Before the United States instituted the National Origins Quota of 1924 and limited immigration, over two million people of Jewish heritage, mostly from central Europe or Russia, had entered the United States. The old world was rampant with anti-Semitism and America’s freedoms made it a place where Abraham’s Biblical descendants could make a new beginning.

To ensure their next generation would get ahead, American Jewish immigrants focused on education and hard work. Given the Jewish people's history of enduring terrible anti-Semitism, it was not surprising that they would preferentially aid one another. Initially, there was significant anti-Semitism in America, but the hard-working Jewish Americans took any job they could. Their children studied hard, and Jewish Americans used any newfound influence to help their youth achieve their individual goals.

An example of this dynamic is that in the 1930s the Ivy League and other elite colleges discriminated against Jewish applicants. Knowing admission to an elite Ivy-like college was a key to success, Jewish Americans fought this injustice. Using the argument that admissions should be based on merit they were able to gradually gain access to the elite corridors of power. The Jewish percentage of students at Harvard reached a high of 25% and is now around 10%. American Jews account for 14% of physicians and over 60% of lawyers. Congress is 6% Jewish, the Senate 8% and at present one Supreme Court judge is Jewish (It has been as high as three). Twenty-five percent of Forbes' list of billionaires are Jewish, and the entertainment industry is dominated by Jewish Americans. These numbers are remarkable given that Jewish Americans make up approximately 2% of the population.

Throughout the 20^th and early 21^st century a significant majority {67%} of Jewish Americans aligned with the Democrat Party. In opposition to the anti-Semitic Republican WASP power structure; Jewish Americans found common ground and common cause within the Democrat coalition of other marginalized groups such as Black Americans, blue-collar workers, and socially liberal thinkers. Powerful Jewish Americans have become very influential Democrat supporters.

Over the last several decades America’s political coalitions have drastically changed and progressives have taken control of the Democrat party. The Democrat Muslim vote is growing and will eventually outnumber the Jewish vote. The Progressive Democrat Party has become the party of rich college-educated white-privilege-hating elites and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) minorities. Blue-collar non-college-educated voters have migrated to the GOP.

The new progressive Democrat party in which Jewish Americans have a significant influence has forced DEI policies on America. They have turned their back as elite colleges have systematically excluded traditional conservative Americans. The same elite colleges that once discriminated against Jewish Americans.

During this same period, to avoid the wrath of radical progressive faculty and students, traditional American thinkers have been forced to hide their politically incorrect views. Campus First Amendment rights have become reserved for progressives such as think Pro Hamas, LBGT, and Pro-choicers, while traditional American values were deemed hate speech.

But the winds of change are blowing and an evil that has haunted the Jewish people for centuries is rearing its ugly head.

The progressive Democrat response to the October 7th Hamas massacre of 1200 innocent Jews has exposed their latent anti-Semitism and is a likely harbinger of what is to come. Despite their huge financial contributions and party leadership positions, Jewish Americans only represent a small percentage of the modern Democrat party and they are now being perceived by their fellow progressives as “White Privileged.” Perhaps best summarized in a recent WSJ Opinion:

The only logical way around this conundrum is for the woke left to say that Jews are “white.” Jews are now privileged people of European origin who game the system. The horrors of past antisemitism are seen as general oppression, and it is an accident that the focus of that oppression happened to be Jews. They see Israel as a place where European whites who happen to be Jews colonized the land of native nonwhites.

To the DEI-obsessed progressives, being “White Privileged” is an unforgivable sin and it is only a matter of time before they will turn on their Jewish colleagues. It is more than ironic that many left-leaning progressive Jewish Americans supported the DEI movement, and it has morphed into an anti-Semitic monster.

To avoid the evolving likelihood that Jewish Americans will suffer escalating progressive anti-Semitism it makes sense that they consider becoming part of the new GOP coalition. Capitalism with achievement based on merit is the hallmark of the Jewish people and the bedrock principle of the new GOP. Rallying around the Judeo-Christian principles that forged the American Constitution would be essential. Compromise on social issues would also be necessary, but in trade, the American Jewish Community would no longer have to fear that the light at the end of the tunnel is an anti-Semitic progressive train. 

There are no nefarious reasons that the Jewish Americans have achieved power and influence. America’s freedoms provided the perfect environment for the Jewish immigrants to thrive, and they did.  Once the Jewish people arrived in America with all their cultural dynamics intact, events were set in motion and the present Jewish success was inevitable.

But there are signs that American Jewish culture and its model for success is fraying. Jewish scripture forbids marriage outside of the Jewish faith and in 1930 only 2% of Jews intermarried. Starting in the 1970s, intermarriages rapidly increased and in 2020 sixty-one percent of American Jewish marriages have one spouse who is not Jewish. Following the general American trend of feeling religion is not important in their lives, 53% of Jewish Americans believe religion is not essential, and not surprisingly 50% of American Jews under 30 believe caring about Israel is not important to what defines them as Jewish. Some sectarian progressive Jews, such as Senator Bernie Sanders, are perversely anti-Israel and despite the October 7th Hamas massacre, do not support aid to Israel, or its right to defend itself.

Jewish American Democrats are facing a time of internal turmoil and dangerous uncertainty, and they have a choice. A new Exodus to the GOP and control their destiny, or continue to believe that their fellow progressives will not come for them. If present Democrat Party support is an indicator, they probably will choose the wrong path and hold on to the fantasy that modern progressives want them on their team.

Perhaps the Jewish American Democrats believe they have amassed such power, wealth, and political influence that Europe-like 20^th-century events can never happen again. The October 7th Hamas massacre, rampant American college campus antisemitism, increasing worldwide violence against Jews, and history says otherwise.

Image: Rijksmuesum