{"id":39612,"date":"2025-06-03T11:15:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-03T11:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=39612"},"modified":"2025-06-03T06:11:39","modified_gmt":"2025-06-03T06:11:39","slug":"reducing-american-antisemitism-requires-more-than-condemning-opposition-to-israel-and-targeting-elite-universities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/reducing-american-antisemitism-requires-more-than-condemning-opposition-to-israel-and-targeting-elite-universities\/","title":{"rendered":"Reducing American antisemitism requires more than condemning opposition to Israel and targeting elite universities"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

David Mednicoff<\/a>, UMass Amherst<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Violent antisemitism in the U.S.<\/a> isn\u2019t limited to the far right wing of the political spectrum. This was tragically obvious in two recent events \u2013 the June 1, 2025, attack<\/a> using Molotov cocktails to burn participants in a Boulder, Colorado, march supporting Israeli hostages in Gaza<\/a>, and the murders of two Israeli embassy staffers, an American Jew and an Israeli<\/a>, on May 21, 2025, outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As an expert on the Middle East<\/a>, including Israel<\/a>, my research and administrative work have included contributing to a global effort to define antisemitism<\/a> and addressing antisemitism on my own campus<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Antisemitism can be defined simply as \u201cdiscrimination, prejudice, hostility or violence against Jews as Jews (or Jewish institutions as Jewish)<\/a>.\u201d What actually constitutes it is more contested, especially with respect to links between Jews and the state of Israel<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

President Donald Trump claims he is taking \u201cunprecedented\u201d steps to combat antisemitism<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

American Jews perceive antisemitism as rising since 2016, largely because, as one study put it, \u201cpeople who hold anti-Semitic views now feel more free to express them<\/a>.\u201d But the current federal fight against antisemitism in the U.S. may have more to do with the agendas of members of the American and Israeli governments than with the concerns of most American Jews<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, the Trump administration\u2019s attacks on antisemitism center on elite universities<\/a>, where the president claims antisemitism runs rampant<\/a>. Second, the current Israeli government tries to blur the lines between pro-Palestinian activism and antisemitism<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These factors polarize and complicate the landscape for combating antisemitism effectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
GOP nominee for president Donald Trump speaks to prominent Jewish donors at an event called Fighting Anti-Semitism in America on Sept. 19, 2024, in Washington, D.C. Chip Somodevilla\/Getty Images<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Targeting speech at universities by charging \u2018antisemitism\u2019<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Trump\u2019s administration has taken dramatic actions in the name of curbing antisemitism<\/a>. Yet, his policies are notable for what they ignore<\/a> as well as what they target.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Right-wing antisemitism<\/a> was responsible for the deadliest attack on a Jewish community in U.S. history<\/a> in Pittsburgh in 2018. Yet the administration\u2019s model for fighting antisemitism is not based in fighting<\/a> white supremacist<\/a> hatred toward Jews, which relates back to the Nazis in Germany.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, members of Trump\u2019s administration, including senior adviser Stephen Miller<\/a> and former Department of Government Efficiency chief Elon Musk<\/a>, have supported white supremacist ideas or groups<\/a>. Trump\u2019s own words have evoked right-wing antisemitic tropes<\/a>, such as assuming American Jews are loyal to Israel or adept at making money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump administration policies on antisemitism are most vocal around punishing leading American universities as unsafe for Jews<\/a>. As the leading target of the president\u2019s ire, Harvard University has acknowledged<\/a> that some activism against Israel\u2019s war with Hamas in Gaza has contributed to antisemitism on campuses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, federal actions targeting Harvard<\/a> ostensibly seek to punish antisemitism by demanding sweeping federal oversight of Harvard\u2019s curriculum and self-governance<\/a>. Billions of dollars in research funds have been cut. Neither action connects clearly<\/a> to Harvard\u2019s patterns or policies around antisemitism<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given this, Harvard sued the government in April<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many American Jews<\/a> believe that Trump\u2019s true purpose<\/a> is to use the antisemitism issue as one means to curb free expression<\/a> at universities<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Defending Israeli policy by charging \u2018antisemitism\u2019<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

