagogues and bookstores etc while visiting Germany. This seems to be policy in Germany. I’ve seen it in every German city I’ve visited. Yes, it’s the police deciding “Better safe than sorry: we know there are Neonazis and right-wingers still around” (even before the whole Islamist propaganda was spread to the new generation of immigrants), so we do our best to protect potential targets". E.g. in Munich, for years the main synagogue was hidden behind a massive steel gate. You couldn’t just stroll in like in a open Christian Church, you had to call and make an appointment beforehand. Now, they built a new synagogue, [Ohel Jakob](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohel_Jakob_synagogue,_Munich), at the Jakovs Square, (together with a museum and cultural place) so people can learn about Judaism and it’s more open than before; but it’s still secured against attacks, and police patrol there. ---
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-specific-laws-protecting-jews-jewish-rights-in-germany-today/772620/23 "2016-11-23T23:27:10Z")
> [@Mops](#): > > Other than that, the protections for the _individual_ rights of Jews are the general protections for human rights in constitutional and statute law, which do not mention a specific religion (in fact are considered to protect irreligion in the same manner as religion). This is deliberatly: it’s better to list umbrella terms what people are not to be discriminated against for, then list specific things, because that would leave loopholes, and single out some cases unduly. The only other specific law I can think of is the [Law against Holocaust denial](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laws_against_Holocaust_denial#Germany), because the Holocaust is mostly associated with Jews (although it applies to all victims of the Holocaust). ---
**Author:** ![davidmich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e56c9b/32.png) [@davidmich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidmich)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2016, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-specific-laws-protecting-jews-jewish-rights-in-germany-today/772620/24 "2016-11-24T18:39:07Z")
> [@constanze](#): > > This is deliberatly: it’s better to list umbrella terms what people are not to be discriminated against for, then list specific things, because that would leave loopholes, and single out some cases unduly. > > The only other specific law I can think of is the [Law against Holocaust denial](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laws_against_Holocaust_denial#Germany), because the Holocaust is mostly associated with Jews (although it applies to all victims of the Holocaust). Thanks constanze. Very helpful. Thank you all. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-specific-laws-protecting-jews-jewish-rights-in-germany-today/772620.md?page=1)