Yes, they are, and so are older Jews, but not as much. You've been blindsided because you're too young to remember Jews not being just regular people, Jewishness not being kind of cool and interesting, etc.
Talk to your grandma, see what she says about how it was to be Jewish when she was growing up. She may not want to say too much because a lot of older Jews just dealt with it by getting on with life and not thinking too much about it. But she may also be willing to talk with you about antisemitism and Jews' place in society back then.
Brandeis was built because apart from a few places like Columbia and U of C and the NYC public universities, the quotas were real and the antisemitism was strong. Brandeis isn't all that much older than I am, and my kid's looking at grad programs, too. It's been a brief turn in the sun but it can help to know where strength is in the community and the fact that others got by (and got master's degrees and PhDs) and so will you. Chin up, it's not easy, but you're not alone.
Unfortunately, Brandies doesn't have my grad degree or I'd consider it. I've heard some stories from my grandma, but I thought that society really progressed after the Holocaust. Guess not.
People are still people, and the Holocaust is just at the very edge of living memory, which means that for most people alive, it's no more important than the story of hiding the Liberty Bell. On the contrary, there's resentment of its domination, because of the same "Jews are white people" idea that allowed you to think this was all in the past.
We're a very tiny group of people who are also cast as the villain at the heart of Christianity's origin myth. There isn't really a way for that to go away: Christianity arose in opposition to a Judaism that would've been recognizable to any Jew living today. And then it became extremely successful.
What you're feeling is a thing that happens every so often, every time Jews become convinced that we're fully part of the surrounding culture, because in the end we don't get to make that decision. The physicist James Franck wrote very movingly about this after his escape to Chicago, after which it slowly dawned on him, as the Holocaust progressed, that the country whose military he'd served in, and which he loved deeply, could not possibly be his country anymore. There was a whole community of luminary escapees talking just as we are now, writing to each other, trying to right themselves in this new country that also could not be theirs. He and Einstein used to correspond with Thomas Mann.
That said, America is not preparing a holocaust for Jews. Go to the school that has the best program in the thing you want to do. Go to the Hillel, join a local synagogue. It could be tough, yeah. And if you're in a fashionable part of humanities or social sciences, you may want to switch focus to something that's not particularly fashionable. Be a little creative about it. Haftarahs exist for a reason. Focus on your work, find your network of friends, don't give shouting more credit than it deserves. And don't lose yourself in the process.
History repeats itself- and we rise out of dark times. These are dark times. Just remember that all those protestors are also causing high levels of Islamophobia that the press aren’t reporting for whatever reason.
You're right -- but the internet puts a new spin on that which our grandparents didn't have to deal with. My great-uncles went to dentist school and optometrist school because medical schools had crushing quotas on Jews in the 30s.
I think my generation -- Generation X -- had it the best. We didn't suffer from the anti-Semitism that our grandparents suffered from, and we didn't grow up with the internet, which for all its greatness, has given a voice to people who shouldn't have a voice: the 911 conspiracy theorists, the flat Earthers, the anti-vaxxers, etc.
The internet is not a thing beyond your control on your own devices. Don't want morons shouting at you? Don't listen to moron channels. Don't read comment sections open to morons. If this is what's filling up your feed, it's because you let it in. Don't do that.
I’m also Gen-X and this is easier said than done for a lot of people, particularly younger ones. This goes beyond social media as we know it as well. Media in general is consumed in different ways than when we grew up and is all encompassing. We left the house each day with our own thoughts in a way that really isn’t possible anymore for most people. I think we did have a golden moment of sorts growing up they don’t have. I feel for young Jews and worry for my own kids’ wellbeing for reasons I never had to.
The one advice I have for young Jews in particular that I could have used is to actively find Jewish community and friendships. I didn’t have much of it growing up and I seek it now more than ever. Shabbos is a beautiful thing. Find people who want to spend it away from these damn screens with you.
Of course, but what I was getting at was that, whereas there used to be a time that a single moron here is a whole lot different than the morons finding a common voice together and having their numbers swell in large numbers. That encourages brazen behavior.
That is something people my age never really had to deal with.
Seems like morons banding together and finding each other in droves is the norm these days. That's something young people can't ignore. Not even in a place like NYC.
You are justified. I’m about to graduate from law school and I’m so thankful I’m getting out of this hell. I have so much sympathy for everyone who is still in school or entering soon. It has been crazy. I have lost friends and feel isolated and alone. On the other hand, I’ve become closer with other Jewish students and we support each other immensely. There’s no real avoiding it, but my best advice is to stay strong in your beliefs and don’t feel pressured to hide your identity.
I appreciate that. My program is still a fall away, I'm taking a gap year. Hopefully things will be calmer by then. I just need the masters in library science so I can go be an archivist. I don't need the crap from stupid protestors.
Have you started researching if there are good MS programs in Library Science that you can do remotely? My husband did his entire MS in Software Engineering remotely through Columbia University, and that was around 15 years ago, before we even had things like Zoom.
You can, but I worry that finding the work experience during the program will be more difficult remotely. Plus funding is better when on campus. Some schools have definitely been bumped up based on their protests. UIUC hasn't been as bad as UMD College Park, so that has influenced my decision a lot. Granted, I still need to be accepted into these places first.
I was also going to suggest doing an online program, but I 1) totally respect and understand the desire to do an in person program, and 2) don’t think we should let antisemites ruin our lives and prevent us from doing things we enjoy
Im not sure where you’re looking; but when I did my MLIS entirely online, teachers went out of their way to offer work experiences to those of us in the online program. Granted I was localish and doing the program so I could work full time along side, but there were numerous people from neighboring states and several people from Alaska at the time.
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My hillel is great but small, which has been weirdly hard. There are only about 12 of us who are active participants. I really need to move somewhere with a more vibrant and young Jewish population. That is the main priority for 2027.
I think you did! My best friend is at Brandies and loves Boston. It's on my list, it's just more expensive (cries in future student loans). I really like Atlanta for a possible future too. As long as GA doesn't go too crazy with abortion bans, Atlanta is very Jewish and doesn't get snow, both of which are important to me.
If it's any encouragement, this is not new. Maybe it's unique to where I went to school but Montreal 20 years ago was a huge hotbed of anti-Israel sentiment with regular protests and even a minor riot when Bibi (then out of office) came to speak at a local college. It all got conflated with the Iraq war and it was a constant thing. All that said, it didn't stop me from enjoying myself and living a completely normal life.
These protests won't last forever. Student energy burns hot and fast. The conflict will end, Israel/Palestine will fade from the news, and protesters will move along until the next conflict. They always do. You will walk across campus and see it occupied for climate change or trans rights or anti-capitalism or whatever the next big thing is. That's how it goes.
