ADL Says Most Americans Want Gov’t to Address Violence Against Jews and Muslims

ADL finds that anti-Semitism is on a decline; the majority of Americans want the Government to take measures to address the attacks on Jews and Christians.

A majority of Americans are against anti-Semitism and violence against Muslims, a survey by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) revealed. These findings are based on the results of two polls that the ADL conducted on the American population.

ADL Says Most Americans Want Gov’t to Address Violence Against Jews and Muslims[/tweetthis]

Jonathan A. Greenblatt, CEO of ADL, called the results “good news,” happy that a majority of Americans do not have anti-Semitic views and want the authorities to take action against forces that indulge in targeted violence against the two communities. He added that the high number of Americans who are concerned about the Jewish and Muslim communities is a very encouraging matter, although it is still very sad that most Muslims still live in fear.

There has been a rise in anti-Semitic attacks and targeted violence against Muslims. Many people point out that Trump is responsible for encouraging such thoughts, although he constantly denies his role in these crimes. He had posted a picture of Hillary Clinton against a background of dollar bills, with a six-pointed star to the right. An uproar ensued, because people interpreted the Star as being the Jewish David Star, following which the picture was deleted.

Today, 52% Americans revealed that they are concerned about the attacks on Jews, while 76% indicated that they were worried for Muslims. The ADL sees the numbers as very promising because it shows that the increase in attacks does not mean that the population as a whole is hostile towards the two communities. More than eight in ten Americans, around 84%, said that they feel the government must proactively combat anti-Semitism. This number was at 70% in 2014.

The ADL has been conducting polls to analyze anti-Semitic feelings in the US since 1964. It has found that anti-Semitism declined in the past 50 years. In fact, as per the 2016 polls, only 14% American adults held anti-Semitic beliefs. 34% Muslims hold anti-Semitic beliefs in the US. In Europe, the number is 55%, and in the Middle East and North Africa, it is 75%.

59% Americans believe that Trump is against Muslims, 54% believe that he has a racist attitude, and 53% say he is against Latinos. The same number says that they feel Trump should allow Muslims to enter the country so that they can escape from the threats and dangers in their own. 

Resources

Follow the Conversation on Twitter