Why are people so mean to Jews?

Question

Im in high school right now and there are always people that joke about me being jewish. Normally i say something back but it gets annoying. And the Borat movie didn't make it any better because the whole time they made fun of Jews. I dress and look like everyone else and they make fun of me for being Jewish. Why do you choose someones religion to make fun of them?

Answer 1

I'm a Christian & I hate people who mock any religion or culture. Go to your principal immediately. There is a law against that & I don't know if you're too shy like my daughter but tell the principal unless he stops this you'll file a lawsuit

Answer 2

That’s bad and indicate how shallow and stupid they are.
Trust me, in school (regardless religion) kids will make fun of everything they can find.
First of, they don't read and they don't know anything beside themselves.
Just ignore them and look around you to have good friends who will not judge you of being Jewish or Christian. Don’t pay attention to them if their knowledge of Jews based on gossip or news.
Enjoy your time in school with few friends who will appreciate you and accept you of who you are.

God Bless

Answer 3

If it makes you feel any better, Borat who is played by Sasha Baron Cohen is actually Jewish himself, so don't take it so personally.

I mean I'm Jewish too and thought it was funny........who cares what people think right?

Take care : )

Answer 4

Because Jews have been the only people to suffer throughout history, haven't they? Because there has never been any form of racism found against other groups; Blacks were never discriminated against, the Japanese were never round up in internment camps by the United States, people never insult Muslims and call them terrorists...

Answer 5

I am still shuddering from the shootings at the Jewish Community Center in Los Angeles. Why would anyone do such a thing? It seems so unfair to single out Jews for this violence. How can this be prevented in the future? What should be the response of American Jewry? And what can I do to help?

Please! Help me understand this tragedy.

THE AISH RABBI REPLIES:

Make no mistake: This was an attack specifically against Jews. After Furrow was arrested, he said the shooting was "a wake-up call to America to kill Jews." Police also discovered a map with circles around Los Angeles Jewish landmarks like the Simon Wiesenthal Center, the University of Judaism and the Skirball Cultural Center.

So we have to ask ourselves: Why were the Jews targeted? And why have Jews been targeted for anti-Semitism in the Crusades, the Inquisition, the Pogroms, the Holocaust – and ever since the days of Abraham when King Nimrod threw him into a fiery furnace?

The Torah teaches that anti-Semitism will exist. The Talmud (Shabbos 69) declares:

"Why was the Torah given on a mountain called Sinai? Because the great 'sinah,' the great hatred of the Jews, emanates from Sinai." (Sinah, the Hebrew word for hatred, is pronounced almost identically to Sinai.)

Before the Torah was given, people built their lives on a subjective concept of right and wrong. At Sinai the Jewish people were told that there is one God who makes moral demands on human beings. You can't just live as you please; there is a higher authority you are accountable to.

The Jewish people were commanded to be a "Light Unto the Nations," to communicate the message of morality to the world. So despite the fact that Jews were never more than a tiny fraction of the world's population, Jewish ideas became the basis for the civilized world. And with that, the Jews became a lightening rod for those opposed to the moral message.

Hitler stated:

"Providence has ordained that I should be the greatest liberator of humanity. I am freeing man from the restraints of an intelligence that has taken charge, from the dirty and degrading self-mortifications of a false vision called conscience and morality, and from the demands of a freedom and personal independence which only a very few can bear." (from "Hitler Speaks" by Herman Rauschning)

Anti-Semitism cuts to the core of what it means to be a Jew. But tragically, some Jewish leaders have tried to skirt the issue by viewing the Los Angeles attack in a universalistic mode, "as an American issue, not a Jewish issue." By doing so, they reduce the incident to dumb luck. There is nothing to learn from this event, they say. Furrow could've picked any target; the Jews were simply in the wrong place, at the wrong time.



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I disagree.

If we don't understand the root of anti-Semitism, then we have gained nothing from the experience, and we have created no barrier against its being repeated.