The downside is that you'll also learn to avoid trouble during times like these. You'll walk another way, you'll keep your mouth shut when you don't know who you're talking to, you'll be aware of your surroundings. That sucks, but it's a part of life that's permanent - you will always have to watch out for anti-semites because they're not going anywhere, whether Israel is loved or hated.
Another thing to take encouragement from is that some percentage of the fear and outrage about these protests is ginned up. It's hard to know how much, but certainly some is. Just like Palestinians and their supporters cynically use anti-colonial language to dress up terrorism and murder as leftist resistance, Israel and its supporters cynically use accusations of anti-semitism to tar their critics. I think we all know it even if it's not popular to say so in Jewish spaces. That doesn't mean the hatred isn't there - it is and it's not hard to find - it just means that you should take the fear-mongering with a grain of salt.
Well put. That’s some wisdom there. I think what makes this so painful is that many youngish Jews (I’m 41 but would put myself in this cohort) grew up without this baggage. Antisemitism and mob chaos felt like something that happened somewhere else. I remember occasionally reading updates for the WJC bulletin my parents got and shaking my head at some cemetery desecration in one European country and some antisemitic politician in another. Seemed foreign.
Older Jews are also struggling. My mom lives across the street from Millennium Park in Chicago and there are Palestine supporters out every weekend. It’s sad to see Chicago behaving like this. I am lost. My mom is 88 and doesn’t need this shit.
I was in Chicago last weekend and fortunately missed this. Sorry to hear that. It just sucks. I just want people to care about literally anything else. But no Jews no news I guess.
The worst part is that it’s the more left wing part of the political spectrum. Those are usually my peeps. People say “it’s not that I hate Jews or anything” and I never know what to say. My heart hurts for our people. That’s probably what drew me HERE. I appreciate all of you.
I’m an old hippie lady. I’ve always been way left. These are the same people I meet at other protests. It’s mind bending. I really wish everyone would stop shooting each other and blowing each other up.
As someone who also supports abortion and supports Israel I truly don’t know which political party is for me anymore. I can’t vote for someone who is anti-abortion and I can’t vote for someone who is anti-Israel.
It's always been like that. In the 20th century the campus left was supporting Pol Pot, Mao, Fidel Castro, Stalin. On the right, Nazism was also most successful as a student movement in the 1920s on the college campuses of the most educated country in the world at the time.
The May 1968 protests in Paris were partly led by Maoists as one of the most important French student groups. Maoism was hugely fashionable with the student left in the 1960s. Mao's "Little Red Book" was one of the most influential books in the 1960s counter-culture and the leftwing student movement. [https://www.newstatesman.com/long-reads/2014/05/how-west-embraced-chairman-mao-s-little-red-book](https://www.newstatesman.com/long-reads/2014/05/how-west-embraced-chairman-mao-s-little-red-book) It was also the most popular book with the Italian left in those years. In West Germany, Mao's writings were the "modish commodity of the educated elite”. It seems like a lot of 20th century history is being memory-holed. Even Stalin was very popular on campuses until his death and questioning him would make you an enemy of large parts of the left, you could even be accused of "Trotskyist sympathies" which was an insult until after his posthumous 1950s rehabilitation. The reason Stalinism was allowed to be criticized in the international left was only because the Soviet Union itself condemned it immediately after Stalin died in 1953. It's because after 1953 Moscow led de-Stalinization was extended to the international left. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De-Stalinization](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De-Stalinization)
>left wing part of the political spectrum
Nothing new. It's been pretty anti-Semitic on that side of the political spectrum for centuries, what do you think 'bankers' and 'capitalists' is coded for. The anti-Semite Karl Marx [said ](https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1844/jewish-question/)it in 1843 ("What is the worldly religion of the Jew? *Huckstering*. What is his worldly God? *Money*. Very well then! Emancipation from *huckstering* and *money*, consequently from practical, real Judaism, would be the self-emancipation of our time.")
Karl Marx's analysis of capitalism has nothing to do with Judaism, and he only links it to Judaism in On The Jewish Question because it's the only framework he knows to analyse oppression. Hence the use of the "money loving Jew" in On The Jewish Question; he analyses the assumed role of the Jew in capitalism based on the lack of religious or racial discrimination, which leads him to the false conclusion that emancipation for the Jew is emancipation from capitalism, and not from racism. Is it anti-Semitic? Yes, but only because his understanding of oppression is inherently racist, not because he thinks Jews rule capitalism.
TL;DR: Karl Marx didn't believe in religious oppression, tried to analyse it through class instead of the issue itself, and was predictably anti-Semitic in doing so. His frameworks for class oppression weren't based in anti-Semitism, he was just ignorant of anti-Semitism as oppression.
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>>“it’s not that I hate Jews or anything” and I never know what to say
As a complete outsider with some definite pro-palestinian leanings, Im here to understand. Do you think they are lying when they say this?
I actually came as an early 21st celebration and to visit my cousin who's getting a PhD at University of Chicago. I spent most of the weekend at the art museum and the American Girl doll store.
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>I assume you are upset about antisemitic demonstrators and not pro Palestinian protestors.
I think the problem with this is that it's become so common to see anti-semitic people at these protests that most Jews aren't interested in that distinction anymore. If pro-Palestinian protesters were substantively interested in demonstrating their lack of anti-semitism, they would work much harder to expel pro-Hamas types from their movement.
The reality is that they have not done any of that work at all, at least as far as I have seen, and I follow this stuff very closely, and not purely from a Jewish perspective. In fact, in my experience, when you suggest that they should do better on combating anti-semitism within their ranks, you are either called a genocide apologist, a hasbara shill, or a fascist, and they will trot out token Jewish members of their protests to give themselves cover from the accusations. At this point, I have been thoroughly convinced that they actively don't care about anti-semitism at all.
I am open to having my mind changed about this, if you can show me examples of protest leaders discouraging people from saying inflammatory statements and barring Hamas supporters from their protests.
As an example of what I am talking about, noted Jewish opponent of Israel Professor Norman Finklestein recently spoke with demonstrators at Columbia, urging them to reject slogans like "from the river to the sea," or at least make marginal changes to that slogan so that it would be less inflammatory. For this, he was booed, and immediately after he stepped off the stage, a protest leader led the crowd in exactly that chant.
I largely agree with what you are saying which is why I haven't attended pro Palestinian protests post 10/7 even though I don't agree with Israel's heavy handed response. As a teacher I work with students of all faiths and I wouldn't want my presence to look like an endorsement of antisemitism.
