Anti-Semitic Attitudes Rising, says ADL

[Danno 1,228]

Hate Crimes At Queens Libraries and Jewish Temple

Survey Finds Anti-Semitic Attitudes Rising

Updated: Friday, 04 Nov 2011, 7:19 PM EDT

Published : Friday, 04 Nov 2011, 7:11 PM EDT

MYFOXNY.COM STAFF REPORT

MYFOXNY.COM - Swastikas were found painted on the facades of the Jackson Heights and East Elmhurst branches of the Queens Library and on the door of Congregation Tifereth Israel on Thursday.

The Anti-Defamation League today condemned the anti-Semitic graffiti. The ADL says there were 133 anti-Jewish incidents reported across New York City in 2010.

A nationwide ADL survey released just yesterday found that anti-Semitic attitudes have risen in America.

The ADL survey found that 15 percent of Americans - nearly 35 million adults - hold deeply anti-Semitic views. That's up three percent from 2009.

"The fact that anti-Semitic attitudes have increased significantly over the past two years is troubling and raises questions about the impact of broader trends in America - financial insecurity, social uncertainty, the decline in civility and the growth of polarization - on attitudes toward Jews," said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director.

19-percent answered "probably true" to the statement "Jews have too much control/influence on Wall Street," an increase from 14-percent in 2009.

Several cases of anti-Semitism have been documented at various Occupy Wall Street across the country.

The survey also found that anti-Semitic views among the African-American population have remained steady, but are consistently higher than the general population.

In 2011, 29-percent of African-Americans expressed strongly anti-Semitic views, according to the survey.

Read more: http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/hate-crimes-at-queens-libraries-and-jewish-temple-20111104-lgf#ixzz1csADKqMn

[Sofiyya 1,687]

Definition of SEMITE

1

a : a member of any of a number of peoples of ancient southwestern Asia including the Akkadians, Phoenicians, Hebrews, and Arabs

b : a descendant of these peoples

2

: a member of a modern people speaking a Semitic language

I'm not a Jew, but I'm a Semite. Do those stats include attitudes toward people like me?

[scandal 951]

Anti-Semitic Attitudes Rising, says ADL

What percentage of the people that you know are Anti-Semitic?

I consider myself quite fortunate that in my everyday real life, I've had very little direct experience with antisemitism. Certainly nothing overt. My father recalls, as a young kid of about 5 in Montreal walking home from school in the 1940s, being pushed into the street and having his nose bloodied and being taunted "sale juif de merde" by a pack of French Canadian teens. That was overt. He also faced the Jewish quota at McGill - there was a time when it was 'acceptable' in polite society to restrict the number of Jews admitted entrance to universities, medical schools and the professions.

These days that sort of overt antisemitism is largely a thing of the past. Where I do encounter antisemitism is online. People have a tendency to show their meaner, darker, more vicious selves when hiding behind online persona. What that's taught me is that antisemitism has not vanished, it has simply ceased being socially acceptable in real life. Online you get a better perspective on how it lies just below the surface. Not just antisemitism, mind you, but other forms of bigotry and prejudice as well. Homophobia, racism towards blacks and Latinos and other people of color, anti-Islamic tendencies, and more. All of these thrive online. Right here on this very website, in fact.

[^_^ 5,021]

I know tons of "nice" people who say anti-semitic things with regularity.

[웃 910]

I grew up in a city that was very diverse. A lot of Jewish people and Chaldeans. Nobody I knew was anti-Semitic.

West Bloomfield Charter Township is an affluent charter township inOakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan, within the Detroit metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the township had a population of 64,690...West Bloomfield is known for its large Jewish populations. It is home to the Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit, theFrankel Jewish Academy, a Jewish community high school, and to the museum of the Jewish Historical Society of Michigan.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Bloomfield_Township,_Michigan

[Penguin_ie 5,996]

***** One personal attack and and post quoting same removed *****

[Dakine10 5,452]

Definition of SEMITE

I'm not a Jew, but I'm a Semite. Do those stats include attitudes toward people like me?

The survey is 11 "statements" with which the respondent either agrees or disagrees. All of the statements begin with something like "Jewish people .....". So I suppose technically the survey was meant to gauge anti-Judaism as opposed to anti-Semitism.

[scandal 951]

The ADL press release discussing the results of the most recent survey which is conducted ever 2 years.

http://adl.org/PresRele/ASUS_12/6154_12.htm

ADL Poll Finds Anti-Semitic Attitudes on Rise in America

New York, NY, November 3, 2011 … A nationwide survey of the American people released today by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) found that anti-Semitic attitudes have risen slightly in America, demonstrating once again that "anti-Semitic beliefs continue to hold a vicegrip" on a small but not insubstantial segment of America.

The ADL survey (.pdf) found that 15 percent of Americans – nearly 35 million adults – hold deeply anti-Semitic views, an increase of 3 percent from a similar poll conducted in 2009, and matching the levels of anti-Semitic propensities recorded in the U.S. in 2005 and 2007. Over the last decade, the highest level of anti-Semitic attitudes was reported in 2002, when an ADL poll found 17 percent of Americans harbored anti-Jewish attitudes.