I recently heard an incredible story. A Russian who had immigrated to Israel brought his son to enroll in yeshiva, a school of Talmudic study. The dean of the yeshiva was a bit surprised, seeing that this man and his son were clearly not observant. "I'll gladly to enroll your son," said the dean, "but please tell me - why did you choose a yeshiva, rather than some secular school?"

"I'll explain," said the man. "When I was a little boy in the Ukraine, the Nazis came and ordered every male out into the town square. There, everyone was ordered to drop their pants. Whoever had a circumcision was shot on the spot.

"So I figured, if an anti-Semite like this should ever come again, at least my son should understand what it's for."

Can such a thing happen in America today? We can only pray that would-be imitators sleep soundly through Furrow's hellish alarm. But the recent rash of anti-Semitic incidents rattles the nerves. And new statistics released by law enforcement agencies showed a total of 1,750 hate crimes in 1998, an average of nearly five per day. In California alone.



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It seems to me that with all the options for assimilation in America today, every Jew has two choices: Either opt into the Jewish future, or opt out.

If monsters like Furrow try to kill us because of our Jewish heritage and values, shouldn't we know what that heritage and those values are? If, G-d forbid, one should ever die because he or she is Jewish, what an even greater tragedy that the person died without knowing what it meant to be Jewish.

In the concentration camps, the Nazi guards wanted to humiliate the Jews and make them suffer emotionally. One time they took an Ark cover out of a synagogue, and hung it above the entrance to the gas chamber. "Let's see your God save you, now!" they mocked.

Then something extraordinary happened. Certain Jews, standing in line for the gas chamber, began dancing and singing in small circles. The Nazi guards were shocked - their fun was spoiled. What the guards did not realize was the meaning of the Hebrew words written on the Ark cover: "This is the gate of God, the righteous shall enter therein." (Psalms 118:20)

You see, the solution to anti-Semitism is the flip-side of the cause. Jewish values are the cause of anti-Semitism, and Jewish values are the solution. Only by studying Torah – and teaching it to others – can Jews ever hope to bring the world to a point where evil is eradicated.

When human beings embrace the moral doctrine that Judaism brought to the world from Sinai – that there is a God who demands ethical behavior from every human being – then there will be no holocausts.

And that is the exquisite irony of Jewish history.



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In practical terms, Furrow's murderous rage and cynical smirk might serve as a wake-up call to us Jews.

There is a special custom during this Jewish month of Elul to blow the Shofar every morning in the synagogue. The Shofar sound, according to Maimonides, is literally an alarm clock designed to arouse us from our spiritual slumber: "Awaken to examine your actions, return and remember your Creator."

There are many good Jewish programs which provide an excellent framework and overview of Jewish history, philosophy, and literature – and can jump-start a renewed Torah connection. One popular program is called the Discovery seminar (http://www.discoveryseminar.org).

Of course, it is encouraging that time and again, we see many Jews – even those completely non-affiliated with the Jewish community – demonstrating an inexplicable but powerful urge to stand firm in their Jewish identity.

But isn't it worthwhile to know what for?

Answer 6

They think it's a big accomplishment? Something no-one else could do before, so they are feeling pretty big. People don't always entertain themselves properly? Good question, don't have the answer! Sorry! {hug}

Answer 7

well jews don't accept Jesus as the Savior. they say that the Savior hasn't come yet. well he has, o wait i do have this to say tho, it is said in both the Jewish and Christian bibles that everyone has the right to believe whatever and in whoever they want. so basically people are mean to jews becuz they want to!

Answer 8

They are ignorant twits blinded by their own religion.

I personally don't like the concept of religion, period! But just because someone doesn't believe in the same story as you, does not mean that they are bad people.

Answer 9

mocking and insulting jews has a long history steeped in misinformation, institutional hate and the human tendency to make fun of those who are different. Jews are different and people hate us for it.

Answer 10

There are just a lot of people who are full of hate. There doesn't have to be a reason for bigots.