Limited Thumbs Up

New survey finds U.S. Jews warily support Bush, reject Arafat.

RACHEL POMERANCE
Jewish Telegraphic Agency

New York City
n annual survey of American Jewish
opinion finds that a majority of
American Jews support the creation of a
Palestinian state, though they are
increasingly distrustful of the Palestinian leader-
ship.
In addition, while they strongly support
President George W Bush's handling of the war
against terrorism, they fear he will soon resume
pressure on Israel to make concessions to the
Palestinians in pursuit of peace.
David Singer, director of research for the
American Jewish Committee, said the organiza-
tion's findings show that Jews have overcome the
psychological obstacles necessary to reach a peace
agreement — after all, even Israeli Prime Minister
Ariel Sharon says he supports a Palestinian state --
but months of violence have reinforced the idea
that the Palestinian Authority and Yasser Arafat are
not the correct partners for peace.
According to the poll, 73 percent of those sur-
veyed agreed with the statement that "The goal of
the Arabs is not the return of the occupied territo-
ries but rather the destruction of Israel." Perhaps
because of that, 80 percent said they are concerned
the American government will continue to pressure
Israel for concessions. Ninety-three percent said the
Palestinian Authority is not doing enough to con-
trol terrorist activity, and 65 percent support the
Israeli government's handling of relations with the
Palestinians.
Yet, American Jews apparently are even more dis-
trustful of Syria than of the Palestinians. Asked
their opinion of 15 countries, 77 percent of
respondents had unfavorable views of Syria, a fig-
ure topped only by Iran (86 percent).
While 62 percent of respondents said Israel
should dismantle some or all West Bank settle-
ments to reach a peace deal with the Palestinians,
almost an equal number — 63 percent — said
Israel should give up only a small part or even
none of the Golan Heights for peace with Syria.

A

Range Of Opinion

The survey also recorded the views of American
Jews on a host of other issues.
Among the findings:
• A large majority — 85 percent — approves of
the way President Bush is handling the U.S. cam-
paign against terror. Even more, 91 percent, favor
U.S. military action in Afghanistan.
• More than 50 percent have a favorable percep-
tion of the United Nations, despite its repeated and
harsh criticism of Israel.
• Seventy-eight percent oppose government aid

President Bush marks the the end of the Islamic holy
month of Ramadan by reacting to Washington-area
Muslim children in the Diplomatic Reception Room
of the White House on Dec. 17.

to religious schools — such as tuition vouchers —
a moderate increase from recent years.
• Anti-Semitism is considered a very serious
problem in the United States by 27 percent of
American Jews, and 67 percent call it somewhat of
a problem. In fact, 69 percent of those interviewed
said anti-Semitism outranks intermarriage as the
greatest threat to Jewish life in America today.
Additionally, 47 percent of respondents believe
anti-Semitism will increase around the world in
coming years.
Despite the image of American Jews as political
liberals, Singer said one of the survey's most impor-
tant revelations is the willingness to accept
increased law enforcement measures against terror-
ism, even if they risk infringing civil liberties.
However, the level of support depends on the
action in question. While 92 percent support
expanding undercover activities to monitor suspi-
cious groups, 66 percent oppose ethnic profiling.
Also noteworthy, Singer said, is the high approval

rating given to President Bush, who did not receive
a majority of the Jewish vote in the November
2000 election.
According to Gary Tobin, president of the
Institute for Jewish and Community Research in
San Francisco, the results of this poll echo the
voice of the general American population.
Polls show that "all Americans believe that the
Palestinian Authority and the Arab world in gener-
al do not want to make peace with Israel," Tobin
said.
What Tobin found "shocking" about the survey
was the fact that only 20 percent of American Jews
have an unfavorable reaction to the U.N., "given
how consistently anti-Israel the U.N. is."
He also found it "very odd" that only 15 percent
of American Jews characterize the U.S.-Israel rela-
tionship as very positive, when the U.S. provides
Israel with massive military and economic aid, and
has been its greatest diplomatic ally for the past 50
years.
The AJCommittee's findings corroborate survey
results released last month by the Forward and the
New York Jewish Week.
The Jewish Week reported that Jews considered
anti-Semitism the most important issue the com-
munity faces in the United States. It also reported
high approval ratings for President Bush.
Like the AJCommittee, the Forward also found
apparent contradictions with regard to Israel, as
American Jews said they increasingly identified
with Israeli hawks, yet still supported conciliatory
positions toward the Palestinians.
In the Jewish Week, 60 percent of American Jews
had a favorable view of Sharon, and 57 percent
also favored creating a Palestinian state.
Martin Raffel, associate executive director of the
Jewish Council for Public Affairs, said the mixed
messages are a "reflection of Israeli attitudes as
well."
Simply put, it means Israelis are prepared to
make significant compromises for genuine peace,
but Arafat has not won their trust, Raffel said.
"When an Arab leader comes forward and is pre-
pared to reach a reasonable accommodation with
Israel on outstanding claims, as Anwar Sadat was in
the late 1970s, the Israeli people will be there and
their government will be there, and I have no
doubt that will be widely supported by the
American Jewish community," Raffel said.
In the meantime, opinion polls among both
American Jews and Israelis reflect what Singer
terms a "countertrend," with people's minds work-
ing on two different psychological tracks. Both
groups are suspicious of Arab intentions, Singer
said.
Still, if "a miracle happened tomorrow and the
peace process were back on track," Israelis would
still be ready to make compromises for peace. 0

12/28
2001

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