The 2011 Survey of American Attitudes Toward Jews in America, a national telephone survey of 1,754 adults, was conducted October 13-23 by Marttila Strategies of Washington, D.C. and Boston. The margin of error is +/-2.8 percent.

"The fact that anti-Semitic attitudes have increased significantly over the past two years is troubling and raises questions about the impact of broader trends in America – financial insecurity, social uncertainty, the decline in civility and the growth of polarization – on attitudes toward Jews," said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director. "It is disturbing that with all of the strides we have made in becoming a more tolerant society, anti-Semitic beliefs continue to hold a vicegrip on a small but not insubstantial segment of the American public."

Among the more disturbing findings, the ADL survey shows that at a time of high unemployment and economic uncertainty, age-old myths about Jews and money and Jewish power in business endure.

Nineteen percent (19%) of Americans answered "probably true" to the statement "Jews have too much control/influence on Wall Street," an increase from 14 percent in 2009.

"The sterotypes about Jews and money endure, and the fact that more Americans are now accepting these statements about Jews as true suggests that the downturn in the economy, along with the changing demographics of our society, may have contributed to the rise in anti-Semitic sentiments," said Mr. Foxman. "Once again the old anti-Semitic standbys about Jewish loyalty, the death of Jesus and Jewish power remain strong."

Additional Findings:

Anti-Semitic propensities are measured by an 11-question index developed by ADL more than 40 years ago. The index includes 11 statements used to gauge the anti-Semitic attitudes of the respondents.

In the new survey a surprising number of Americans agreed with sharply worded criticisms of Jews:

• Fourteen percent (14%) agreed with the statement that "Jews have too much power in the U.S. today," an increase from 13 percent in 2009.

• Fifteen percent (15 %) agreed that Jews are "more willing to use shady practices," up slightly from 2009.

• Sixteen percent (16%) agreed that Jewish "business people are so shrewd, others don't have a chance," up from 13 percent in 2009.

• Thirty percent (30%) believe that Jews are "more loyal to Israel than to America," a percentage that has remained virtually unchanged since ADL's benchmark survey in 1964, despite the changing makeup of the U.S population.

• Nearly half of all respondents agreed with the statement that Jews "stick together more than other Americans, and 33 percent said they believe Jews "always like to be at the head of things."

• A surprisingly large number of Americans continue to believe that "Jews were responsible for the death of Christ." Thirty-one percent (31%) of Americans agreed with that statement. One-quarter of Americans believe that Jews "still talk too much about what happened to them in the Holocaust."

Demographic Trends, Minorities, and Anti-Semitism

According to the ADL poll, the most educated Americans are largely free of prejudicial views. Less educated Americans are more likely to hold anti-Semitic views. The poll found that 22 percent of who graduated high school or completed some high school harbor strongly anti-Semitic views, as compared to 13 percent among those who completed some college, and 9 percent among those who graduated from college.

The poll also looked at anti-Semitic views among significantly large minority groups:

* Hispanics: Once again, Hispanic Americans born outside of the U.S. are more likely than Hispanics born in the U.S. to hold anti-Semitic views. According to the survey, 42 percent of foreign-born Hispanics hold anti-Semitic views, as opposed to 20 percent of U.S. born Hispanics.

* African-Americans: In the past four years, anti-Semitic views among the African-American population have remained steady, but are consistently higher than the general population. In 2011, 29 percent of African-Americans expressed strongly anti-Semitic views. That percentage is consistent with the findings of past surveys.

The steady growth of the Hispanic population, now at 15 percent of the adult population, means that Hispanics and African-Americans together now comprise 27 percent of the American population, a number that is sure to grow in the coming years. This population increase of the cohorts with a substantially higher percentage of anti-Semitic beliefs than the total population also means that anti-Semitic propensities in the coming years will be a challenge, according to the ADL poll.

"At a time when you have conflicting trends in American society – on the one hand the rise of an African-American president, on the other hand a rise in anti-Hispanic and anti-Muslim sentiment – the question is whether this uptick in anti-Semitic sentiments signals a broader trend in attitudes toward Jews or not. Only time will tell."

Positive Findings

Jews were found to be held in high regard on many key measurements. Even Americans who hold the most anti-Semitic views agreed with many positive statements about Jews, including:

• Jews have a strong faith in God (79 percent);

• Jews have contributed much to cultural life of America (64 percent);

• Jews emphasize the importance of family life (83 percent).

The survey was conducted with a base sample of 1,200 plus an oversample of 243 African-Americans and 227 Hispanics, bringing the oversample for both communities to 400 each. For many questions, the survey used the technique of "split sampling," a process in which the 1,200 person sample was split into two demographically representative samples of 600 respondents each. For those questions, the survey had a margin of error of +/- 4.9 percent.

The purpose of split sampling in the survey was to maximize the number of questions that could be asked, to test different hypothesis about an issue, and to test the impact of different question wording.

[Danno 1,228]

I would have to question..... those questions as the means by which we decide if one is ant-semetic.

