American Jew or Jewish American

In the early 1980’s, in the incipient stages of developing a private practice in psychology, Paramount Community Psychiatric Hospital (no longer exists), in the Long Beach Area, had invited me to be on staff with admitting privileges.  I was invited to a dinner for new staff members like me, whereupon, I saw a familiar face, an Egyptian psychiatrist who I had met at the hospital, who like me was just starting his private practice. He beckoned me to come join him at the table that he was sitting where one seat remained.  Upon introducing myself, the others informed me they had come from other Arab countries in the Middle East.   When they heard my name, they asked me if I was Jewish.  When I replied in the affirmative, they then proceeded to ask me how I felt about Israel.

When I voiced my support for Israel, however, adding I did not support all of its policies, the conversation at the table became dicey.  Upon hearing my response, I suddenly was assaulted from all sides about the evil Israel had cast on the entire Middle East.  As they continued non-stop, I realized that anything I said in support or in defense of Israel would have given them more ammunition to fire back in my direction.  Although I was no expert in the Middle East, I did know that a few years earlier Egypt and Israel had signed a peace accord when Jimmy Carter was in the White House.  Unfortunately, this had little bearing on the Egyptian psychiatrist, as he readily sided with his friends that appeared more like his family.   As I bid my colleagues farewell, the introduction to the hospital, along with the dinner, left a bad taste in my mouth. 

The above example stressed my identity foremost as a Jew rather than an American.  However, for the greater part of my life, I have regarded being American, as my primary identity, with my being Jewish though certainly an intrinsic part of my background.  Thus, I have viewed myself more as an American Jew than a Jewish American.  Moreover, I am quite sure most Jews in America would identify with this perspective.  Then came October 7^th in which the world witnessed the murder of 1200 Israelis and kidnapping of about 240 others by Hamas’ forces.

Rather than express their contempt for the incident, several students from Harvard wrote a letter essentially backing what Hamas had done.  In effect, they were condoning the mass murder of Jews.  The initial response of other academic centers of “higher” learning was in the same vein.  Only after alumni from these universities responded with letters and the threat of withholding their gifts, did these same universities back off and condemn what Hamas had done.  Suddenly Jewish students on these college campuses felt imperiled by rife antisemitic acts such as pro-Palestinian groups tearing down posters of kidnapped Jewish children. The result of all this has been the open intimidation of Jewish students.  I do not consider this type of protest emblematic of what we Americans regard as Free Speech, a right protected by the First Amendment.

I can draw some sad ironies to all of what has occurred on October 7th and subsequently.  The first is that few of the people slain on that day were members of the Israeli military, some of whom were not even Jewish but rather Arab Israelis.  Some Jews that were killed had been working with Palestinians to achieve a better understanding among them and Jews with the ultimate goal being peace between the two peoples.

The second irony is that most of the Jewish population in American vote democratic and believe in progressive causes often voiced on college campuses.  Suddenly these same Jewish students have found themselves on the receiving end of much hostility and anger by their so-called politically aligned comrades.

The third irony is the divergent origins of the antisemitism currently being expressed today.  The political left, rampant on elite college campuses, and in much of the news and social media, accuse Israel and its followers (i.e., Jews) as the oppressors with Palestinians being the oppressed.  Here Jewish people are regarded in the same camp as white supremists.  Movements extant today, such as Jews for Color, clearly point to the diversity of the Jewish people.  Furthermore, we know Israel has helped Ethiopians, who claim a Jewish background, to migrate to Israel. Finally, it is unclear how American Jews of mixed ethnicity will be treated in this most recent spread of antisemitism.     

The last variant of antisemitism, though more illogical than ironic, comes from Elon Musk, said to be the richest man on earth, who recently endorsed a post on X (his company) espousing baseless antisemitic conspiracy theories that Jewish people are promoting “hatred against whites.”  This idea originates from the belief that the Jewish aim is to “replace whites” with minorities or people of color, a trope that white nationalists and antisemites have trumpeted for years.

In one case Jews are said to be too white, whereas in the other case they are not white enough. The rampant antisemitism expressed by both the Left and the Right is so absurd that it is almost comical.  However, one cannot laugh at the danger it may augur for those of the Jewish faith.  Let us hope that the antisemitic actions occurring here in the United States, the home of the free, do not lead to the violence wreaked on the Israelis by the Hamas on October 7th.  Here I congratulate President Biden for taking the controversial approach of standing up for Israel as both an important and enduring ally of the United States.  We, as Jews and Americans, need to hope and pray that the current chaos in the Middle East ultimately will resolve itself in a peaceful resolution between Israelis and Palestinians.