National governments naturally seek political and material support from powerful allies<\/a>. Israel\u2019s efforts to encourage Americans to champion that support fit this pattern.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Israel receives more U.S. aid than any other country<\/a>. Thus, its government has an interest in enlisting diverse people and organizations<\/a> in a sustained way<\/a> to support its policies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Israeli intervention has grown<\/a> because Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s far-right<\/a> government is unpopular<\/a> in both Israel and the U.S. Its war in Gaza, provoked by Hamas<\/a>, is highly destructive<\/a> and globally unpopular<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most experts<\/a> and policymakers<\/a> now argue that Israel<\/a>, along with Hamas<\/a>, has committed<\/a> international war crimes<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Israeli government recently increased its funding to US$150 million<\/a> for global public relations efforts<\/a>. This is a major acceleration of policies that Israeli has pursued for decades<\/a> known in Hebrew as \u201chasbara,\u201d which translates to \u201cexplanation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Documenting specific links between Israel\u2019s government and groups promoting its agenda in the U.S.<\/a> can be difficult<\/a>. This may be a deliberate strategy<\/a> by Israeli leaders to conceal their efforts<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet, mainstream Israeli-run organizations such as the Jewish Agency have played up links between pro-Palestinian activism and antisemitism<\/a> since Hamas triggered the war in Gaza. Groups whose funding and leadership are hard to trace<\/a> maintain public blacklists labeling vocal pro-Palestine activists as antisemites<\/a>. Those lists have been used by Israeli government bureaucrats<\/a> to bar visitors to the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

U.S.-based groups aligned with Israeli government messaging engage in persistent strategies to discredit opposition voices. Some attack publicly vocal activists<\/a>, including some American Jews<\/a>. Others press organizations, political bodies and institutions to adopt<\/a> a definition of antisemitism<\/a> that makes it easy<\/a> to conflate criticism of Israeli policy with antisemitism<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anti-Israel behavior in the U.S. can be antisemitic, such as asserting that American Jews, because they are Jews, are responsible for Israeli state actions<\/a>. And some American Jews support crackdowns<\/a> on pro-Palestinian activists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, characterizing antisemitism in the U.S.<\/a> mostly in terms of speech and activism against the Israeli government augments the Trump administration\u2019s neglect of dangerous right-wing antisemitism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
Presidential adviser Elon Musk interviews via video the German right-wing party AfD leader Alice Weidel at AfD\u2019s election campaign launch on Feb. 23, 2025. Hendrik Schmidt\/picture alliance via Getty Images<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Polarization and antisemitism in the US<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Taken together, the politics pursued by Trump and the Netanyahu government combine to target legally protected speech in the U.S. more than they deter antisemitism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By contributing to polarization, the conflation of antisemitism with a wide range of speech critical of Israel<\/a> could add to threats faced by Jews and other religious minorities. Those who wish to undermine work toward Palestinian-Israeli coexistence benefit from the charge that most pro-Palestinian activists are antisemitic<\/a>. This worsens already visible divides among American Jews<\/a> over how Israel\u2019s mistreatment of Palestinians squares with their Jewish identities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Supported by the most aggressive pro-Netanyahu groups, the Trump administration links concerns<\/a> against antisemitism to efforts to deport immigrants who have expressed pro-Palestine views, such as Tufts doctoral student R\u00fcmeysa \u00d6zt\u00fcrk<\/a>. Deporting people in the name of policing speech critical of Israel also runs a risk that Jews will be blamed<\/a> for government actions many Americans find objectionable<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s be clear. Some pro-Palestinian activism embraces Jew-hatred, as the attacks in Washington and Boulder highlight. But lumping together as antisemitic most pro-Palestinian speech, as current American and Israeli leaders do, complicates seeing antisemitism clearly and countering it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, most Americans<\/a> \u2013 and Israelis<\/a> \u2013 seek an end to the war, mounting deaths<\/a> and humanitarian disaster<\/a> in Gaza. Any potential to blur this with antisemitism augments the few, loud American voices that support one side in the conflict by dehumanizing the other side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Americans believe other minority groups face greater discrimination<\/a> than Jews. Yet, antisemitism from diverse directions is the worst I have seen in my lifetime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As with any policy problem, the way to deal with this issue is to focus on all facets of the problem, including right-wing racism<\/a> and Christian nationalism<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Current national politics around antisemitism may serve many purposes. Yet most American Jews doubt<\/a> that these policies actually protect them<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

David Mednicoff<\/a>, Associate Professor of Middle Eastern Studies and Public Policy, UMass Amherst<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article is republished from The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

David Mednicoff, UMass Amherst Violent antisemitism in the U.S. isn\u2019t limited to the far right wing of the political spectrum. This was tragically obvious in two recent events \u2013 the June 1, 2025, attack using Molotov cocktails to burn participants in a Boulder, Colorado, march supporting Israeli hostages in Gaza, and the murders of two […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":56,"featured_media":39613,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[8025,46,295,10,296,36,4,38],"tags":[16478,4448,12204,2103,479,6674,16479,2661,3666,885,891,886,860,1605],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39612"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/56"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39612"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39612\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39614,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39612\/revisions\/39614"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39613"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39612"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39612"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39612"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}