bazbuco

So there are economic, sociological and political reasons for the historical expulsions of European Jews. These kingdoms invited Jews into their lands in order to create prosperity through business and money-lending (which Christians were religiously forbidden to do but was necessary to start businesses, buy land, raise armies etc. so they used Jews as a loophole). But Jews ultimately did not ever fully assimilate culturally, and this created social tension that was exploited politically by the nobility and ruling class. If your kingdom lost a war—instead of taking responsibility for the loss, you could blame the Jews who helped you fund it. If your kingdom suffered a famine or plague? Blame the Jews. Monarchs and nobles realized that by shifting the blame to a powerless minority, they could avoid accountability. It’s much easier to stoke political fears about a minority out-group than it is to explain the complexity of a societal problem—especially to war-torn, impoverished, superstitious peasants and farmers who don’t know where to channel their anger. Tribalism is ingrained within evolutionary psychology.