INDEPENDENT
Zilch. Zero. אֶפֶס. Gornischt. You can’t “fight” a 1,700-year-old ideology that has metastasized in practically every culture.
When I worked as a hospital chaplain, I was issued an administrative directive forbidding the distribution to patients of any religious material that denigrated another faith or its adherents. I suggested to my supervisor that the wording be changed because, as it stood, chaplains could not distribute the New Testament or the Quran, since the New Testament denigrates Jews while the Quran denigrates Jews and Christians! She was surprised, but eventually the wording was changed.
It is so much simpler to relegate the phenomenon of antisemitism to some celebrity-promoted trope or some inexplicable malady suffered by neo-Nazis and ill-informed university students. And so we continue to Band-Aid antisemitism with condemnations and sanctions against those who espouse it, while steering clear of the foundational global slander that has seeded it for millennia.
The only viable solution would be the global recall of all editions of the Quran and the New Testament, along with their respective commentaries, and the reissue of new editions purged of defamatory portrayals of Jews or of anyone else. It’s that simple. Then again, to paraphrase Abraham Joshua Heschel: “One who is oblivious to the problems of life is an idiot. And one who offers simple solutions is a quack.” Quack, quack!
Rabbi Gershon Winkler
Walking Stick Foundation
Golden, CO
HUMANIST
I have learned that if the goal is to talk our haters out of hating us, we are picking the wrong fight. Because none of this is really about us. The persecution of Jews has endured for more than 2,000 years, regularly boiling over when troubled societies seek a scapegoat.
When religious enforcers sought to strengthen their followers’ beliefs, they employed theological polemics against Jews. When political leaders needed a culprit for economic or social dysfunction, they recast Jews as an alien and despised “race.” More recently, many haters have moved away from faith-based or racialized forms of anti-Jewish hostility, replacing them with an obsessive fixation on Israel—and Jews who support it—as the root of contemporary evil. Is it any wonder that we call hatred for Jews a mutating virus? Since Jews did not create Jew-hatred, it is not a struggle we can “win.” Fight for our rights when we can? Absolutely. But that will not end it.
As a Humanistic, nontheistic rabbi, I am often asked why I devote my life to strengthening Jewish identity and peoplehood when I don’t believe in God. My answer? I deeply believe in the Jewish people and our right to flourish. Faith in Jewish peoplehood will also not end Jew-hatred. But it may equip us to live on our own terms despite it.
Rabbi Jeffrey Falick
Congregation for Humanistic Judaism of Metro Detroit
Farmington Hills, MI
RENEWAL
Whatever we’ve learned, it hasn’t been enough to stem the rise of overt antisemitism here and around the globe. We’ve learned that antisemitism is not innate to any ethnic or religious group, nor is any group immune from it, left or right.
The “machine of antisemitism” (to borrow a term from Project Shema) is being actively fueled in this country. Being antisemitic is not a badge of shame for white nationalists—it’s integral to their ideology. On the other hand, when people conflate any criticism of Israeli policy with antisemitism, the seriousness of the term is devalued as well.
I hope we’re learning that constantly portraying our community as age-old victims of antisemitism is not helpful. Being marginalized, scapegoated and demonized is not that different from what other “out” groups experience. If we continue to claim unique victim status, we will find ourselves without any allies, a dangerous position. Standing up for and with other minority groups should be one of our chief goals.
The tidal wave of antisemitism that we’re experiencing has been unleashed by two forces: a president who claims to be fighting for Jews while also elevating and validating white supremacy, and social media algorithms that feed hate speech to masses of people on multiple platforms. Until we muster the courage as a society to regulate social media companies, we are fighting a futile battle.