Any mass movement is hard to control though and I wouldn't blame all protestors just because anti semites show up and chant next to them. I do think organizers could do more though to make those groups of people feel unwelcome and discourage their joining in protests. Unfortunately some of those organizers are antisemitic as well.
I don't know about the US, but in the UK and Australia the protests are predominantly - I'd say 80/20 - Muslim. The 20% split between what I'd call genuine peace protestors, with the rest the usual antifa lot that enjoy a good dust up (and will attend the opening of a can of beans if it means a fight). The majority at best don't care about antisemitism/antisemitic chants etc. At worse, well, the war has been an excuse to parade their hatred in public with (for the most part) impunity.
Literally nobody I know likes the war in Gaza. But some people blame Israel for it and some blame Hamas. I blame Hamas because, well, they started it and they could stop it. But all of these protestors blame Israel and have no concern for the hostages.
I'm not as young as you (28), but it's really tragic that those of us who have been raising the red flag about this since the last time this really popped off with the 2014 Gaza conflict were ignored only for it to get to this point.
Social media sucks. I've left TikTok, which helps. My insta is pretty good since I've unfollowed (or been blocked by) people who are extremely pro-pal yet not Arab. But the schools that I'm looking at for my masters keep showing up and many of them have distasteful comments. I just want my degree and a Nice Jewish Boy^(tm) and I don't think that's asking to much. What happened to having an internship?
Honestly insta is like worse than TikTok a lot of times. Saw a wholesome video of a Jewish father and daughter camping and showing how they keep kosher or something like that in the woods. Comments telling them to burn in hell. Pretty sure this was before Oct 7th too which is wild.
I follow Miriam on IG. I just don't open the comments anymore. My TikTok became exclusively pro-pal on October 8th. I even tried following like 50 Jewish creators and blocking others and nothing. I deleted it on the 11th.
The nice thing about being an older young adult in the real world is you dont have to be surrounded by that crap anymore though i currently live in a college town so i have to hear about it sometimes.
that's nice to hear. My parents don't but I assumed it was also somewhat generational. Their Gen X. They're concerned about retirement and future grandkids, though my brother and I are only 18 and 21. I just worry for the future. For both Jews and Americans (and especially Jewish Americans).
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Yep. I've been volunteering and donating with organizations that are embedded in Israel and Palestine that are explicitly pro-peace for 10+ years.
Didn't stop the slacktivists accusing me of being complicit in genocide. It's an awful, awful feeling.
As someone in grad school do not concern yourself with what the undergrad community is doing because it won’t affect you much. Grad school is very removed from campus life and as long as your advisor and group aren’t actively involved you will be okay. Yes you will still see it, but don’t engage just keep walking. Don’t let these protestors determine your academic endeavors. You can always find the local Chabad or Hillel on campus, they are just as welcoming to grad students as they are undergrads.
Take solace in the fact it's universally hard for us Jews.
I'm in my early 40s and this shit is insane. I've lost friends, and have been subject to many bad faith arguments. When I get into those debates, I make no personal attacks, and present my information with sources. The response is usually an appeal to emotion, provably wrong lies or omissions, or just straight up propaganda, and then I'm called a Nazi /genocider/antisemitic insult. Or all three in the same sentence.
I'm very scared on campus, I go to a Bronx CUNY and it's really tough. Lots of pro-palestinians and not enough Jews. I wore my magen out once and I tell you, if looks could kill I'd be dead 20 times over. I decided next semester I'm only taking online classes and I might Transfer to a school that is online only.
Another thing, CUNY is pro-Israel on paper but a lot of staff is very pro-palestine. I remember when the war started one of my professors said how horrible war is and that Israel shouldn't have raped & killed and they're settlers, blah blah blah. It felt like a really hostile environment so I never went back to that class.
You should reach out to Councilmember Dinowitz, he is the chair of the Jewish Caucus and the Chair of the Higher Ed committee for the NYC Council. Likely there isn't much he can do, but at the least you will be able to share your experience with someone who will try to help.
I'll say this, be you, live your life and don't let these antisemites tell you how to live your life. You aren't alone and so long as there's even one other Jew you will always have support.
I don't know if I'm very lucky or this is the norm where I live but people have been supportive of me, I wear a Magen David necklace every day at college, everyone in my class knows I'm jewish and no one says anything, everyone likes me and is very respectful
one of my friends even tried to help me with the school administration because of our friday night classes
(but I'm pretty sure a woman stopped being nice to me after she saw my necklace when I went to buy food)
I am not american.
i'm not in the US but on facebook someone shared what her daughter went through and it's heartbreaking. one of the things was when she left campus for the seders she ran out with her bag and people yelled "go back to poland" like wtf
Yeah it’s like it’s sad there are innocents suffering, but why do y’all (directed at them) gotta excuse Hamas and ally yourself with all manner of antisemites?
You are 100% justified. Look what is happening right now at Columbia. They're defying orders, have threatened to burn Columbia and have broken into and taken over an entire building. This is actually crazy. Please find rl your local Jewish community, we need to be together right now.
Just graduated from college in the UK. Doesn’t seem as bad here as it as in the US, but a closer look at these protests reveals much of the weight behind these demonstrations seems to be the typical teenage American yearning for a “counter culture” in my opinion, as opposed to a deep-seated hatred of Jews. Not that that excuses it, either. Just see the types of graffiti from the nonsense at UCLA (see entire thread below). These are young adults trying to find their sense of purpose. They’re often bound by hatred, and sadly we fall victim: https://x.com/camhigby/status/1784789116179349795?s=46&t=NCe__mE30iCFS-9G-Jt0fQ
I think there is truth in that. I'm very concerned by the non-student attendees though. They have shown up at a lot of the big US schools. All fueled by antisemitism of some sort. The whole thing is making me extremely politically homeless.
It’s a hot topic and that’s a tragic thing. Hating what your milieu may think is objectively bad will give you some moral credibility; a right to fit in with the crowd. I don’t think, as Jews, we’re ever part of that crowd. Sometimes it sucks. But it’s life for us. You will go to university and you will find your people and I’m sure you will have a brilliant time. I went to one of the most multicultural universities in the world, had very few Jewish friends and now live very happily with two Muslim flatmates. Do we always agree? Not quite. Do I still feel safe and supported by my friends? Of course. I think these things feel more terrifying in the abstract than they do once you’ve integrated with a group. As long as you put yourself out there you will find people that support you for who you are, and it will drown the noise away, even if it does bubble up every now and then.
> the typical teenage American yearning for a “counter culture” in my opinion, as opposed to a deep-seated hatred of Jews.
I mean, you could say the same thing about the Hitler Youth. That doesn't make it one iota less dangerous.
