More and more Americans consider anti-Semitism a ‘very serious’ problem: poll

Most Americans consider anti-Jewish prejudice to be a major problem in the country today, and half of respondents in a new Gallup poll described the problem as very serious.

“We’re seeing a pretty big increase in anti-Semitism,” said Jeff Jones, senior editor at Gallup Newsweek. “A lot has certainly changed in the last few years.”

Gallup’s data comes from telephone surveys of more than 1,000 U.S. adults from May 1-23. The organization last conducted a survey on anti-Semitism in 2003, when former U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman, who was Jewish, was running for president.

Americans are now more likely to describe anti-Semitism as a problem in the US than two decades ago. Nearly half of Americans now rate it as “very serious,” and a total of 81% say it is a very or somewhat serious problem.

“We don’t often see changes like this, of this magnitude,” Jones said. “It’s definitely significant.”

This shift in fear of anti-Semitism shows that only 10% of Americans now do not view prejudice as a “serious problem.” Less than one in 10 say it’s “not a problem at all.”

Gallup found that older Americans are significantly more likely than younger Americans to describe anti-Semitism as a very serious problem. Two-thirds of people aged 65 and over and 55% of people aged 50 to 64 say today’s prejudice is very serious.

In contrast, older and younger Americans are equally likely to believe that anti-Muslim prejudice is a very serious problem.

According to Gallup, Americans overall are much less likely to view prejudice against Muslims as a very serious problem (33%). However, the total of 74% who consider anti-Muslim prejudice to be very or quite serious is closer to the 81% who consider anti-Jewish prejudice.

The poll found that, politically, Democrats express more concern about the treatment of Muslims than Republicans. Republicans, however, are more likely than Democrats to describe anti-Jewish prejudice as a very serious problem.

Why now?

There have been a number of crimes and rhetoric in recent years that have specifically targeted American Jews, including the hate crimes at a synagogue in Pittsburgh in 2018 and in Poway, California, a year later.

But anti-Jewish sentiment has surged since Hamas militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7 in a surprise siege that killed 1,200 people and took another 250 hostage, the worst single Jewish death toll since the Holocaust.

Israel responded to the October 7 attacks with a widespread bombing campaign in Gaza that killed thousands of civilians, although exact numbers are difficult to ascertain.

Gallup found that Jewish Americans are significantly more likely than Americans as a whole to say they have been mistreated or harassed in the past year. Only a third said they had not experienced anti-Semitism since the attacks.

The Israeli military operation in Gaza has become a flashpoint on American college campuses, beginning with the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” protest at Columbia University on April 18. Similar demonstrations have spread to other elite schools, including New York University, Princeton, Emerson College and the University of Southern California.

Bullying

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) found that more than a dozen colleges, including Harvard, “failed to protect” students and another 53 had “insufficient approaches” or “needed fixes.”

“We are experiencing a tsunami of anti-Jewish hatred so intense that it is drawing the attention of those at the highest levels of our state and federal governments,” ADL CEO Jonathan Green said this week at the launch of a new initiative called UnMaskHate New York.

“Our houses of worship, our communities, our students on campuses like Columbia have experienced intimidation, harassment, marginalization, threats and violence.”

This goes hand in hand with Gallup’s finding that one in four Americans says they have been reluctant to share their religious beliefs with others because of mistreatment or harassment.

“I think the data on reports of mistreatment and harassment is pretty significant,” Jones said. “You always hear about it. Historically, there have always been reports of anti-Semitic incidents.”

According to Gallup, most Jews say they have been treated badly online (80%), in their community (82%), and by local leaders (61%). They are less likely to say they have been treated badly by family (14%), coworkers (21%), or friends (27%).

“I thought it was noteworthy,” Jones said. “The fear is real… even among people who have not experienced mistreatment.”

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