After the October 7 terrorist attack, many American Jews have stomached two shocks: the shock of Hamas’s brutality, and the shock of their putative political allies’ support for the brutes. Liberal Jews are not only horrified by campus chants of “there is only one solution: Intifada, revolution.” They are also surprised.
I understand that Jewish people as a whole STRONGLY lean toward Leftism, but I don’t understand why. This author asu=sumes things, but without evidence!
Most Jews, in fact, express their Jewish identity through liberal values. Asked by Pew which aspects of Judaism were “essential” to what it means to be Jewish, Orthodox Jews said leading an ethical and moral life, observing Jewish law, and continuing family traditions—all of which are, if not the same, then highly related for observant Jews. For the non-Orthodox, though, the top slots went to remembering the Holocaust, leading an ethical and moral life, working for justice and equality, and being intellectually curious.
These “essential” things are pretty much antithetical to Leftist identity.
No, I think there are OTHER things going on. What we are seeing is likely a strong attachment to tradition–also a defining Jewish characteristic. I think they (understandably) got attached to things of old liberalism–human rights and such.
But things have changed. And Jewish people are now faced with “going against the grain” a bit.