American Jews Should Become a Little More Israeli

I think I understand his feelings, because American Jews are playing defense a lot lately. I should know, going around the country in these past few months I’ve also addressed non-Jewish audiences—some of which are quite hostile toward me. When I speak to that type of audience, I hear myself participating in a kind of defensive dance, a strange ritual of self-humiliation where I try to disprove the conspiracy theory of antisemitism.

Not all Jews are rich, I tell people. I explain that about 20% of Jewish New Yorkers live below the poverty line. On the one hand I’m trying to show that the conspiracy theory about us is factually incorrect. But on the other, what if most Jews were rich? Would that mean that we actually were controlling the world? That the conspiracy theory of antisemitism was true?

Not all Jews are white, I tell people. I explain that about 70% of Jews in Israel certainly aren’t from European descent. On the one hand, I’m trying to explain to people that Jews have lived around the globe for centuries and that we are beautifully diverse. But on the other hand, what if we were all light-skinned? Would that make Jews guilty of racism or oppression? Would that “prove” the conspiracy theory? Or at least validate it?

And worst of all, we are genocide survivors, I tell people. I explain that 6 million Jews were murdered in living memory, including 1 million children. On the one hand, I’m trying to teach Jewish history. I am fighting for facts. A significant percentage of millennials believe that 2…   million or 3 million Jews were murdered in the Shoah rather than 6 million. It’s my obligation to fight against these falsehoods. But on the other hand, am I also begging people not to hate us by reminding them we are victims?

All this defense leads me to a core philosophical question: What would it look like if American Jews decided to play philosophical offense? The conspiracy theories of antisemitism aren’t true; rather they are a series of boundaryless lies. But we will also never be able to prove they are wholly false because they are not driven by rationale or reason. So, what if instead of defensively saying what we aren’t, we took a different approach and we chose to assertively say what we are?

It might look something like this: Jews are experts in civil disagreement—we have thousands of years of lived experience and documented evidence of how to argue with respect and how to engage in meaningful debate. We can help to heal the brokenness of public discourse with this knowledge. Jews possess ancient wisdom about justice. Amos, Micah, Isaiah—these are the voices to which we could be turning. Jews know about the value of work-life balance, the dangers of over-reliance on technology, the importance of face-to-face connection—God explained these things to us through the gift of Shabbat long ago. Jews have lived experiences to share that could help others understand current events—about immigration, refugeeism, persecution, and survivorship. Jews love to dance around the Torah, to braid bread, and to ask questions. We have so much to offer, to teach, and to share. Maybe we should start telling people about these things and countless others rather than defending ourselves against a cruel and unyielding conspiracy theory.