Are Israelis and US Jews no longer ‘brothers’?
Significant differences among Jews from Israel, the United States and France were uncovered on issues like anti-Semitism, the peace process and Russia in a recent survey.
A recent comprehensive survey conducted among Jews in Israel, the United States and France sought to look at how Jews in these three countries define themselves and relate to external threats. The study was conducted for the American Jewish Committee, the oldest Jewish organization in the United States, and also assessed Jewish views on anti-Semitism, the peace process and the importance of the State of Israel. A thousand Israeli Jews, 1,006 American Jews and 771 French Jews from various socioeconomic, political and religious backgrounds were surveyed.
One cluster of questions focused on Jewish identity and the connection between Israel and the diaspora. In response to the question of whether you consider Israeli/American Jews brothers, 31% of Israeli respondents said yes, while only 13% of American respondents thought so. Among French Jews and Israeli Jews there was more correspondence: 31% of French respondents said they define Israeli Jews as brothers.
Despite the sense of close family relations, 64% of Israelis are not willing to have their “brothers” from the United States influence Israeli policy on issues such as national security and the continuation of peace negotiations with the Palestinians, but 57% of American respondents support this. A significant gap was found in response to the question: "Is a prosperous State of Israel necessary or not necessary to ensure the future of the Jewish people?" While 91% of Israeli respondents answered in the positive, only 72% of American Jews and 53% of French Jews think so. The estimate is that the low response for the French stems from the relatively high percentage of Orthodox Jews among French Jewry. The survey also shows that 59% of American Jews and 35% of French respondents have never visited Israel.
The 2019 data, compared to the data from the 2018 survey, suggests a growing gap between the positions of Israeli Jewry and American Jewry relating to President Donald Trump. In 2018, 41% of American respondents and 5% of Israeli respondents “highly opposed” how President Trump conducts Israel-US relations, compared to 45% of American respondents and 4% of Israeli respondents in 2019.
