Antisemitism, an American Tradition

The powerful story of antisemitism in America and how it has shaped the lives of Jews for almost four centuries

Jews met antisemitism on landing in New Amsterdam in 1654 when Peter Stuyvesant tried to expel them. The founding of the US changed little, as negative European stereotypes rooted into American soil. They faced restrictions on holding office, admission to schools and employment, while synagogues and cemeteries were vandalised. Recently, white nationalists chanted “Jews will not replace us” in Charlottesville, Virgina and a gunman killed eleven members of a Pittsburgh synagogue. Antisemitic incidents increase each year. In Antisemitism, an American Tradition, Pamela S. Nadell investigates the depth of this fraught history. She explores how American Jews battle antisemitism through the law, by creating organisations to speak for them, and respond with their fists or join with allies in fighting all types of hate.