Jewish Americans face the threats of escalating antisemitism and growing white nationalism at the same time that the Israeli government’s anti-democratic policies are eliciting increasingly harsh condemnation worldwide. An article written by Jonathan Jacoby which was posted by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

Both sides say debate over what definition of antisemitism should be used is a waste of energy — but that hasn’t dampened the dispute

All antisemitism is repugnant. Many incidents of antisemitic violence are concrete and real, from the much-covered attacks on synagogues in Poway, Pittsburgh and Colleyville to multiple assaults on visibly Orthodox Jews in New York and New Jersey. In January, there was a failed Molotov cocktail attack on a synagogue in Bloomfield, New Jersey.

At its February 2023 , the American Bar Association rejected inclusion of the IHRA definition in its resolution opposing antisemitism, in part based on opposition from the ACLU, which noted that “any embrace of the IHRA definition by the ABA would undermine fundamental rights of free speech, freedom of assembly and protest, and academic freedom.”

“Our criticisms emanate from a love for Israel and a steadfast support for its security and well-being,” said the statement. “Some will try to dismiss their validity by labeling them antisemitic.” Instead, the statement said, the criticisms “reflect a real concern that the new government’s direction mirrors anti-democratic trends that we see arising elsewhere.”

A slate of 169 prominent American Jews, including former leaders of major mainstream Jewish organizations, called on U.S. politicians not to conflate criticism of Israel with antisemitism, a signal of worsening relations between the new far-right Israeli government and the U.S. Jewish community.

The statement calls for a “critical and necessary debate” about the government’s policies and cautioned against false accusations of antisemitism aimed at Israel’s critics.

It is easy to see why anti-Zionism is equated with antisemitism, but we cannot be satisfied with easy answers.

Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., was a featured speaker at the Republican Jewish Coalition’s Annual Leadership Meeting last weekend at the Venetian. After being elected as Republican Leader on Nov. 15, McCarthy now needs to strengthen his position to get the votes to become

The obfuscation of right- and left-wing antisemitism is a grave mistake. It obscures fundamental differences between them and impedes our understanding of how to combat antisemitism on each end of the political spectrum.

The occupation has tempered my confidence in Israel’s survival as a democratic homeland for the Jewish people. Weaponizing antisemitism also hurts Israel. Toxic environments leave no space for debate. Without an open debate about Israeli policy, the occupation will metastasize.

Anger at Israel has been rapidly morphing into anti-Semitism since its surge during the conflict last spring between Israel and Hamas. There is no justification for it.

It is easy to see why anti-Zionism is equated with antisemitism, but we cannot be satisfied with easy answers. Understanding when anti-Zionism isn’t antisemitic is just as important as understanding when it is.

What should we remember when we think back to those 11 hours in Congregation Beth Israel – besides the antisemitism of a mad man, a lone actor who terrorized four members of a synagogue and millions of others who were watching and hoping for their safety?

As we commemorate Holocaust Remembrance Day, or Yom HaShoah, this year, my mother, a survivor of the Auschwitz death camp, reminds me that anti-Semitism is still with us. It was only three months ago that we watched the insurrection on Capitol Hill together, with its abounding symbols of anti-Jewish hatred and racism.

There is anti-Semitism on both ends of the political spectrum. But they are different in kind and in quantity. According to the AJC survey, 37% of American Jews think the Democratic Party holds some anti-Semitic views, while 69% believe the Republican Party holds such views.

The insurrection on Capitol Hill demonstrates the interrelationships between racism and antisemitism. . Antisemitism is part of a scaffold of hatreds and oppressions that were enabled by Trump and are being perpetrated by white supremacists.

There is anti-Semitism on both ends of the political spectrum. But they are different in kind and in quantity. According to the AJC survey, 37% of American Jews think the Democratic Party holds some anti-Semitic views, while 69% believe the Republican Party holds such views.

Was there a double standard in the controversy at the University of Southern California that led to the resignation of a Jewish student leader, Rose Ritch, after a spate of online harassment targeting her as a Zionist?

In these dire circumstances, if anti-Semitic ideas are allowed to be propagated without any strong pushback, then they can find a receptive audience and gradually become normalized and increasingly acceptable