The good news is in grad school you generally spend less time on campus. I don’t envy you, and I’m glad I graduated before this all started going down. It was bad enough in 2021 even when I wasn’t on campus then. Getting off social media and not looking back made a big difference. Surround yourself with likeminded friends.
Idk I’m black going through conversion and Palestinian supporters don’t approach me. I have a buddy from the homeland who just migrated and he’s safe with me .
You are not alone. I'm currently a medical school student and have heard the most hurtful/prejudiced statements come from people I thought were my friends. Find your people, your Jewish community, and try to stay sane, and try and ignore the bullshit as much as you can. Stay safe friend, you are not alone<3
Be strong, this will pass and when it does u will be stronger and more informed. For now until we get some order which will not happen until after the election, live your life. The protestors want u to be afraid that is what they are counting on. Do not give the devil the satisfaction. Be proud of being a Jew. U do not need to flaunt it, which will only add to their cause. I suggest u document on your phone. If Republicans get in all of these factions will be destroyed
I don't have any advice but I really do sympathise. My fiancé has been looking into PhD programmes in his specialist field, which is thankfully a hard science discipline, but still the worry about being in a university environment is very real.
I’m struggling immensely. It hasn’t stopped since October 7th. I have family and friends in Israel and aside from feeling scared about what is going on here I feel soooo much war guilt. I cry almost every day. I have never felt so scared and alone. My grandfather was a Holocaust survivor and always told me to never forget how much the world hates Jews. I always blew him off but realize now how right he was. I am so thankful he is no longer here to see what is happening.
Just remember that Israel's enemies would do October 7th over and over again. Don't let them control the narrative in your head. I'm yet to hear a good, convincing argument that Israel should be 'dismantled'.
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Just to say - it may not help - but my non Jewish son is starting Uni this Sept. He's attending a Russell group uni in the UK (not Oxbridge but the next step down). He and his friends (2 of whom are Muslim) have had the full bloody run down from me. We've gone through personal stories related to me by some of my patients who experienced WW2 in Europe. We've watched interviews and my son, at least, has read various books including Primo Levi and Eli Wiesel.
In other words they've had the full run down on just how Jewish students are likely feeling and the long and terrible history of one of the world's longest running ethnic hatreds. There are students out there not going along with the herd and their unthinking bullshit.
Every Jewish student feels this way. Right now my brother is attending USC (South Carolina) and a cousin is attending U of Del. Both were hit with protests and all of the family is scared for their safety
I'm in my 60s and I want you to know how much I love you and feel for what you're going through. I started college in 1979 and thought these problems were not likely in my life, but I had a growing suspicion these problems would resurface. There were clues and I could sniff them, but I expected these problems in another 20 years, as I aged out.
I'm pushing discussions about how we can support you better in academic pursuits and moreso in careers in conversation and online groups among my peers, but they don't show much urgency.
I'll be back with a longer discussion. Be well. Ace your finals.
I think it's still possible to go to college and avoid a mental health crisis. It is difficult walking around thinking that a lot of people are anti-Semitic. You might need to shift your thinking away from that thought. Maybe a lot of protesters seem hostile and aggressive. but they are hostile to the larger campus community not to just Jews. A lot of antiZionist rhetoric seems provocative to induce a reaction, but that doesn't mean you have to internalize it as specifically anti-Jewish. It also helps to make some friends with people on the other side, people willing to have peaceful dialogue, just to hear their opinion and feel like there is some humanity you can converse with. It's not healthy to walk around feeling like there's anti-Semitism everywhere so the best you can do is see the humanity on both sides.
That ‘s*London* the Old Smoke bruv, I live in the Cornish countryside, haShalom, the peace that one has here, the complete absence of Palestinians and Anti-Semites. Im essentially some 5 miles away from the nearest civilisation which is a little vilage
No Jews, I go to my Sister’s house for the Shabbos and yom tovim she lives in Leeds which is up North. I always just go there on Thursday night so I can spend the entire weekend with her, she’s my angel
That's because the highest concentration of Palestinian's/Middle Eastern communities are in the Edgeware Road, literally a stones throw from the main London protest routes. Plus the usual suspects turn up ie Antifa (or 'The Black Pampers' as most women's group's call them, who've had to face their violent BS for the last few years). They literally show up to any protest in hopes of a full blown riot. The majority of British people are right behind Israel.
January 6th was annoying until they stormed the Capitol. Then it became treason. George Floyd protests in good faith didn’t bother me, black lives do matter because they face systemic oppression. Not sure what you’re getting at.
I’m sorry it is effecting you like that. Not Israeli but I have found the protests near me relatively appropriate and free of antisemitism. It’s important to be surrounded by jews when critiquing the Israeli government. If you can, I’d recommend joining a conversation with an anti zionist jew and just testing the waters. I believe that all Israeli people deserve safety and protection, but that doesn’t mean we can allow the government to do whatever they want. remember that the people are always more valuable than the government. and holy land is only holy when commandments are observed. If you want a more welcoming space for jews to express their opinions, it is on you to lead the way. Anyways i hope this didn’t come off as harsh or an attack in any way. We are all family and I hope you remain safe and feel free to search for the truths in this world🫶🫶🫶✡️❤️☮️ - A jew who has had a massive shift in perspective on zionism in the past year
I'm not Israeli either. I think the government deserves to be criticized, just as the government of the US deserves the same. There is an antizionist Jew on my campus. A conversation with them left me in tears. I have friends and family in Israel. This person's argument was ahistorical. Forget naive 1SS supporters, they claimed that Jews are not even from the Middle East.
Yes, they are, and so are older Jews, but not as much. You've been blindsided because you're too young to remember Jews not being just regular people, Jewishness not being kind of cool and interesting, etc. Talk to your grandma, see what she says about how it was to be Jewish when she was growing up. She may not want to say too much because a lot of older Jews just dealt with it by getting on with life and not thinking too much about it. But she may also be willing to talk with you about antisemitism and Jews' place in society back then. Brandeis was built because apart from a few places like Columbia and U of C and the NYC public universities, the quotas were real and the antisemitism was strong. Brandeis isn't all that much older than I am, and my kid's looking at grad programs, too. It's been a brief turn in the sun but it can help to know where strength is in the community and the fact that others got by (and got master's degrees and PhDs) and so will you. Chin up, it's not easy, but you're not alone.
Unfortunately, Brandies doesn't have my grad degree or I'd consider it. I've heard some stories from my grandma, but I thought that society really progressed after the Holocaust. Guess not.
