The number of Americans who believe antisemitic tropes has doubled since 2019 and is now at the highest level in decades, according to a new poll published by the Anti-Defamation League on Thursday.
The organization called the findings “stunning and sobering.”
Over three-quarters of Americans (85 percent) believe at least one anti-Jewish trope, as opposed to 61 percent in 2019. A total of 20 percent of Americans believe six or more tropes, up from 11 percent in 2019 and rate not seen since the early 1990s.
“Those of us on the front lines have expected such results for a while now – and yet the data are still stunning and sobering: there is an alarming increase in antisemitic views and hatred across nearly every metric — at levels unseen for decades,” said ADL CEO Jonathan A. Greenblatt.
“From Pittsburgh to Charlottesville to the near-daily harassment of Jews in our greatest cities, antisemitic beliefs lead to violence. I hope this survey is a wake-up call to the entire country,” he said.
“Dual loyalty” was an issue for many respondents, with 39% believing Jews are more loyal to Israel than the United States. A further 20% believe that American Jews have “too much power.”
Twenty-six percent say Jews have “too much power in the business world, ”
Twenty-one percent believe Jews “don’t care about anyone other than themselves.”
Twenty percent believe Jews “are more willing than others to use shady practices to get what they want.”
Fifty-three percent believe Jews will go out of their way to hire other Jews, the poll found.
File/Anti-Semitic graffiti is written on the Beth Jacob Congregation of Irvine on October 31, 2018 in Irvine, California. Antisemitism in the U.S. has come to the forefront recently in the aftermath of the deadly shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. ( Allen Berezovsky/Getty)
Twenty-three percent believe Israel gets away with anything and controls the media, and 18 percent say they are uncomfortable spending time with a pro-Israel person.
There was “significantly more negative sentiment toward Israel and its supporters” among young adults below the age of 30.
Researchers found a substantive correlation between belief in anti-Jewish tropes and anti-Israel sentiment across all respondents.
“These anti-Israel beliefs are not commentary on Israeli government policies,” Greenblatt said. “They are antisemitism in another form.”
The survey was conducted online between September and October 2022 among a representative sample of more than 4,000 US adults.
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