For instance you had highlighted in red the statement:

• A surprisingly large number of Americans continue to believe that "Jews were responsible for the death of Christ." Thirty-one percent (31%) of Americans agreed with that statement. One-quarter of Americans believe that Jews "still talk too much about what happened to them in the Holocaust."

The Jewish Holocaust and that time period in general is a fascinating period to study, learn and be entertained in the cinema.... but one can't help but notice the endless and I mean endless books. movies and tv shows and specials on the Jewish holocaust, far exceeding the amount of effort given to any other human catastrophe in history.

For instance, how many major Movies are based on the millions and MIllions who suffered and died under communism or the Gulags.... I only know of a handful.

So if someone were to ask me the question above, I would answer "no" if I took the question to mean -Jews that I interact with. BUt if I took the question to mean Jewish writers, movie and film makers, I could see

how Someone might say yes.

• Fourteen percent (14%) agreed with the statement that "Jews have too much power in the U.S. today," an increase from 13 percent in 2009.

Here is another example of a question in which a "YES" answer should not automatically flag one as anti-semit.

We have been teaching and preaching for 40 years that if our Political class, business leaders, or even the Number of Fire Fighters do not match the make up of the population at large it is because Whites or men have too much power because this of course leads to the hiring and promotion of "their own" granting them too much power.

If people feel Jews which are such a small percentage of the population are over represented in Banking, seats on the Supreme Court, access to the Presidents ear, HollyWood or wherever ..... why wouldn't they feel "Jews have too much power" too (when using this faulty liberal logic?).

On-line you can find seriously Anti-Semetic voices but in my adult life, I can't recall anyone I've known who is. Fundamentalist Christians that I know seem to adore Israel.

Sure I know people who would use Jewish stereotypes in a joke or something (I have done it myself) but to say these people harbor ill-will for jews is to suppose they hate Italians and Poles too.

Bottom line, people are always suspicious of those they know little about and if you look at which groups rated the highest, that might bear that out.

Jews like every other group, has Stereo-types which perhaps fit to some degree and some which are based on hateful lies.

With well over 300 million people in this country, if there were Anti-semitics in any great number, we would see more than the routine spray paint on Temple walls and the occasional crack-pot with a sign.

The next time they do such a survey, I want to see questions like-

-Are Jews destroying this country?

-Would you like to see Jews removed from this country?

-Can you trust Jews?

These type questions will I think give a more clear answer on the numbers of Anti-Semite numbers we have here. This survey iIMO s designed to keep Mr. Foxman in business.

[Sofiyya 1,687]

A surprisingly large number of Americans continue to believe that "Jews were responsible for the death of Christ." Thirty-one percent (31%) of Americans agreed with that statement.

The only thing that surprised me about that is that the number of Americans who agreed with that statement was so small. Westerners are quick to point out anti-Jew quotes from the Qur'an, but they don't seem to know that their own NT states that the Jews killed Jesus. Even the Qur'an doesn't make that claim.

1 Thessalonians 2

13-16 And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe. For you, brothers and sisters, became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own people the same things those churches suffered from the Jews who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to everyone in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last.

[Sofiyya 1,687]

Fundamentalist Christians that I know seem to adore Israel.

That's because they believe that Jerusalem will be the setting for the Second Coming of Christ after the Dome of the Rock is destroyed and Solomon's Temple rebuilt. Then, they will ascend unto heaven and the Jews will go to hell.

[mawilson 2,133]

their own NT states that the Jews killed Jesus.

Wasn't Jesus a Jew?

[Sofiyya 1,687]

Wasn't Jesus a Jew?

Yes, he was.

[Danno 1,228]

The only thing that surprised me about that is that the number of Americans who agreed with that statement was so small. Westerners are quick to point out anti-Jew quotes from the Qur'an, but they don't seem to know that their own NT states that the Jews killed Jesus. Even the Qur'an doesn't make that claim.

1 Thessalonians 2

13-16 And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe. For you, brothers and sisters, became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own people the same things those churches suffered from the Jews who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to everyone in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last.

MOst evangelicals conclude Christ was the sacrificial lamb, his sacrifice paid for their personal failings, to completely blame the Jews would be to undo the work of salvation.

Scripture is plain, the Jews compelled Pilot to grant the death sentence on top of the scourging, but these were small details which set the stage for a much larger plan to be carried out.

The Jewish response was mans response.

[Usui Takumi 1,562]

I learned something from this. I went and researched to see if Jewish people have higher incomes than other faiths (per the stereotype) and the answer is no. They are comparable to most other faiths.

What I did find was that people from Hindu faiths are proportionally wealthier. My first thought was that it makes sense in the US where the religion is primarily tied to immigrant families. Because only the wealthiest of the highest caste make it to the US from India they naturally have a great deal of education as a result. But then I looked at Islam, another generally immigrant faith, and found the opposite. Muslims are proportionally poorer than other faiths. So why the difference? My only conclusion is that perhaps that faith is greatly affected by asylum seekers who are poor.

Any thoughts?

Also when I say immigrant faith I do not mean any disrespect. Clearly all major faiths are immigrant faiths (with the exception of Mormonism?). I'm referring to the last 50 years.

Edited November 7, 2011 by Sousuke