Rabbi's Musings

I have been teaching a monthly class about current forms of American antisemitism. The next class is on February 11 at 7 p.m. The topic will be regarding American exceptionalism. So far, America has not seen the epic rise and fall of Jews like other nations. Alas, the past is not always prologue. We could find ourselves in a future when all we enjoy in terms of peace and prosperity vanishes. I am not being alarmist. Indeed, I am an optimist when it comes to America and the Jewish people. Nevertheless, there is no guarantee that the powers that rule our country will always see fit to share power. 

To see what this looks like, we need not leave American shores. The antebellum South was historically hospitable to Jews. A few Sephardic families reached near the top of leadership and society. Jews were outsiders, but they achieved a great measure of acceptance. (Indeed, the first two Jewish senators were from the South, Judah P. Benjamin of Louisiana and David Yulee of Florida. Texas boasted David Kaufman in the U.S. House of Representatives.)

This status changed when, during the Civil War, the non-elite class of whites in the South grew in power and their resentment towards the Jews saw them as enemies. As the South collapsed, so did the position of the Jews. Populist farmers saw Jews as easy targets of their hatred. The lesson: Jews thought they were accepted in the South. They were not. To put it simply, the defeat of the southern planter aristocracy was good for the nation but not for southern Jews. 

The lesson is clear: As Jews, we should never feel completely secure. Things can change.
Next week: Thoughts on what we can do.