Rabbi Gilah Langner
Congregation Kol Ami
Arlington, VA
RECONSTRUCTIONIST
What I have learned about fighting antisemitism goes back to the Torah. For while each historical outbreak of antisemitism is unique, all share common themes that are described as far back as the story of the Israelites in Egypt. Hatred for its own sake is one theme, such as when Joseph had to eat alone for “the Egyptians could not dine with the Hebrews, since that would be abhorrent to the Egyptians.” The presence of an authoritarian leader like Pharaoh is another theme. Exodus describes a leader who incites fear of a minority and then exploits that fear to distract from his consolidation of power and exploitation of his own people. And sadly, a third theme is the way oppressed people turn their pain and anger toward each other, as did the Israelites who fought each other and fought with Moses.
Antisemitism is one of many hatreds, including racism, misogyny and others. And just as hatreds have persisted across time, so have ways of fighting them. Fighting hatred requires standing up and standing together. It requires courage and commitment to stand up both for oneself and also for others who are not like you. Miriam, Yocheved and Moses showed the courage to stand up for their people. The Egyptian midwives and Pharaoh’s daughter all showed that courage to stand up for others. Liberation requires both.
Today, fighting antisemitism, like fighting all hatreds, means fighting for a democracy in which all citizens are equal under the law. It means fighting for global human rights in which all human beings have basic protection under humanitarian law. And it means modeling the religious principles of empathy and compassion, viewing one another in the image of God. We can only create such a society together. We can only protect ourselves if we all commit to protecting each other.
Rabbi Caryn Broitman
Martha’s Vineyard Hebrew Congregation
Vineyard Haven, MA
REFORM
At times it feels like we’ve learned nothing. Antisemitic incidents continue to rise, and a hatred this old and persistent can seem impossible to overcome. And yet, we have learned some things.
We have learned that defining antisemitism is complex. Even within the Jewish community, there is no consensus: What feels antisemitic to one person may not to another. Furthermore, while centuries-long recurring antisemitic tropes and myths persist (blood libel, power, disloyalty, greed, deicide, etc.), antisemitism continues to evolve as its perpetrators find new ways of propagating their hateful ideology.
We have learned that antisemitism, like all other forms of hate, is countered through relationships rooted in trust, empathy and shared humanity. When people truly know one another—person to person, classroom to classroom, and community to community—understanding and acceptance grow. And we have learned that we cannot fight antisemitism alone. Just as we show up for other marginalized communities, we need allies who stand and act in support and love with us. Only when we all work together to put an end to all forms of hate can we realize a world in which all people are accepted, cared for and treated justly.
Rabbi Dr. Laura Novak Winer
Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion
Fresno, CA
CONSERVATIVE
Not long ago, “Never Again!” became a rallying cry for both Jews and non-Jews. We swore never to forget the Holocaust and to ensure that our non-Jewish neighbors understood the plight of the Jews in the Shoah and the need to fight the scourge of antisemitism. While Holocaust education served a vital role in the second half of the 20th century, by the first quarter of the 21st century it was no longer effective—as explained well in Dara Horn’s book People Love Dead Jews.
I hope we have learned that Holocaust education is not the way to fight antisemitism today. “Never Again!” has been inverted by anti-Zionists—from the Soviets to contemporary activists—and is now used against the Jewish people and Israel. In America today, Jew-hatred comes from the left, as anti-Zionism, and from the right, as classical antisemitism. Both threaten to destroy the liberal principles and civic values that support a safe Jewish community and a vibrant American democracy.
Our past informs us that when Jews are threatened, our host country’s future is in danger. We must support scholars and thought leaders who honestly address the illiberal tropes of Jew-hatred based on conspiracy, ignorance, lies and fear. Podcasters and politicians who appeal to either political extreme turn the Jew into the world’s villain and, in so doing, threaten Western democracy.
Rabbi Amy S. Wallk
Temple Beth El
Springfield, MA
MODERN ORTHODOX
We have learned that antisemitism is more present and persistent than we thought. There is no permanent solution to it. We learned that we must confront it (and anti-Zionism, which is its twin sister) and refute it with the facts. We learned that antisemitism has a high proportion of irrational conspiracy theory elements and that rationality and evidence may not make much of a dent on its followers. Conclusion: Focus on inspiring Jews with pride and knowledge so they will stand up to antisemitism and not be intimidated.
