His grandfather was fine about the move; it was the Middle Eastern side of the family that was the problem.
'It was more about being afraid of the unknown. It wasn't Germany itself. They had the idea that Western Christians were against Jews; not that the Muslims were against Jews.'
'But of all the cities in the world, why here?' I ask.
'Berlin was very free, in all sorts of ways. It was punk, it was hip, it was dangerous—not real danger; I mean, I came from danger—but there was squatting and you could have sex whenever you wanted to. There was freedom.'
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| A new 'Fatherland' or 'Time Bomb'? A street mural of an Israeli flag superimposed on a German flag |
He points out that Germany now has the fastest-growing Jewish community in the world, though admittedly off a very small base.
'There are almost 200,000 Jews in Germany now—200,000! England has 300,000, and it's falling.'
Most of the newcomers are Russian Jews, who receive social benefits the minute they arrive. In fact, the number of Jews immigrating to Germany rivals that of those going to Israel.
'Berlin is the hottest city in Europe now for Israelis,' he says. 'There are two or three thousand Israelis here; there used to be only two or three hundred. It's an enormous community.'
'Why is that?'
'Time heals all wounds,' he says grandly.
Then he snaps back into his camp Irish persona. 'It's true. I wouldn't have thought so. I would've thought the way you're thinking. But things are changing, and they're changing quite quickly. Like, you hear Hebrew here. I'm amazed! But they love it here! You can go out all night, fuck all night and have drugs all night. The drinks are cheap, and the livin' is easy.'
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