Paris, France, Oct 25, 2004 / 22:00 pm
An ad campaign intended to stem anti-Semitism in France got pulled at the last minute after its blatant disrespect for Catholicism caused a wave of negative reactions.
The Union of Jewish Students of France issued a statement Sunday that it plans to “modify” its publicity campaign, which featured an image of Jesus and the Virgin Mary with the slur “Dirty Jew” scrawled across it to mimic graffiti.
Not only Christians, but numerous different social groups and individuals reacted in opposition to the ad after newspapers ran articles previewing the ads last week. The ads were scheduled for publication this week.
Faced with the reactions to this campaign, the Jewish group “decided to modify the visuals,” the group said in a statement. The group organized the campaign, it said, in the face of a rising tide of anti-Semitism in France and Europe.
The group’s president, Yonathan Arfi, said the group meant no harm and thought these advertisements were “good” and “strong.”