Contributor: California Was An 'earthly Paradise' For Jews. Is It Still? - Beritaja

California, described by 1 perceiver in the precocious 19th century arsenic “the Jews’ earthly paradise” for the economical and societal committedness it held, seems to person go recently dispute to Jewish group successful caller years. More than immoderate different spot connected Earth, Jews person shaped overmuch of California’s progress, from Levi Strauss and the founders of the intermezo manufacture to galore different leaders successful culture, science, existent property and finance.

The existent battle expresses itself successful politics, successful schools from elementaries to universities, connected the streets, successful literary circles and successful anti-Zionist graffiti.

Erwin Chemerinsky, the dean of the UC Berkeley Law School (and my chap contributing writer successful the L.A. Times sentiment section), expressed 2 years agone that “nothing has prepared maine for the antisemitism I spot connected assemblage campuses now.” The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and Jewish Americans for Fairness person revenge a lawsuit against Berkeley, alleging “longstanding, unchecked” antisemitism.

This is not conscionable a section issue. California’s organization of 1.2 cardinal Jews is roughly 3 times the size of each of the 3 largest Jewish diaspora communities extracurricular the U.S. — successful France, England and Canada. Los Angeles itself is the world’s third-largest Jewish city. Demographer Ira Sheskin noted precocious that dissimilar New York City, which has mislaid about half its Jewish organization since 1950, California’s Jewish populace has continued to grow, albeit much slow successful caller years.

Despite their comparative demographic vitality, galore California Jews consciousness progressively isolated. Even successful Hollywood, the Writers Guild, agelong a bastion of fashionable progressivism, abruptly decided to beryllium neutral alternatively than making a connection connected the Israel-Hamas war. Some starring figures, for illustration Maha Dakhil, co-head of mobility pictures astatine CAA, accused Israel of “genocide,” and others now garbage to activity pinch Israeli movie companies. Two 1000 actors signed a connection outlining Israel’s “war crimes” pinch nary mention of Hamas’ atrocities.

The governmental fallout has been considerable, and whitethorn go much so. Most California Jews are Democrats, according to the Pat Brown Institute; 20-30% tilt to the GOP. But the anti-Israel caucus, some present and nationally, is almost wholly made up of Democratic progressives. In a show of power, these activists moreover succeeded successful disrupting California’s 2023 state Democratic Party convention. Many are justifiably uncomfortable pinch the GOP, citing the power of antisemitism from the likes of Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens, and immoderate critics of Israel person recovered the Democratic Party too cozy pinch Jerusalem and its supporters, but mostly the Republicans, including MAGA young people, are intelligibly much philosemitic than the Democrats.

At a section level, authorities successful galore cities person sent a connection to the Jews of California. Anti-Israel resolutions person passed successful Oakland, Stanton, Burbank and Richmond, wherever the progressive-controlled City Council accused Israel of “ethnic cleansing” and “apartheid.” Oakland called for an contiguous ceasefire without mentioning Hamas’ atrocities. Demonstrators location moreover suggested that Israel murdered its ain group arsenic a pretext to onslaught Gaza.

And California’s younker are being groomed to dislike Israel pinch hostile curriculums, mounting up a full caller procreation of antisemitism successful the early and successful the meantime putting Jewish teachers astatine risk. San Francisco has knowledgeable anti-Israel walkouts successful 10 precocious schools, organized by an defense group pinch entree to student addresses.

At the aforesaid time, the thrust to “globalize the intifada” affects California’s Jewish organization directly. It has forced astatine slightest 1 L.A. synagogue to relocate its services; others person been vandalized. The Brentwood location owned by the president of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee was attacked successful 2023 pinch fume bombs and reddish paint. More recently, 2 years aft the bloody Hamas onslaught connected Israel, supporters of Palestinians disrupted a commemoration astatine Pomona College, informing that “Zionism is simply a decease cult that must beryllium dealt pinch accordingly.”

These assaults make Jews much concerned about their safety and possibly much apt to turn inward successful their communities. Far little alluring nether these circumstances is the Jewish conception of tikkun olam, or repairing the world. Although it is the driving unit successful galore congregations, peculiarly Reform synagogues, successful troubled times it could beryllium eclipsed by concerns about safety.

This caller situation favors the Orthodox, pioneers of a benignant of “self-segregation,” notes writer Joseph Epstein successful the Wall Street Journal. And because of their higher commencement rates and the below-replacement commencement rates among non-Orthodox American Jews, the Orthodox could triple their share of the U.S. Jewish organization by 2060. This inclination plays retired successful California’s Jewish communities specified arsenic L.A.’s Pico-Robertson — epicenter of California orthodoxy.

The resurgence of California Jewry matters much today, fixed that voters successful the accepted halfway of Jewish life, New York, person been supporting a mayoral campaigner who was astatine slightest astatine 1 clip sympathetic to “globalizing the intifada.” Many fishy that the erstwhile well-connected Jewish organization successful New York will apt look indifference, if not unfastened hostility, from City Hall if Zohran Mamdani is elected.

Fortunately, the sun has not yet group connected California’s Jews. The Golden State could still stay our “paradise” — existent to its past. But this will activity only by learning really to protect ourselves and make the lawsuit to our gentile neighbors truthful that we could proceed to lend mightily to the early of our communal home.

Joel Kotkin is a contributing writer to Opinion, the statesmanlike chap for municipality futures astatine Chapman University and elder investigation chap astatine the Civitas Institute astatine the University of Texas, Austin.