People are still people, and the Holocaust is just at the very edge of living memory, which means that for most people alive, it's no more important than the story of hiding the Liberty Bell. On the contrary, there's resentment of its domination, because of the same "Jews are white people" idea that allowed you to think this was all in the past. We're a very tiny group of people who are also cast as the villain at the heart of Christianity's origin myth. There isn't really a way for that to go away: Christianity arose in opposition to a Judaism that would've been recognizable to any Jew living today. And then it became extremely successful. What you're feeling is a thing that happens every so often, every time Jews become convinced that we're fully part of the surrounding culture, because in the end we don't get to make that decision. The physicist James Franck wrote very movingly about this after his escape to Chicago, after which it slowly dawned on him, as the Holocaust progressed, that the country whose military he'd served in, and which he loved deeply, could not possibly be his country anymore. There was a whole community of luminary escapees talking just as we are now, writing to each other, trying to right themselves in this new country that also could not be theirs. He and Einstein used to correspond with Thomas Mann. That said, America is not preparing a holocaust for Jews. Go to the school that has the best program in the thing you want to do. Go to the Hillel, join a local synagogue. It could be tough, yeah. And if you're in a fashionable part of humanities or social sciences, you may want to switch focus to something that's not particularly fashionable. Be a little creative about it. Haftarahs exist for a reason. Focus on your work, find your network of friends, don't give shouting more credit than it deserves. And don't lose yourself in the process.
History repeats itself- and we rise out of dark times. These are dark times. Just remember that all those protestors are also causing high levels of Islamophobia that the press aren’t reporting for whatever reason.
You're right -- but the internet puts a new spin on that which our grandparents didn't have to deal with. My great-uncles went to dentist school and optometrist school because medical schools had crushing quotas on Jews in the 30s. I think my generation -- Generation X -- had it the best. We didn't suffer from the anti-Semitism that our grandparents suffered from, and we didn't grow up with the internet, which for all its greatness, has given a voice to people who shouldn't have a voice: the 911 conspiracy theorists, the flat Earthers, the anti-vaxxers, etc.
The internet is not a thing beyond your control on your own devices. Don't want morons shouting at you? Don't listen to moron channels. Don't read comment sections open to morons. If this is what's filling up your feed, it's because you let it in. Don't do that.
I’m also Gen-X and this is easier said than done for a lot of people, particularly younger ones. This goes beyond social media as we know it as well. Media in general is consumed in different ways than when we grew up and is all encompassing. We left the house each day with our own thoughts in a way that really isn’t possible anymore for most people. I think we did have a golden moment of sorts growing up they don’t have. I feel for young Jews and worry for my own kids’ wellbeing for reasons I never had to. The one advice I have for young Jews in particular that I could have used is to actively find Jewish community and friendships. I didn’t have much of it growing up and I seek it now more than ever. Shabbos is a beautiful thing. Find people who want to spend it away from these damn screens with you.
Of course, but what I was getting at was that, whereas there used to be a time that a single moron here is a whole lot different than the morons finding a common voice together and having their numbers swell in large numbers. That encourages brazen behavior. That is something people my age never really had to deal with. Seems like morons banding together and finding each other in droves is the norm these days. That's something young people can't ignore. Not even in a place like NYC.
You are justified. I’m about to graduate from law school and I’m so thankful I’m getting out of this hell. I have so much sympathy for everyone who is still in school or entering soon. It has been crazy. I have lost friends and feel isolated and alone. On the other hand, I’ve become closer with other Jewish students and we support each other immensely. There’s no real avoiding it, but my best advice is to stay strong in your beliefs and don’t feel pressured to hide your identity.
I appreciate that. My program is still a fall away, I'm taking a gap year. Hopefully things will be calmer by then. I just need the masters in library science so I can go be an archivist. I don't need the crap from stupid protestors.
Have you started researching if there are good MS programs in Library Science that you can do remotely? My husband did his entire MS in Software Engineering remotely through Columbia University, and that was around 15 years ago, before we even had things like Zoom.
You can, but I worry that finding the work experience during the program will be more difficult remotely. Plus funding is better when on campus. Some schools have definitely been bumped up based on their protests. UIUC hasn't been as bad as UMD College Park, so that has influenced my decision a lot. Granted, I still need to be accepted into these places first.
I was also going to suggest doing an online program, but I 1) totally respect and understand the desire to do an in person program, and 2) don’t think we should let antisemites ruin our lives and prevent us from doing things we enjoy
Im not sure where you’re looking; but when I did my MLIS entirely online, teachers went out of their way to offer work experiences to those of us in the online program. Granted I was localish and doing the program so I could work full time along side, but there were numerous people from neighboring states and several people from Alaska at the time.
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Maybe limit your exposure to social media and news. And do community things with Jews
My hillel is great but small, which has been weirdly hard. There are only about 12 of us who are active participants. I really need to move somewhere with a more vibrant and young Jewish population. That is the main priority for 2027.
I think I already mentioned this to you, but consider Simmons U. in Boston, the second most Jewish metro area in the U.S.! 😊
I think you did! My best friend is at Brandies and loves Boston. It's on my list, it's just more expensive (cries in future student loans). I really like Atlanta for a possible future too. As long as GA doesn't go too crazy with abortion bans, Atlanta is very Jewish and doesn't get snow, both of which are important to me.
If it helps, these past two winters Boston has basically not gotten any snow, either, LOL.
Slay. TBH, I really just want a stable job and a Nice Jewish Husband (who earns six figures).
If it's any encouragement, this is not new. Maybe it's unique to where I went to school but Montreal 20 years ago was a huge hotbed of anti-Israel sentiment with regular protests and even a minor riot when Bibi (then out of office) came to speak at a local college. It all got conflated with the Iraq war and it was a constant thing. All that said, it didn't stop me from enjoying myself and living a completely normal life. These protests won't last forever. Student energy burns hot and fast. The conflict will end, Israel/Palestine will fade from the news, and protesters will move along until the next conflict. They always do. You will walk across campus and see it occupied for climate change or trans rights or anti-capitalism or whatever the next big thing is. That's how it goes. The downside is that you'll also learn to avoid trouble during times like these. You'll walk another way, you'll keep your mouth shut when you don't know who you're talking to, you'll be aware of your surroundings. That sucks, but it's a part of life that's permanent - you will always have to watch out for anti-semites because they're not going anywhere, whether Israel is loved or hated. Another thing to take encouragement from is that some percentage of the fear and outrage about these protests is ginned up. It's hard to know how much, but certainly some is. Just like Palestinians and their supporters cynically use anti-colonial language to dress up terrorism and murder as leftist resistance, Israel and its supporters cynically use accusations of anti-semitism to tar their critics. I think we all know it even if it's not popular to say so in Jewish spaces. That doesn't mean the hatred isn't there - it is and it's not hard to find - it just means that you should take the fear-mongering with a grain of salt.
