Nearly half of US Jews say they have experienced antisemitism in the last five years or know someone who has
A new poll shows that nearly half of all American Jews say that they have experienced antisemitism in the last five years or know someone who has.
The survey, funded by the Ruderman Family Foundation, showed that 93% of American Jews are concerned about the current levels of antisemitism in the United States, and 42% had directly experienced it in the past five years or knew a family member or friend who had.
75% of American Jews also believe that there is more antisemitism today in the United States than there was five years ago, with one in three younger Jews (aged 18-39) saying that they have personally experienced antisemitism. Older Jews (over 60 years old) are even more likely to have seen “a lot” of antisemitism, with 62% reporting that they have.
Jay Ruderman, the President of the Ruderman Family Foundation, said: “Our survey reinforces the urgent need for American leadership to formulate new strategies to confront the surge of antisemitism and increasing hate crimes against the Jewish community. Accordingly, we hope that these findings spur local and national leaders into action on this critical issue. Antisemitism is a threat to American society as a whole and only in tackling this issue as one unified nation will it ever be truly addressed.”
The poll was carried out by the Mellman Group and examined 2,500 Jewish adults in December 2019 and a further 1,000 in October-November 2021. The surveys were undertaken, therefore, prior to the recent antisemitic attack on a synagogue in Texas.
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