Opinion
Greenberg's View
A MIX OF IDEAS
Editorials are posted and archived on JNonline.us .
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KRISTALLNACHT 2009
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Editorial
Tempering The Cheers
A
nti-Jewish sentiment may be
boiling over in the Middle East
and parts of Europe, but it's on
the decline in America. Both good news
and warning signs are embedded in that
new finding by the
New York-based
Anti-Defamation
League.
It's a positive
that the number
of Americans who
hold anti-Semitic
views not only has
fallen from 15 to
12 percent over the
past two years, but
also has dipped to
the lowest point
since 1998. ADL
National Director
Abraham Foxman
credited the drop in
part to "many years
of constant and intense efforts by the
ADL and others to make America a more
accepting society"
At the same time, he underscored the
continued violence targeting Jews and
increasing use of anti-Semitic conspiracy
theories. "We can't dismiss that 12 percent
of the American people means that there
are still over 30 million Americans who
hold anti-Semitic
views:' Foxman said.
We sure can't. Anti-
Semitism may be on
the wane, but it still
tears at the fabric of
this nation. To get
too caught up in the
decline is to overlook
the continued exis-
tence of the concern.
The ADL survey
asked respondents
if they agreed with
11 statements about
Jews —including
whether they are
"more loyal to Israel
than America" and
if they have "too much power in the U.S.
today." Respondents were classified as hav-
ing anti-Semitic views if they concurred
with at least six of the 11 statements.
Anti-Semitism may
be on the wane, but it
still tears at the fabric
of this nation. To get
too caught up in the
decline is to overlook
the continued existence
of the concern.
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Strikingly, the survey also found that
foreign-born Hispanics (35 percent)
and African Americans (28 percent)
still harbor anti-Jewish feelings at much
greater levels than other Americans.
Eighteen percent of U.S.-born Hispanics
hold such views, the poll found. The
African American percentage is espe-
cially disheartening given the time and
effort the American Jewish community
has invested over the years in trying to
resurrect the black-Jewish ties of the civil
rights era.
In other notable findings:
• 30 percent of respondents agreed that
"American Jews are more loyal to Israel
than to America" — a perception fed
by the drumbeat of news headlines, but
which dissolves under the glare of scru-
tiny.
• 29 percent of respondents believed
that Jews are responsible for the death
of Christ, a surprising percentage given
the crush of publicity over the Catholic
Church's efforts to remove the death rap
assigned to the Jews.
We can take heart in the increasing
assimilation of attitudes toward American
Jews. But to let down our guard even for
an instant is short-sighted and danger-
ous. We've worked too hard to achieve a
near-level playing surface to allow com-
placency and its corrosive elements to
bubble up. 1-1
ride with close friends. Our
guide was excellent. He took
us into one of the most idyllic
of the city's residential neigh-
borhoods. He knew all the
stories behind all the houses,
the big plantation-style man-
sions and the room-wide cot-
tages nearly invisible behind
their gardens.
We found ourselves in a
slight squeeze near some sub-
sidized housing. He turned
around to us and apropos of
absolutely nothing remarked:
"You know, African-Americans do not
like dogs."
We all looked at each other, he clicked
at the horses and we continued on as
if nothing had been said. Afterwards,
we checked to see if we had heard him
right. It was so bizarre and so demon-
strably false. If he had said anything like
this in a public forum, of course, he'd
have been out of a job, but on the ride
it was
Reality Check
Talk Of The Town
I
was sitting on a bench on a Friday
morning in the historic district at
Williamsburg, Va., engaged in my
newest hobby: Living in the moment.
A maple tree had turned into a blaz-
ing autumn pyre. Costumed volunteers
played the roles they would have filled
on such a morning more than 225 years
ago in this former colonial capital.
Tourists lined up for horse and buggy
rides. I tried to soak it all in and keep it.
It was a satisfying moment I'd been
living in, and on the way out of the his-
toric district, it took a while to associate
the yowling coming from the entrance
area to jolt me back.
A man was screaming that we were
all going to hell, and sooner rather than
later. At first, I thought that it might be
part of the re-enactment program. But
as we moved nearer, I could see he car-
ried a sound-enhanced megaphone to
get his message across.
Sherry and I fell into step with a
young woman, all three of us moving to
42
November 12 • 2009
the sidewalk to give him lots
of room, just in case he was
getting ready to turn into a
bat.
"I am Jewish," said the
young woman, "and I find this
so offensive. How can they
allow him to do that in a won-
derful place like this?"
I told her that I was also
Jewish, but I kept remember-
ing that when Williamsburg
was still Virginia's capital,
with the American Revolution
approaching, Patrick Henry
stood up no more than a few miles from
here and thundered: "Give me liberty or
give me death."
Listening to speech that is offensive
or disgusting is what underlies that lib-
erty. I decided to take the man's ravings
as the perfect learning moment to the
morning.
A few days later, we had moved on to
Charleston, S.C., and were on a carriage
just another startling bolt of free
speech.
Free speech also can be tough to take
if you're the president of the United
States and Fox News keeps firing darts
at your policies. But urging people not
to go on that networks' shows and try-
ing to cut off access to the White House
strikes me as infinitely more dangerous
than anything Fox News can say about
him. I don't think Patrick Henry would
have approved.
As we left Williamsburg, the woman
who had started walking with us was
still shaking her head in revulsion at the
crack-brained bellower.
"You know:' I told her. "There's really
just one thing to say in situations like
this:'
"What's that:' she asked.
"Good Shabbes," I smiled. She smiled
back, and we walked to our cars. 1 1
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George Cantor's e-mail address is
gcantor614@aol.com .