( CNN ) Michael Douglas ' son Dylan had a run-in with anti-Semitism -- and the actor wants to do something about it . In an opinion column for the Los Angeles Times , the producer and `` Wall Street '' Oscar winner described an incident last summer in an unidentified country in `` southern Europe . '' The older of his two children with actress Catherine Zeta-Jones , 14-year-old Dylan , came to his father in tears . `` A man at the pool had started hurling insults at him , '' Douglas writes . It was n't because of anything Dylan did , he continued : `` Suddenly I had an awful realization of what might have caused the man 's outrage : Dylan was wearing a Star of David . '' Douglas went to talk to the man -- `` it was not a pleasant discussion , '' he writes -- and the incident has stayed in his mind . The 70-year-old actor , who was raised by a Jewish father , Kirk Douglas , and a non-Jewish mother , said he did n't identify as Jewish while growing up but noticed anti-Semitic remarks others made . `` With little knowledge of what it meant to be a Jew , I found myself passionately defending the Jewish people . Now , half a century later , I have to defend my son , '' he writes . `` Anti-Semitism , I 've seen , is like a disease that goes dormant , flaring up with the next political trigger . '' Douglas , who is also a United Nations messenger of peace , observes that anti-Semitism has been on the rise due to a number of factors , including income inequality , religious extremism and hatred of Israel . `` Some find Jews to be a convenient scapegoat rather than looking at the real source of their problems , '' he says . He praises leaders such as Pope Francis , French Prime Minister Manuel Valls and Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York for their efforts at reconciliation and community-building . But it is n't enough , he adds . `` All of us '' must fight anti-Semitism , he says . `` If we confront anti-Semitism whenever we see it , if we combat it individually and as a society , and use whatever platform we have to denounce it , we can stop the spread of this madness , '' he writes . `` My son is strong . He is fortunate to live in a country where anti-Semitism is rare . But now he too has learned of the dangers that he as a Jew must face . It 's a lesson that I wish I did n't have to teach him , a lesson I hope he will never have to teach his children . '' Douglas received the 2015 Genesis Prize for `` exceptional people whose values and achievements will inspire the next generation of Jews . ''
Michael Douglas ' husband was drunk at a pool because of his Judaism . he warns that anti - Semitism is on the rise . The award - winning author takes more steps to ` ` confront anti - Semitism ''