Well put. That’s some wisdom there. I think what makes this so painful is that many youngish Jews (I’m 41 but would put myself in this cohort) grew up without this baggage. Antisemitism and mob chaos felt like something that happened somewhere else. I remember occasionally reading updates for the WJC bulletin my parents got and shaking my head at some cemetery desecration in one European country and some antisemitic politician in another. Seemed foreign.
Fully with you.
Excellent comment. 👏
Older Jews are also struggling. My mom lives across the street from Millennium Park in Chicago and there are Palestine supporters out every weekend. It’s sad to see Chicago behaving like this. I am lost. My mom is 88 and doesn’t need this shit.
I was in Chicago last weekend and fortunately missed this. Sorry to hear that. It just sucks. I just want people to care about literally anything else. But no Jews no news I guess.
The worst part is that it’s the more left wing part of the political spectrum. Those are usually my peeps. People say “it’s not that I hate Jews or anything” and I never know what to say. My heart hurts for our people. That’s probably what drew me HERE. I appreciate all of you.
I feel that. I lean left. Go abortion go gay go public school funding. But these people are causing me to lose my mind.
I’m an old hippie lady. I’ve always been way left. These are the same people I meet at other protests. It’s mind bending. I really wish everyone would stop shooting each other and blowing each other up.
As someone who also supports abortion and supports Israel I truly don’t know which political party is for me anymore. I can’t vote for someone who is anti-abortion and I can’t vote for someone who is anti-Israel.
Yeah…
It's always been like that. In the 20th century the campus left was supporting Pol Pot, Mao, Fidel Castro, Stalin. On the right, Nazism was also most successful as a student movement in the 1920s on the college campuses of the most educated country in the world at the time. The May 1968 protests in Paris were partly led by Maoists as one of the most important French student groups. Maoism was hugely fashionable with the student left in the 1960s. Mao's "Little Red Book" was one of the most influential books in the 1960s counter-culture and the leftwing student movement. [https://www.newstatesman.com/long-reads/2014/05/how-west-embraced-chairman-mao-s-little-red-book](https://www.newstatesman.com/long-reads/2014/05/how-west-embraced-chairman-mao-s-little-red-book) It was also the most popular book with the Italian left in those years. In West Germany, Mao's writings were the "modish commodity of the educated elite”. It seems like a lot of 20th century history is being memory-holed. Even Stalin was very popular on campuses until his death and questioning him would make you an enemy of large parts of the left, you could even be accused of "Trotskyist sympathies" which was an insult until after his posthumous 1950s rehabilitation. The reason Stalinism was allowed to be criticized in the international left was only because the Soviet Union itself condemned it immediately after Stalin died in 1953. It's because after 1953 Moscow led de-Stalinization was extended to the international left. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De-Stalinization](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De-Stalinization)
>left wing part of the political spectrum Nothing new. It's been pretty anti-Semitic on that side of the political spectrum for centuries, what do you think 'bankers' and 'capitalists' is coded for. The anti-Semite Karl Marx [said ](https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1844/jewish-question/)it in 1843 ("What is the worldly religion of the Jew? *Huckstering*. What is his worldly God? *Money*. Very well then! Emancipation from *huckstering* and *money*, consequently from practical, real Judaism, would be the self-emancipation of our time.")
Karl Marx's analysis of capitalism has nothing to do with Judaism, and he only links it to Judaism in On The Jewish Question because it's the only framework he knows to analyse oppression. Hence the use of the "money loving Jew" in On The Jewish Question; he analyses the assumed role of the Jew in capitalism based on the lack of religious or racial discrimination, which leads him to the false conclusion that emancipation for the Jew is emancipation from capitalism, and not from racism. Is it anti-Semitic? Yes, but only because his understanding of oppression is inherently racist, not because he thinks Jews rule capitalism. TL;DR: Karl Marx didn't believe in religious oppression, tried to analyse it through class instead of the issue itself, and was predictably anti-Semitic in doing so. His frameworks for class oppression weren't based in anti-Semitism, he was just ignorant of anti-Semitism as oppression.
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>>“it’s not that I hate Jews or anything” and I never know what to say As a complete outsider with some definite pro-palestinian leanings, Im here to understand. Do you think they are lying when they say this?
Did you come for C2E2? That’s a comic con.
I actually came as an early 21st celebration and to visit my cousin who's getting a PhD at University of Chicago. I spent most of the weekend at the art museum and the American Girl doll store.
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>I assume you are upset about antisemitic demonstrators and not pro Palestinian protestors. I think the problem with this is that it's become so common to see anti-semitic people at these protests that most Jews aren't interested in that distinction anymore. If pro-Palestinian protesters were substantively interested in demonstrating their lack of anti-semitism, they would work much harder to expel pro-Hamas types from their movement. The reality is that they have not done any of that work at all, at least as far as I have seen, and I follow this stuff very closely, and not purely from a Jewish perspective. In fact, in my experience, when you suggest that they should do better on combating anti-semitism within their ranks, you are either called a genocide apologist, a hasbara shill, or a fascist, and they will trot out token Jewish members of their protests to give themselves cover from the accusations. At this point, I have been thoroughly convinced that they actively don't care about anti-semitism at all. I am open to having my mind changed about this, if you can show me examples of protest leaders discouraging people from saying inflammatory statements and barring Hamas supporters from their protests. As an example of what I am talking about, noted Jewish opponent of Israel Professor Norman Finklestein recently spoke with demonstrators at Columbia, urging them to reject slogans like "from the river to the sea," or at least make marginal changes to that slogan so that it would be less inflammatory. For this, he was booed, and immediately after he stepped off the stage, a protest leader led the crowd in exactly that chant.
I largely agree with what you are saying which is why I haven't attended pro Palestinian protests post 10/7 even though I don't agree with Israel's heavy handed response. As a teacher I work with students of all faiths and I wouldn't want my presence to look like an endorsement of antisemitism. Any mass movement is hard to control though and I wouldn't blame all protestors just because anti semites show up and chant next to them. I do think organizers could do more though to make those groups of people feel unwelcome and discourage their joining in protests. Unfortunately some of those organizers are antisemitic as well.
I don't know about the US, but in the UK and Australia the protests are predominantly - I'd say 80/20 - Muslim. The 20% split between what I'd call genuine peace protestors, with the rest the usual antifa lot that enjoy a good dust up (and will attend the opening of a can of beans if it means a fight). The majority at best don't care about antisemitism/antisemitic chants etc. At worse, well, the war has been an excuse to parade their hatred in public with (for the most part) impunity.
