Since October 7th, the world has felt different for a lot of American Jews and Antisemitism has risen. More recently, two people were shot dead outside a Jewish Museum in Washington, DC. And a man with a flamethrower in Colorado attacked Israeli hostage advocates. 

At the same time, the Jewish-majority country that is Israel has continued its attacks against Hamas in Gaza. On Sunday, 13 Palestinians were killed and over 150 injured after Israeli troops and American contractors opened fire on crowds waiting for food near two aid distribution sites in Gaza. Israel’s months-long food aid blockade has put one in five Palestinians on the brink of starvation. 

There are now 57,000 Palestinians who’ve been killed by Israel’s attacks since October 7th, 2023.  Where has this left Jewish Americans? What does it look like to hold a range of difficult, sometimes opposing, views on a topic that is often a lightning rod in American culture? 

This tension has long shaped American Jewish identity. Today on The Metro we dive into the evolving challenges faced by American Jews, focusing on the rising tide of anti-Semitism and the often-confused distinction between anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism—where Zionism represents Jewish nationalism, and anti-Semitism signifies prejudice against Jews. The 1967 Six-Day War marked a turning point, deepening loyalty to Israel among some American Jews while sparking resistance in others, influenced by anti-colonial views during the Vietnam War era. Over the decades, Israel’s role in shaping American Jewish identity has grown increasingly divisive, reflecting a broader shift in how the community relates to the Jewish state.

Julian Levinson is a professor of American Jewish studies at the University of Michigan. And he’s worked in his classes to get students who are often young Jews, to be containers of multiple perspectives. Over the decades, Israel’s role in shaping American Jewish identity has grown increasingly divisive, reflecting a broader shift in how the community relates to the Jewish state.