(Credit: Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia)
A new report by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) finds that nearly one in four Americans think the recent wave of violent attacks on Jews in our country is understandable.
About 15 percent of respondents said that the violence was “necessary.”
How did we get here?
To appreciate this disturbing phenomenon we must examine the extreme rhetoric that has become common in our discourse. To casual observers, phrases like “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” or “globalize the Intifada” may seem like mere statements of support for a Palestinian state. However, these slogans carry implications that expand their meaning from simple support for Palestinians to the destruction of Israel.
For example, the chant “from the river to sea” leaves no room for Israel to coexist alongside Palestine. Rather than simply demanding a state for Palestinians, a call for liberation, this slogan insists on the destruction of Israel – a rejection of peace.
This is the crux of anti-Zionism, a movement that denies the right of the Jewish people to a state in any part of the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.
Anti-Zionism intrinsically opposes a two-state solution, an idea that feels like a distant aspiration because of current security realities and yet remains the only viable path to peace. By requiring a resolution that is non-negotiable for one party and existentially threatening to the other, anti-Zionism moves beyond the realm of compromise and, in effect, becomes pro-war.
Even worse, calls to “globalize the Intifada” are a plain-as-day endorsement of violence against civilians.
The Second Intifada was a years-long campaign of terror when militants from Hamas and other Palestinian factions carried out regular bombings of city busses, cafes, universities, religious gatherings, and any other assembly of Jews. Essentializing the word intifada to its base meaning, uprising, is akin to essentializing the German word “kampf” to mean struggle. While this narrow definition may be technically plausible, when Jews are being murdered in the streets of America we must condemn coded hate speech, not make excuses for it.
Historical context matters, and it requires us to understand that the phrase “globalize the intifada” is now as inextricably linked to acts of violence against American Jews as phrases like “America First” are linked to a prior isolationist, racially-charged era.
The more this extreme rhetoric is normalized, the more likely it is that misguided individuals are to commit acts of violence against Jews here in America. This is what happened when an 82-year-old Jewish woman was burned to death in Colorado in May, and when a man was beaten unconscious in California last month by a group of people shouting “F— the Jews, Free Palestine.”
It's time to acknowledge the role that rhetoric plays in shaping actions. When hate-filled language is given a platform, when it is tolerated and celebrated, it emboldens individuals to translate words into violent actions. When supporting Israel’s right to exist, as more than 85% of American Jews do, is somehow seen as uniquely evil, then radical actors can convince themselves that violence against Jews in America is necessary, as the ADL survey found.
We need to ask ourselves: where does this end?
One answer comes from Governor Josh Shapiro, who recently stated: “You have to speak and act with moral clarity, and when supporters of yours say things that are blatantly antisemitic, you can’t leave room for that to just sit there. You’ve got to condemn that.”
He’s right. We must call out antisemitism when we see it, whether it’s in the comments section of an online post, in a speech made by a public figure, or in the actions of our neighbors. We must be adamant in calling for the decency that binds us together as a society.
Philadelphia’s Jewish community is strong, vibrant, and resilient. We have seen ourselves rise to the occasion in times of crisis, and we will continue to stand together in solidarity against hate. But we cannot fight this battle alone. It’s going to take all of us—Jews and non-Jews alike—standing up and saying enough is enough.
Rabbi Eric Yanoff leads Adath Israel, a synagogue in Merion Station.