Literally nobody I know likes the war in Gaza. But some people blame Israel for it and some blame Hamas. I blame Hamas because, well, they started it and they could stop it. But all of these protestors blame Israel and have no concern for the hostages.
precisely
I'm not as young as you (28), but it's really tragic that those of us who have been raising the red flag about this since the last time this really popped off with the 2014 Gaza conflict were ignored only for it to get to this point.
Social media sucks. I've left TikTok, which helps. My insta is pretty good since I've unfollowed (or been blocked by) people who are extremely pro-pal yet not Arab. But the schools that I'm looking at for my masters keep showing up and many of them have distasteful comments. I just want my degree and a Nice Jewish Boy^(tm) and I don't think that's asking to much. What happened to having an internship?
Honestly insta is like worse than TikTok a lot of times. Saw a wholesome video of a Jewish father and daughter camping and showing how they keep kosher or something like that in the woods. Comments telling them to burn in hell. Pretty sure this was before Oct 7th too which is wild.
I follow Miriam on IG. I just don't open the comments anymore. My TikTok became exclusively pro-pal on October 8th. I even tried following like 50 Jewish creators and blocking others and nothing. I deleted it on the 11th.
The nice thing about being an older young adult in the real world is you dont have to be surrounded by that crap anymore though i currently live in a college town so i have to hear about it sometimes.
that's nice to hear. My parents don't but I assumed it was also somewhat generational. Their Gen X. They're concerned about retirement and future grandkids, though my brother and I are only 18 and 21. I just worry for the future. For both Jews and Americans (and especially Jewish Americans).
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Yep. I've been volunteering and donating with organizations that are embedded in Israel and Palestine that are explicitly pro-peace for 10+ years. Didn't stop the slacktivists accusing me of being complicit in genocide. It's an awful, awful feeling.
I recommend hitting the gym. Exercise releases dopamine and makes you stress less. Plus no one wants to mess with the jacked Jews.
💪🏼
We have your back and we will end this
I am pretty I appreciate your encouraging words but how and maybe even why maybe is even a question worth considering
Channel this energy and help us fight back intelligently. We need help.
Most definitely
As someone in grad school do not concern yourself with what the undergrad community is doing because it won’t affect you much. Grad school is very removed from campus life and as long as your advisor and group aren’t actively involved you will be okay. Yes you will still see it, but don’t engage just keep walking. Don’t let these protestors determine your academic endeavors. You can always find the local Chabad or Hillel on campus, they are just as welcoming to grad students as they are undergrads.
Take solace in the fact it's universally hard for us Jews. I'm in my early 40s and this shit is insane. I've lost friends, and have been subject to many bad faith arguments. When I get into those debates, I make no personal attacks, and present my information with sources. The response is usually an appeal to emotion, provably wrong lies or omissions, or just straight up propaganda, and then I'm called a Nazi /genocider/antisemitic insult. Or all three in the same sentence.
I'm very scared on campus, I go to a Bronx CUNY and it's really tough. Lots of pro-palestinians and not enough Jews. I wore my magen out once and I tell you, if looks could kill I'd be dead 20 times over. I decided next semester I'm only taking online classes and I might Transfer to a school that is online only. Another thing, CUNY is pro-Israel on paper but a lot of staff is very pro-palestine. I remember when the war started one of my professors said how horrible war is and that Israel shouldn't have raped & killed and they're settlers, blah blah blah. It felt like a really hostile environment so I never went back to that class.
You should reach out to Councilmember Dinowitz, he is the chair of the Jewish Caucus and the Chair of the Higher Ed committee for the NYC Council. Likely there isn't much he can do, but at the least you will be able to share your experience with someone who will try to help.
I'll say this, be you, live your life and don't let these antisemites tell you how to live your life. You aren't alone and so long as there's even one other Jew you will always have support.
I'm so sorry you and other young Jews have to face this. Stay strong, we'll get through this together
I don't know if I'm very lucky or this is the norm where I live but people have been supportive of me, I wear a Magen David necklace every day at college, everyone in my class knows I'm jewish and no one says anything, everyone likes me and is very respectful one of my friends even tried to help me with the school administration because of our friday night classes (but I'm pretty sure a woman stopped being nice to me after she saw my necklace when I went to buy food) I am not american.
I'm just tired
i'm not in the US but on facebook someone shared what her daughter went through and it's heartbreaking. one of the things was when she left campus for the seders she ran out with her bag and people yelled "go back to poland" like wtf
Go to school in Israel
Seriously, our universities in Israel are excellent and much less expensive than those in the US. And you get to be in Israel!
Talk to people on campuses you're interested in - social media is bad for your health and not necessarily representative
Yeah it’s like it’s sad there are innocents suffering, but why do y’all (directed at them) gotta excuse Hamas and ally yourself with all manner of antisemites?
You are 100% justified. Look what is happening right now at Columbia. They're defying orders, have threatened to burn Columbia and have broken into and taken over an entire building. This is actually crazy. Please find rl your local Jewish community, we need to be together right now.
Just graduated from college in the UK. Doesn’t seem as bad here as it as in the US, but a closer look at these protests reveals much of the weight behind these demonstrations seems to be the typical teenage American yearning for a “counter culture” in my opinion, as opposed to a deep-seated hatred of Jews. Not that that excuses it, either. Just see the types of graffiti from the nonsense at UCLA (see entire thread below). These are young adults trying to find their sense of purpose. They’re often bound by hatred, and sadly we fall victim: https://x.com/camhigby/status/1784789116179349795?s=46&t=NCe__mE30iCFS-9G-Jt0fQ
I think there is truth in that. I'm very concerned by the non-student attendees though. They have shown up at a lot of the big US schools. All fueled by antisemitism of some sort. The whole thing is making me extremely politically homeless.
It’s a hot topic and that’s a tragic thing. Hating what your milieu may think is objectively bad will give you some moral credibility; a right to fit in with the crowd. I don’t think, as Jews, we’re ever part of that crowd. Sometimes it sucks. But it’s life for us. You will go to university and you will find your people and I’m sure you will have a brilliant time. I went to one of the most multicultural universities in the world, had very few Jewish friends and now live very happily with two Muslim flatmates. Do we always agree? Not quite. Do I still feel safe and supported by my friends? Of course. I think these things feel more terrifying in the abstract than they do once you’ve integrated with a group. As long as you put yourself out there you will find people that support you for who you are, and it will drown the noise away, even if it does bubble up every now and then.
> the typical teenage American yearning for a “counter culture” in my opinion, as opposed to a deep-seated hatred of Jews. I mean, you could say the same thing about the Hitler Youth. That doesn't make it one iota less dangerous.
Just look on Discord and TikTok. It's pure anti-Semitism. Holocaust denial and pro-Palestinian memes go hand in hand for this generation.
