Menace Among Us: The Jewish Fight Against Antisemitism, from the Ku Klux Klan to the White Power Movement

Description:

A comprehensive study of American Jewish responses to twentieth-century antisemitic extremism

Despite significant advances in Jewish civil rights and socioeconomic conditions throughout the twentieth century, American Jews withstood shocking acts of violence and vitriolic propaganda at the hands of right-wing, extremist groups. From the second revival of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s to the rise of American Nazi groups, right-wing extremism transformed in symbolism and leadership, all while making Jews a central target of their bigotry.

In The Menace Among Us, Andrew Sperling charts the history of this antagonism throughout the twentieth century US, exploring both the roots of far-right antisemitism and the diverse strategies American Jews employed to counter antisemitic extremists. For too long, the impact of American extremism on Jewish lives has been overlooked because of the false premise that "crackpot" organizations and individuals posed no meaningful threat to Jews. By closely examining Jewish experiences with extremism, this book prompts readers to rethink the role of antisemitism in American society. Relying on organizational records and personal stories often buried in local newspapers, Sperling reveals how extremist organizations mobilized against Jews and how their efforts were often tolerated by local police or dismissed by Jewish or Gentile leaders.

Harrowing yet insightful, The Menace Among Us highlights the belief systems and practices that contributed to right-wing extremism's ascent, the varied Jewish responses to antisemitic antagonism, and what we can learn from their responses when confronting antisemitism today.

Brief description: Andrew Sperling is the Historian and Director of Academic Initiatives at the American Jewish Historical Society.

Review Quotes: "In this eye-opening study, Andrew Sperling convincingly challenges the longstanding belief that antisemitism was a minor phenomenon in US history. Using a diverse range of sources, he shows how ordinary American Jews endured a constant stream of hatred in their daily lives -- in the form of street violence, workplace abuse, and economic boycotts-- from Klansmen, fascists, and Nazis between the 1920s and 1960s. In deftly detailing these little-known episodes and comprehensively charting the varied Jewish response to them, he reveals that present day Jewish anxieties about antisemitism are hardly unprecedented."--Gavriel D. Rosenfeld, Robin and Joseph Kanarek Professor of History, Fairfield University, and President, Center for Jewish History, New York