Are you a \u201cZionist\u201d? Most Jews in Israel would answer with a resounding \u201cyes.\u201d Afterward, if we asked them what exactly that means, it isn\u2019t certain they\u2019d have a good answer. Truly, what is a Zionist? Zionism was a movement with a singular goal: to establish a national home for the Jewish people in the Land of Israel. That goal was achieved. Now, one can suggest at least three paths forward. First: the goal was achieved, and therefore there is no longer a need for \u201cZionism.\u201d Second: the goal was achieved, but it requires ongoing maintenance, and supporting the prosperity of the national home of the Jewish people in the Land of Israel is \u201cZionism\u201d in our times. Third: the goal was achieved, and therefore Zionism has changed its face, and now has a different objective or definition. What is this new definition? That, of course, is up for debate.<\/p>\n
Either way, it is clear there is good reason to ponder what \u201cZionism\u201d means, and perhaps consequently, the question of \u201cAm I a Zionist?\u201d Most of us are too sloppy or lazy to give a serious, methodical answer to this question. Therefore, for most of us, the almost automatic declaration of \u201cI am a Zionist\u201d is a gesture of sentiment more than an ideological stance. We are Zionists because we assume, largely correctly, that those who call themselves Zionists are on our side, and those who say they aren\u2019t are against us.<\/p>\n
Now we ask: Is this true? We can provide a rather nontrivial answer to this question when we examine recent surveys of Jews in the United States. Let\u2019s look at two surveys. One is the JPPI Voice of the Jewish People Index, which samples a group of \u201cconnected\u201d Jews. The second, from last week, is by NORC in partnership with the AP. This is a survey conducted among all Americans, but it includes a particularly large group (about 1,200) of American Jews, representing the broader spectrum of connected, less connected and even highly disconnected U.S. Jews.<\/p>\n
The JPPI survey focuses on connected Jews, which guarantees in advance that there will be relatively few Jews holding a negative sentiment toward Zionism. But the survey asked not only the \u201care you a Zionist\u201d question, but also whether \u201cyour Jewish friends\u201d are Zionists. This is a question where to some extent, the \u201cconnectedness\u201d bias becomes less pronounced. When connected Jews testify about friends, some of whom might be connected but others likely are not, we can see the difference. While 72% of connected Jews say \u201cI am a Zionist,\u201d only 43% say \u201cmost of my Jewish friends are Zionists.\u201d Another 29% say their friends are \u201csomewhat Zionist.\u201d And this data point inches closer to the numbers seen in the NORC survey of all U.S. Jews. In that poll, 23% of Jews, less than a quarter, say the term \u201cZionist\u201d describes their position very accurately (13%) or accurately (10%).<\/p>\n
If they aren\u2019t Zionists, are they antizionists? It turns out most of them aren\u2019t; a fifth of Jews say the label \u201cantizionist\u201d suits them to some degree. And yet, against that one-fifth stand another four-fifths, eight out of ten Jews, for whom \u201cantizionist\u201d does not fit either.<\/p>\n
Here we return to our original question: Is someone who doesn\u2019t feel \u201cZionist\u201d probably against us? And now we will answer explicitly: No. The Jews of America prove it. On one hand, many of them do not want to apply the \u201cZionist\u201d label to themselves. On the other hand, few apply the \u201cantizionist\u201d label to themselves. If so, what are these Jews? The NORC survey offered a third definiton. It is good that it did, because we can learn quite a bit from it. It offered not only \u201cZionist\u201d and \u201cantizonist\u201d (each in a separate question), it also offered \u201csupporter of Israel as a Jewish state.\u201d Meaning, not the familiar brand \u201cZionist,\u201d but an explicit statement about Israel.<\/p>\n
Seventy-three percent of Jews say they \u201csupport Israel as a Jewish state.\u201d Half of them said this statement describes their position very well or well. Another 23% said \u201cquite well.\u201d Only 16% said no (11% didn\u2019t know how to answer). Here, we have answered the question: A vast number of Jews who do not want to wear the \u201cZionist\u201d garment support \u201cIsrael as a Jewish state.\u201d Relatively few Jews do not support \u201cIsrael as a Jewish state.\u201d<\/p>\n
From this, a few conclusions. First: we can calm down. A large majority of U.S. Jews still support \u201cIsrael as a Jewish state.\u201d The loud voices we hear, heralding a supposed sea change \u2013 that American Jews have turned hostile to Israel \u2013 are fringe voices that receive an echo vastly exaggerated in proportion to their real power. Second: the Zionism brand is in trouble, and it needs to be handled in one of two ways. One option is to simply abandon it. Sometimes a brand undergoes a semantic shift that is pointless to try and stop. We can switch to using a different word. A second option is to fight for it, which requires clarifying, teaching, and embedding its meaning. Do you want to convince Jews, and the world, that Zionism is a cause worth supporting? Explain what \u201cZionism\u201d is, and perhaps it will turn out that the world is actually on our side.<\/p>\n
Something I wrote in Hebrew<\/strong><\/p>\n We found that Israelis are still able to agree with one another. Here\u2019s what I wrote:<\/p>\n There is a consensus on two very important matters. The (bad) agreement with Iran is a significant issue; we must consider its implications and prepare for its consequences. The encouraging (calling it \u201cgood\u201d seems a bit of a stretch to me) agreement with Lebanon is also a significant issue, one worth drawing a measure of optimism from in light of otherwise bleak regional developments. But even more than the consensus itself, what is encouraging is the pragmatism of the Israelis examining these two agreements. It is encouraging to see their ability to judge these deals on their actual merits, rather than on the identity of the politician who failed at them (yes, Netanyahu), or succeeded at them (yes, also Netanyahu).<\/p>\n