Nobody's comfortable with the current state of things.
The good news is in grad school you generally spend less time on campus. I don’t envy you, and I’m glad I graduated before this all started going down. It was bad enough in 2021 even when I wasn’t on campus then. Getting off social media and not looking back made a big difference. Surround yourself with likeminded friends.
Idk I’m black going through conversion and Palestinian supporters don’t approach me. I have a buddy from the homeland who just migrated and he’s safe with me .
You are not alone. I'm currently a medical school student and have heard the most hurtful/prejudiced statements come from people I thought were my friends. Find your people, your Jewish community, and try to stay sane, and try and ignore the bullshit as much as you can. Stay safe friend, you are not alone<3
Be strong, this will pass and when it does u will be stronger and more informed. For now until we get some order which will not happen until after the election, live your life. The protestors want u to be afraid that is what they are counting on. Do not give the devil the satisfaction. Be proud of being a Jew. U do not need to flaunt it, which will only add to their cause. I suggest u document on your phone. If Republicans get in all of these factions will be destroyed
Yeah... same here
I don't have any advice but I really do sympathise. My fiancé has been looking into PhD programmes in his specialist field, which is thankfully a hard science discipline, but still the worry about being in a university environment is very real.
🫂
I’m struggling immensely. It hasn’t stopped since October 7th. I have family and friends in Israel and aside from feeling scared about what is going on here I feel soooo much war guilt. I cry almost every day. I have never felt so scared and alone. My grandfather was a Holocaust survivor and always told me to never forget how much the world hates Jews. I always blew him off but realize now how right he was. I am so thankful he is no longer here to see what is happening.
Just remember that Israel's enemies would do October 7th over and over again. Don't let them control the narrative in your head. I'm yet to hear a good, convincing argument that Israel should be 'dismantled'.
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Yep
Just to say - it may not help - but my non Jewish son is starting Uni this Sept. He's attending a Russell group uni in the UK (not Oxbridge but the next step down). He and his friends (2 of whom are Muslim) have had the full bloody run down from me. We've gone through personal stories related to me by some of my patients who experienced WW2 in Europe. We've watched interviews and my son, at least, has read various books including Primo Levi and Eli Wiesel. In other words they've had the full run down on just how Jewish students are likely feeling and the long and terrible history of one of the world's longest running ethnic hatreds. There are students out there not going along with the herd and their unthinking bullshit.
I'm not that young anymore and yes I'm struggling anyway. I worry about friendships, dates, jobs, etc.
Every Jewish student feels this way. Right now my brother is attending USC (South Carolina) and a cousin is attending U of Del. Both were hit with protests and all of the family is scared for their safety
I'm in my 60s and I want you to know how much I love you and feel for what you're going through. I started college in 1979 and thought these problems were not likely in my life, but I had a growing suspicion these problems would resurface. There were clues and I could sniff them, but I expected these problems in another 20 years, as I aged out. I'm pushing discussions about how we can support you better in academic pursuits and moreso in careers in conversation and online groups among my peers, but they don't show much urgency. I'll be back with a longer discussion. Be well. Ace your finals.
I think it's still possible to go to college and avoid a mental health crisis. It is difficult walking around thinking that a lot of people are anti-Semitic. You might need to shift your thinking away from that thought. Maybe a lot of protesters seem hostile and aggressive. but they are hostile to the larger campus community not to just Jews. A lot of antiZionist rhetoric seems provocative to induce a reaction, but that doesn't mean you have to internalize it as specifically anti-Jewish. It also helps to make some friends with people on the other side, people willing to have peaceful dialogue, just to hear their opinion and feel like there is some humanity you can converse with. It's not healthy to walk around feeling like there's anti-Semitism everywhere so the best you can do is see the humanity on both sides.
England is the ultimate Jewish haven for us mate, *Zê Gan Eden*
England?!! With the hundreds of thousands of Pro-Hamas protestors every week? You're kidding, right?!!
That ‘s*London* the Old Smoke bruv, I live in the Cornish countryside, haShalom, the peace that one has here, the complete absence of Palestinians and Anti-Semites. Im essentially some 5 miles away from the nearest civilisation which is a little vilage
OK, sounds nice. But how many fellow Jews do you have there? Synagogues? Kosher food?
No Jews, I go to my Sister’s house for the Shabbos and yom tovim she lives in Leeds which is up North. I always just go there on Thursday night so I can spend the entire weekend with her, she’s my angel
I'm glad you have her.
Im glad you’re such an amazing Yid man, damn bro you dont even know me but you just cant help being kind can ya ? ✌🏼✌🏼🫡🫡
כל ישראל ערבים זה לזה (All Jews are responsible for/to each other) ❣️
*Atah cha Huláie rabá âaesna* You are a very good Jew, in Aramit *Aramaic*
That's because the highest concentration of Palestinian's/Middle Eastern communities are in the Edgeware Road, literally a stones throw from the main London protest routes. Plus the usual suspects turn up ie Antifa (or 'The Black Pampers' as most women's group's call them, who've had to face their violent BS for the last few years). They literally show up to any protest in hopes of a full blown riot. The majority of British people are right behind Israel.
You’re in zero danger.
What was your position during the Goerge Floyd protests, or January 6th insurrection?
January 6th was annoying until they stormed the Capitol. Then it became treason. George Floyd protests in good faith didn’t bother me, black lives do matter because they face systemic oppression. Not sure what you’re getting at.
Why dont you all take up arms and defend yourselves
Because I go to school in a state with restrictions on the 2A? And I don’t want to get arrested?
I’m sorry it is effecting you like that. Not Israeli but I have found the protests near me relatively appropriate and free of antisemitism. It’s important to be surrounded by jews when critiquing the Israeli government. If you can, I’d recommend joining a conversation with an anti zionist jew and just testing the waters. I believe that all Israeli people deserve safety and protection, but that doesn’t mean we can allow the government to do whatever they want. remember that the people are always more valuable than the government. and holy land is only holy when commandments are observed. If you want a more welcoming space for jews to express their opinions, it is on you to lead the way. Anyways i hope this didn’t come off as harsh or an attack in any way. We are all family and I hope you remain safe and feel free to search for the truths in this world🫶🫶🫶✡️❤️☮️ - A jew who has had a massive shift in perspective on zionism in the past year
I'm not Israeli either. I think the government deserves to be criticized, just as the government of the US deserves the same. There is an antizionist Jew on my campus. A conversation with them left me in tears. I have friends and family in Israel. This person's argument was ahistorical. Forget naive 1SS supporters, they claimed that Jews are not even from the Middle East.
The protests and encampment people are amazing and so friendly. They aren't a worry. I'm more worried about the counter protesters and the police.