US Jewish Communities Confront Rising Violence and Internal Rifts Over Israel
For many American Jews, keeping up with current events has become an emotionally tumultuous experience. There is widespread anger over a surge in attacks targeting their communities, coupled with deep internal divisions regarding support or opposition to various policies and actions by Israel in the conflict-ridden Middle East.
Recent Attack Highlights Dangerous Conflation
Just last week, a unified condemnation emerged following an attack where a man drove his pickup truck into a Detroit-area synagogue. Over 100 children were attending a preschool program at the time. According to the FBI, the driver, who had lost family members during an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon, exchanged gunfire with a guard before taking his own life.
Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, strongly denounced the incident. "To hold American Jews — let alone children in a preschool — accountable for the actions of a foreign government is a dangerous double standard that we don’t apply today to any other group," he stated. "One can be deeply critical of the policies of the State of Israel and still recognize that targeting synagogues or any Jewish institutions with violence is not political protest; it is antisemitism, plain and simple."
Voices of Criticism and Concern Within the Community
Jewish author and commentator Peter Beinart also condemned the attack while reiterating his vehement criticism of Israeli policy in Gaza, the West Bank, and elsewhere. "No matter what Israel does, no matter how immoral or brutal or horrifying, it doesn’t justify attacking a synagogue or justifying attacking American Jews in any way," he emphasized on his podcast. "Americans are not responsible for the actions of foreign governments or foreign organizations, just because they share a religion, an ethnic national ancestry, a race."
However, Beinart added that U.S. synagogues displaying "We stand with Israel" signs should consider removing them, arguing they make congregants less safe and are immoral.
Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, who has numerous policy differences with the Israeli government, disagreed. "We live in a country where people are entitled to their beliefs," she said. "No one should have to risk violence because they're expressing them." She stressed the importance of acknowledging nuanced, interrelated issues, balancing a belief in a Jewish homeland with disagreements over humanitarian crises in Gaza.
Complexities of Identity and Security
Beth Kissileff, a journalist whose husband survived the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue attack that claimed 11 lives, highlighted the complexity. "On the one hand, I do feel the fates of Jews the world over are linked," she noted. "On the other hand, I don’t feel it’s fair for Jews the world over to be the proxies for the actions of the government of Israel." She criticized Israel's current government for failing to curb settler attacks on West Bank Palestinians and favoring Orthodox over non-Orthodox Judaism, but firmly rejected scapegoating Jews due to Israel's actions.
At Sinai Temple in Los Angeles, senior rabbi Nicole Guzik and her husband Erez Sherman try to avoid politics from the pulpit but convene events for diverse views. They are dismayed by the high cost of security—over $1 million annually—for their Conservative synagogue, a trend exacerbated by anti-Israel protests and violence following Hamas' October 7, 2023, attack. "But we are going to live as Jews as proudly as possible," Guzik asserted. "There's no reason Jews should not be able to express their love for their homeland. ... A love for Israel is intrinsic to Jewish belief."
Debating Anti-Zionism and Antisemitism
Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove of Park Avenue Synagogue in New York said Jews have "grown uncomfortably accustomed to this new reality," citing recent attacks in Michigan and Australia. He pointed to "the blurred line between anti-Zionism and antisemitism, the frightening manner by which violent rhetoric becomes violent action, and the enabling that occurs when people in authority refuse to draw clear moral lines." As a proud Zionist, he emphasized that love for Israel can include dissent with its government, warning against conflation.
Mark Mazower, a history professor at Columbia University, traced how antisemitism's meaning evolved since the 19th century, with increasing application to hostility toward Israel post-1948. He noted that many U.S. Jews and major organizations closely embraced Israel, fueling current divisions. "It’s obviously wrong to blame all Jews everywhere for what Israel does," Mazower said. "Yet large American Jewish organizations have wrapped themselves in the Israeli flag and said it’s the duty of American Jews to stand with Israel."
Organizational Responses and Security Measures
Motti Seligson, director of public relations for Chabad-Lubavitch, lamented stringent security needs but welcomed a trend of Jews strengthening ties to their faith and community post-October 7. The Anti-Defamation League reported that incidents related to Israel constituted more than half of antisemitic incidents in its annual tally for the first time last year. CEO Jonathan Greenblatt declared, "We will not apologize for our love and support for the Jewish state of Israel. Not now, not ever."
As debates rage, communities grapple with balancing safety, expression, and identity in an increasingly polarized environment.
