Jonah Goldberg: Why are Jews liberal? In all its various forms, there is probably no question I get asked more. I have not yet had the pleasure of being edified by Norman Podhoretz’s take, which I’m told is a great read, so let me offer a sliver of my own answer to the question.
The liberalism of American Jews is, I believe, what social scientists would call an over-determined phenomenon. Some of it has to do with broader social trends that Jews are not immune to. The over-educated often drift toward liberalism out of the arrogance that they’re smart enough to have all the answers. The wealthy, contrary to much liberal propaganda, are trending more liberal every day, particularly among “idea worker” types. Secularism is one of the most reliable indices of liberalism and many Jews seem to think that secularism is a religious imperative.
Then there are the various and sundry factors derived from the unique history of the Jews. In Old Europe, Jews were often a special class who looked to the throne for protection from the anti-Semitic rabble and the pogroms (“If only the Czar knew!”). This gives Jews a long heritage of viewing statism as a survival strategy. The big wave of Jews who came to the United States at the beginning of the 20th century brought the thriving fad of socialism with them and they saw an America that seemed to confirm the need for leftwing reform.
Anti-Semitism was long associated with institutions that seemed more Republican and conservative (the reverse is closer to the truth today). Harry Truman was a midwife to Israel’s birth.
And that introduces the Holocaust. The impact of the Holocaust cuts deep and long. But one result has been a tendency among American Jews to think that fighting for a progressive, statist, vision of “social justice” is a moral, even definitional, imperative for Jews today.
There’s also the simple fact that people tend to share the views of their parents. Contrary to the cultural mythology of children rebelling from their parents, the vast majority of people inherit their politics, just like their eye color, from their Mom and Dad. Perhaps, because Jews mix politics and religion so thoroughly, this tendency is even stronger among members of the tribe.
The knot of Jewish liberalism is large, old and has many strands. It will take a long time to untie it.
Jonah Goldberg is a nationally syndicated columnist and the author of Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, From Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning.
If you check the cspan archives from 3 or 4 years ago, there’s an excellent speech with q&a by Norm Podhoretz (I believe on Book TV/cspan2). It was on his book Why Are Jews Liberal?
It’s really good!
(I think you were thinking of Jonah Goldberg’s Liberal Fascism :-)
That says a lot. Given that the anti-Semitic rabble was Christian, it also says that lots of Jews see a secularized society as a survival strategy.
"Once burned, twice shy." Lots of Jews have seen their ancestors "burned." Consequently, they associate muscular Christianity with a potential threat to the Jewish people. People who have learned the history of European anti-Semitism are going to be predisposed to the Howard Zinn take on American history, as it confirms their impression that the (potentially) "anti-Semitic rabble" are still up to their old tricks.
Consequently, they see a watered-down Christianity as diminishing a potential threat to them and their people, and their descendents (i.e., kids). As Mr. Goldberg indicated, there are other reasons why so many Jewish people see a secular society as the ideal. (For some, it may be as simple as "this is America's promise", as they see it.)
So it's no wonder that the big doubt-maker is Christian Zionism. Christian Zionism shows that it's possible to be both a muscular Christian and pro-Semitic.