Vox: “We Don’t Know Why” Antisemitism Is Rising

Vox is currently being criticized for tweeting “we don’t know why” antisemitism is rising in a tweet promoting an article about the recent spate of antisemitic attacks.

The article, written by Zack Beauchamp, states in the subheader: “Violent anti-Semitism spiked in America during the Israel-Hamas war. And we don’t know why.” The article states that the attacks “appear to be linked to the recent flare-up in fighting between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. In some cases, the perpetrators waved Palestinian flags or shouted pro-Palestinian slogans.” It also cites statistics from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) that antisemitic incidents “increased by 75 percent during the recent conflict.”

The article proceeds to list three theories for the increased antisemitism. One theory is that the recent spike is an anomaly. “The number of violent assaults targeting Jews every year is very small, in the dozens rather than hundreds. When your sample size is that small, a few incidents can take on outsize importance. The attackers may have claimed to be acting on behalf of the Palestinian cause, but ultimately, there may be no systematic reason to think that the increase in public pro-Palestinian sentiment is in any way linked to anti-Semitic violence.”

Additionally, the article posits that the rising antisemitism could be “a reflection of an upswing in anti-Semitism that began during the Trump campaign and presidency,” noting that “the ADL and other data sources suggest a surge beginning then, most commonly linked to the alt-right’s rise on Trump’s coattails, and continuing for the next four years.” To support this theory, the article cites the shootings at the Tree of Life synagogue and Chabad of Poway as well as the stabbing at a Hanukkah party. The article also points out a 2021 study from Tufts University Professor Eitan Hersh and Harvard doctoral student Laura Royden concluding that those with conservatives were “more likely to display anti-Semitic attitudes”; the study also states that “the connection between anti-Semitism and pro-Palestinian sentiment” is “tenuous at best.”

The third and final theory is that antisemitism in the United States has manifested itself like antisemitism in Europe in “that people with anti-Israel views are increasingly more likely to blame American Jews for what they see as Israeli wrongdoing.” The article notes that in Europe, Muslims are “socially marginalized” while Muslims in the U.S. are “more tightly integrated”; however, the fact that recent antisemitic attacks are connected “to pro-Palestinian events and sentiment” suggests that “it’s possible, if not likely, that the European pattern of violence in Israel causing anti-Semitic violence at home could become a reality in America.”

The article concludes by stating that it’s unclear which theory is correct–though they’re “not necessarily mutually exclusive”–but does conclude that “anti-Semitism is alive and well in America.”

Violent anti-Semitism spiked in America during the Israel-Hamas war. And we don’t know why. https://t.co/6QNoqXj1Z7

— Vox (@voxdotcom) June 2, 2021

Various pro-Israel Twitter users criticized Vox.

“Jews have been attacked by thugs with Palestinian flags, synagogues have been defaced with ‘Free Palestine,’ and cars with Palestinian flags have gone through Jewish neighborhoods blasting ‘F*ck the Jews, rape their daughters,’” American Jewish Committee Managing Director of Global Communications Avi Mayer tweeted. “See a trend?”

Really? We don't?

Maybe I can help:

Jews have been attacked by thugs with Palestinian flags, synagogues have been defaced with "Free Palestine," and cars with Palestinian flags have gone through Jewish neighborhoods blasting "F*ck the Jews, rape their daughters."

See a trend? pic.twitter.com/BfflMFsMCG

— Avi Mayer (@AviMayer) June 2, 2021

Stop Antisemitism similarly tweeted, “Jew hatred is: 1. Ignored if it stems from the fringe left or Muslim sphere 2. Pacified if it stems from the fringe left or Muslim sphere 3. Encouraged if it stems from the fringe left or Muslim sphere. Silly Rabbit.”

Sure you do @zackbeauchamp.

Jew hatred is:

1. Ignored if it stems from the fringe left or Muslim sphere
2. Pacified if it stems from the fringe left or Muslim sphere
3. Encouraged if it stems from the fringe left or Muslim sphere

Silly Rabbit. https://t.co/yaQM8iXVUc

— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) June 2, 2021

Newsweek Deputy Opinion Editor Batya Ungar-Sargon tweeted, “If only the perpetrators of this violence were carrying signs and flags and screaming at their victims about why they were attacking them, Vox might be able to crack this impenetrable code, figure out this riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma!”

If only the perpetrators of this violence were carrying signs and flags and screaming at their victims about why they were attacking them, Vox might be able to crack this impenetrable code, figure out this riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma! https://t.co/02SLtJ7B0q

— Batya Ungar-Sargon (@bungarsargon) June 2, 2021

Laura E. Adkins, Opinion Editor of The Forward, noted in a tweet that Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt wrote in The Forward last week: “Often, we do not know or are unable to divine the motives of the perpetrators. Not this time.”

“Of course we know why, Vox,” Adkins wrote in a subsequent tweet. “The question is rather, does this indicate a trend, or that violent flare ups in Israel coincide with a rise in antisemitic attacks elsewhere, due to antisemitic thinking that holds all Jews personally liable for the conduct of the Israeli military?” She also tweeted that the third theory listed in the article about antisemitism in the U.S. becoming more like Europe’s antisemitism should have been “the second and final” theory in the article.

Of course we know why, Vox.

The question is rather, does this indicate a trend, or that violent flare ups in Israel coincide with a rise in antisemitic attacks elsewhere, due to antisemitic thinking that holds all Jews personally liable for the conduct of the Israeli military?

— Laura E. Adkins (@Laura_E_Adkins) June 2, 2021

The third contention that @zackbeauchamp makes — that "it’s possible we’re seeing the beginning of what might be termed the 'Europeanization' of American anti-Semitism" — should really be the second and final one: data show either a spike or a trend of anti-Israel antisemitism.

— Laura E. Adkins (@Laura_E_Adkins) June 2, 2021

Jewish Telegraphic Agency reporter Ben Sales, on the other hand, tweeted that while Vox’s tweet promoting the article was “worded poorly… the article is quite thoughtful and hits many of the right points.”

Vox's tweet of this article by @zackbeauchamp is getting ratioed unfairly, IMHO. The tweet was worded poorly but the article is quite thoughtful and hits many of the right points. Maybe read it before you QT it. https://t.co/iM8LPaKoyu

— Ben Sales (@BenjaminSales) June 2, 2021

 Beauchamp replied in a tweet that the various criticisms of his article are in “bad faith so I’ve largely ignored it. I do really appreciate Ben’s corrective though!!”

It’s been clear to me that this is bad faith so I’ve largely ignored it. I do really appreciate Ben’s corrective though!!

— Zack Beauchamp (@zackbeauchamp) June 2, 2021