Israeli youth is very much aware of anti-Semitism and one out of two Israelis sees foreign criticism of Israel as anti-Semitism, according to a survey released Wednesday by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).
The poll results also found that most Israeli teenagers felt that Israel faces an existential threat, but not in the classical anti-Semitic sense. The nationwide survey of 500 Israeli youth aged 15-18 was conducted by Market Watch on March 19, 2007. A parallel survey of Jewish adults was also conducted for comparison purposes.
In response to the findings, Isaac Herzog in charge of Diaspora affairs, said the results show that Israeli youth is aware of anti-Semitism and its severity. "It is clear that Ahmadinejad's outrageous statements are infiltrating the national awareness of Israel's youth, we tend to underestimate their involvement in everyday challenges.
"As a person who heads the struggle against anti-Semitism, I believe it is important to include youngsters in public relations activities on this subject worldwide," Herzog said.
Main survey findings
One out of two Israelis sees foreign criticism of Israel as anti-Semitism. (Among 18-year-olds the result reached 63%.)
Close to half - 46 % - relate to anti-Semitism as an historical event manifested in the Holocaust.
- 64 % of teenagers believe the State of Israel has a responsibility for acting against anti-Semitism around the world.
- Three out of four teenagers said their awareness of anti-Semitism came from school, and nearly half - 49 % - said they should be learning more in school about anti-Semitism. (60 % of parents believed the education system deals too little in the subject)
- Teenagers are worried more about the threat of destruction of the State of Israel than another Holocaust against the Jewish people.
- Israeli teens do not experience anti-Semitism “on the ground” in a way their peers in the Diaspora do, yet they are very much aware of anti-Semitism.
- The survey findings were released in Jerusalem by Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director, who said, “It is apparent from the survey that the overwhelmingly vast majority of Israeli teenagers have a great sense of awareness about anti-Semitism. Living in the Jewish State they do not experience ‘in-your-face’ anti-Semitism as do their Diaspora peers, yet they are fully aware of its reality.”
- Mr. Foxman added that, “the Israeli educational system, which is doing an excellent job in teaching about historical anti-Semitism, should look to enhance their programs by including contemporary concerns and using new tools, such as the Internet, to engage Israeli youth on the subject. Anti-Semitism is not just a history lesson, it is a current event.”
Survey highlights
When asked, “What comes to mind when you hear the term ‘anti-Semitism?” close to 70 associations were given. The most popular answers were: 20% said Nazis, 16% said Holocaust, 13% said Hatred of Jews, 7 % said Germany, 6% said infinite hatred, 3 % said Arabs, 3% said Racism, 3%, 3% Jews and 3% said Hitler.
The poll found that 22% of Israeli teenagers and 36% of Israeli adults had encountered manifestations of anti-Semitism, with those coming from families of Holocaust survivors or traveling abroad in the past five years recording higher encounters.
When asked, “How should Israel react to manifestations of anti-Semitism?” 28% said react only in very severe cases, 64% said react in any case, 6% said not to react in any case and 2% said they didn’t know. (Among religious teenagers 74% said Israel should react in any case)
Seventy-six percent (76%) of those interviewed said school was as a source of knowledge about anti-Semitism. 39% also cited TV programs, 23% cited the Internet, 22% cited newspaper articles, 12% cited parents, 12% cited documentaries, 8% cited the news, 7% cited grandparents or family members and 3% cited the tour to Poland.
Asked to evaluate the attention given to the subject of anti-Semitism by the education system in Israel, 8% of Israeli teenagers said it was high, 42% said it was adequate, 49 percent said it was too low and 1% said they didn’t know. The same question asked of the adults found that 7% said it was too high, 18% found it adequate, 60% said it was too low and 15% didn’t know.
Asked to what extent are you are aware of anti-Semitic incidents in the world, 45% said they were strongly aware, 49% said they were partially aware, 5% said they were hardly aware and 1% said they were totally unaware of anti-Semitism against Jews in the world.
When asked, “Do you ever notice in foreign films contents, expressions or sayings whose context or meaning is anti-Semitic?” 10% said they often detect, 64% said they sometimes detect, 25% said they didn’t detect and 1% said they didn’t know. Similarly, when asked about lyrics in songs, 3% said they often detect, 28% said sometimes, and 69% said they did not detect.
Asked, “Do you think Israel is under a threat of destruction, or not?” 24% said Israel was under a serious threat, 59% said there was a certain threat, 17% said Israel was not under a threat of destruction and 1% didn’t know. When asked, “Do you think that in our day a second Holocaust is possible or not?” 6% said there was a real possibility for a second Holocaust, 31% said there was a certain possibility, 62% said a second Holocaust was not possible and 1% said they did not know.
Forty-eight percent (48%) of teenagers said they considered foreign criticism on Israel as anti-Semitism. 43% said they didn’t and 9% said they didn’t know. The perception that criticism of Israel stems form anti-Semitism is higher among 18-year-olds (63%) compared to younger teenagers. Among adults, 58% saw criticism of Israel as anti-Semitism, 34% said no and 8% said they didn’t know.
The survey had a 4.4 percent margin of error.