Rabbi Yitz Greenberg
J.J. Greenberg Institute for the Advancement of Jewish Life/Hadar
Riverdale, NY
ORTHODOX
We have learned two lessons. One is that the old conception of antisemitism has to go. Antisemitism is a hydra with contradictory, serpentine heads. For those who had seen it as more like a menu—pick a few specific kinds to address, and antisemitism overall will diminish— October 8 came as a rude awakening. Shocked by the immediate outpouring of pro-Hamas sentiment, they concluded, as much of the Ashkenazi world had for centuries, that hating Jews is part of civilization’s collective unconsciousness—that the different heads of the hydra are merely ways in which this unchangeable sentiment finds expression. That led to the second lesson: Given the depth of antisemitism, the best strategy is not to counter it directly but to become prouder Jews. There is more respect for Jews who stand up proudly for their Judaism than for those who cower in the face of antisemitism, or worse yet, as Jews did for centuries, internalize its critiques.
In Israel right now, people in the middle, not on the extremes, have become more open to elements of the tradition. High school students are asking to put on tefillin. Mikvahs are popping up everywhere. It’s Judaism as a form of resistance. People who call themselves mithazkim, strengtheners, are not necessarily returning to observance but are becoming more engaged. They are saying, “The world hates us, and we don’t understand it, but we aren’t taking it sitting down. There’s something we have that they don’t have, and we want to explore it.”
Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein
Cross-Currents
Los Angeles, CA /Jerusalem
SEPHARDIC
We say antisemitism has again reared its ugly head, but the truth is that the head is always reared. It sometimes seems there are only two responses: abandon Jewish identity and completely assimilate, or double down on Jewish pride and keep fighting antisemitism. We thought that after the Holocaust the world would have mercy on the survivors, yet the “remnant” who survived the camps were attacked in Europe and barred by the British from entering Israel. We thought that after the brutal attacks of October 7 the world would commiserate with us, but this did not happen.
We claim antisemitism makes no sense, but historians say that there is an innate hatred or intolerance for the Other—ethnic, religious or cultural—and that ethnic cleansing occurs when locals or “true natives” feel that the “Others” are taking their livelihood. When Jews succeed, some feel that Jews are abusing the system and taking what belongs to others, whether Nobel prizes or startups.
I believe the secret of our success is in fact the divine knowledge offered by the Torah and Jewish wisdom. Maybe our best response to renewed antisemitism is to share the wisdom we were given. We can invite others in and be more integrated with surrounding cultures, without giving up our identity.
Rabbi Haim Ovadia
Torah veAhava
Potomac, MD
CHABAD
Antisemitism has been with us from the beginning of time. The sages tell us, “Esau hates Jacob.” Every Passover we say, “In every generation they rose up to try and annihilate us.” And yet the Jewish people are here. So clearly we have found a way to endure, not just to survive but to thrive.
We don’t fight antisemitism head-on. Hatred, racism and discrimination, like darkness, cannot be fought with weapons—only with light. Instead of trying to conquer hate, spread love; continue to be as Jewish as you can be. The more hatred hurled at you, the more loving you must become.
Obviously, we must fight to combat prejudice, bigotry and racism and to legislate fairness and anti-discrimination. And indeed, America’s freedom of religion has given Jews the ability for the first time to live and practice as they see fit. But at the same time, we don’t want to be defined by antisemites or consumed by fighting them. We focus on what we stand for, not what we stand against. What do we stand for?
Light. Love. God. Virtue. Ethics. Teach Jews—and non-Jews—what God wants and expects of us. Teach them the indispensable role of Israel and the Jewish people in the moral fabric of our world, the principles of kindness and charity that the Jewish people and Israel have brought to civilization. When Jews are proud of who they are, that projects on others and dispels darkness.
Rabbi Simon Jacobson
Meaningful Life Foundation
Brooklyn, NY