There are seemingly as many takes on the implications of Great Britain’s departure from the European Union as there are stars in the sky.

From our corner of the universe, though, we consider a couple different questions than those being asked by most: What is the impact of Brexit on (a) Jews and (b) Israel?

Our early answers: (a) Potentially bad, and (b) potentially bad.

Let’s take Jews first. We don’t think that any public policy change based on xenophobia can be good in the long run for Jews. And make no mistake, Brexit was spun by its proponents as a ultra-nationalist, deeply anti-immigrant referendum.

As reports of hate crimes soared in England after last week’s vote, soon-to-be-former Prime Minister David Cameron said, according to a report in The Guardian, “In the past few days we have seen despicable graffiti daubed on a Polish community centre, we’ve seen verbal abuse hurled against individuals because they are members of ethnic minorities.”

“Let’s remember these people have come here and made a wonderful contribution to our country,” he said. “We will not stand for hate crime or these kinds of attacks. They must be stamped out.”

When has this kind of stuff ended well for Jews? Probably never. As the perennial scapegoats of the world, our very existence has hung by a thread so many times, as demagogues, fascists and opportunistic leaders have cast blame on us so as to heighten their own position with the frothing mouths of rabid anti-foreigners.

There’s a very ominous nationalism rising in the world, as we’ve seen in our own nation with threats of construction of a wall to keep out Mexicans, and proposed policies to keep out all Muslims. Any Jew who takes comfort in the fact that Jews aren’t currently the focus of these rhetorical exploits isn’t focusing on history. Because sooner or later, the seething hatred, the convenient blaming of “the other,” always seems to get back around to us as the ultimate victims.

And with that, we sadly note that Brexit is likely not particularly good for Israel either. Not only because what’s bad for Jews is bad for Israel, but also for some independent political reasons centering on England’s now-diminished influence within the European bloc.

Wait, you might say, hasn’t there been a healthy dose of anti-Semitic behavior in England recently?

There has, indeed, just as there has been across Europe. But on the heels of Brexit, many, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, praised Cameron’s friendship with, and support of, Israel. Despite some frustrations by Israeli leaders — Cameron in February referred to some of the conditions in the Palestinian territories as “genuinely shocking,” which didn’t ingratiate him to Bibi at the time — they were generally supportive of the PM’s record.

Prior to Cameron and Gordon Brown before him, PM Tony Blair had placed his footprint on the Israel-Palestinian conflict as the envoy for “the Quartet” of the EU, United States, United Nations and Russia, which attempted to negotiate a lasting peace. Blair was often recognized as a friend of Israel and condemned by Palestinian leadership.

It is true that there have been loud anti-Israel voices inside Britain in recent years. But when we think about Cameron and Blair juxtaposed against the leadership of some of the other EU members, we’re on balance very worried about the absence of Parliament’s majority voices from that European negotiating table.

The EU has taken the lead on forcing Israel’s hand on a number of issues to push a potential two-state solution. We’re all in favor of that outcome, but it must come with an absolute commitment to Israeli existence, safety and security. There haven’t been a great number of proposals pushed by third parties that take the existential threats to Israel as seriously as necessary, and we’re concerned that the EU, divorced from England, might be more inclined to push concessions by Israel that could weaken its future. 

Most who have expressed concern about Brexit have done so with the economic consequences front and center. Those are worrisome for sure. But the xenophobic trend that seems to be sweeping the West bodes poorly for minorities that have been historically persecuted, and that means us. Sure, we’re worried about how the pound sterling’s plummet will impact our economy. But not nearly as much as the bigotry that underlies so many of those who would trade a hopeful future for walls of fear.