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ADL Survey: 15% of Americans are Anti-Semitic

November 3, 2011

Anti-Semitism is growing in the United States, according to a nationwide survey released on Thursday.

The survey, conducted by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), found that 15 percent of the population – nearly 35 million Americans – holds deeply anti-Semitic views.

According to The New York Daily News, which presented the findings, the survey found that old stereotypes about Jews being pushy and controlling the economy are festering, especially among the least-educated Americans.

The survey found that 19 percent of Americans think that it is “probably true” that the statement that “Jews have too much control/influence on Wall Street” is correct. This marks a five percentage point increase since 2009.

It was also found that 14 percent of respondents agreed with the statement that “Jews have too much power in the U.S. today,” an increase from 13 percent in 2009. As well, 15 percent that agreed Jews are “more willing to use shady practices,” and 16 percent agreed that Jewish “business people are so shrewd, others don’t have a chance.”

These findings are consistent with the recent Occupy Wall Street protests which took on anti-Jewish characteristics.

During one of the protests, a black American protester stated that “the people who run Wall Street are guilty of crimes against humanity. A small ethnic group consists of…almost all bankers on Wall Street are Jewish.

“There is a conspiracy in this country, and Jews control the media, the finances,” he added. “The Jews represent two percent of the population…and have pooled their money together to take control of Americans finances….”

He also charged that both the Democratic and Republican parties based their campaigns to “appease Jewish Americans because Jewish money controls American politics….”

The ADL survey also found that some 31 percent of Americans believe that the Jews were responsible for crucifying Jesus. It also found that 30 percent think Jews are “more loyal to Israel than to America.”

The New York Daily News noted that the survey found that the most-educated Americans were the least prejudiced and foreign-born Hispanics were more likely to hate Jews than U.S.-born Hispanics. As well, some 29 percent of the African-Americans surveyed expressed strong anti-Semitic views.

The ADL’s national director, Abraham Foxman, responded to the survey and told The Daily News, “It is disturbing that with all of the strides we have made in becoming a more tolerant society, anti-Semitic beliefs continue to hold a vise-grip on a small but not insubstantial segment of the American public.”

The telephone survey was conducted among 1,754 adults in October.

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