How Bad is Antisemitism, Really?

Vice-President Vance and Tucker Carlson (Business Insider)

I don’t think now is the time to panic. I still believe that the vast majority of Americans are not antisemitic. I don’t even think most are anti-Israel. A lot of whom are upset at how they think Israel conducted the war in Gaza.  Although I now admit I underestimated the extent of both.

That said, it is impossible to ignore the growing influence of antisemitic voices on the right, led most prominently by Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens. They are attempting to shift the national conversation in a dangerous direction. Still, their millions of followers represent only a small fraction of the American public.

The same dynamic exists on the left. Antisemitism there is usually disguised as anti-Zionism, providing plausible deniability for motives that are often anything but benign. While there are rare cases of people who oppose Israel without harboring animus toward Jews, those cases are the exception.

Detaching Israel from Jewish identity reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of Judaism itself. Jews who claim Israel has no bearing on their Jewishness are typically ignorant of their own heritage. An ignorance that has fueled a growing number of anti-Zionist Jewish organizations, often composed of younger Jews whose progressive political values have replaced Jewish ones they were never taught.

Many commentators point to the election of Zohran Mamdani, a fiercely anti-Zionist Muslim, as mayor of New York City as evidence of rising antisemitism. Some argue his victory gives antisemites tacit permission to emerge more openly and cause harm to Jews. That concern is legitimate.

Yet I do not believe Mamdani is inherently antisemitic, nor do I believe he will abandon his promise to protect New York’s Jewish community. Even while relentlessly condemning Israel. In fact, as troubling as Mamdani is, I would trust him with my life sooner than I would Tucker Carlson.

So why am I still confident that most Americans are not only not antisemitic, but actually appreciate Jewish contributions to society - historically and today, at least to the extent they are aware of them?

Start with evangelical Christians... 

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