Antisemitism Today

One of the most insidious aspects of antisemitism today is that it comes from those who claim to be our friends, supporters, and defenders.

Jewish people have been scapegoated for thousands of years but the subtlety and complexity of today's antisemitism often makes it difficult to pin down. I agree with Michael S. Roth that "what our government is doing now is wrong in itself, but beyond that, it poses a bigger threat to Jewish people’s safety than all the campus protests ever could."*

While "conservative" and "progressive" anti-Jewish bias and hate take different forms, leaders on the right and the left tend to use antisemitism as a political football. It's no wonder that so many Jewish people feel harmed by and mistrustful of our "friends."

At the root of much of today's antisemitism is the Great Replacement Theory: a belief that Jews, who only "pretend" to be white, are plotting to exterminate or "replace" white Christians. (Of course many members of the Jewish community, especially adults under 30, are people of color/multiethnic.) A toxic combination of antisemitism and anti-Black/Brown racism, the Great Replacement Theory claims that Jews are puppeteers, manipulating people of color to destroy white Christian culture and replace White "native-born" Americans with Global Majority "immigrants."

I had no idea about the supposed existence of this vast Jewish-led conspiracy until white supremacists, threatened by my racial justice advocacy, sent me despicable hate mail accusing me of being a part of it. Antisemitism may look different today but Jews are still targets. Although it's seldom acknowledged, people with very different political commitments often have one thing in common: a desire to both embrace and replace Jews.

If you believe in eliminating racialized hate and injustice and advancing our collective liberation, please speak out against antisemitism and the danger it poses to our world. Follow me to learn more!

Would you like to bring these conversations to your team or organization? Reach out and let's discuss how I can help.

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* Michael S. Roth, "Trump Is Selling Jews a Dangerous Lie," The New York Times, April 7, 2025.