There's no polite way to put this.
We're losing.
Antisemitism isn't just rising — it's exploding.
Meanwhile, the civilized world is responding with little more than press releases and platitudes. From the United States to Europe and beyond, we're witness to an epidemic of Jew-hatred of the sort not been this openly celebrated since the darkest days of the 20th century (1933-1945).
Worse still, the institutions we once trusted — academia, media, and parts of our political system — are no longer allies.
In too many instances, they are part of the problem.
This is not merely about offensive speech or symbolic hate.
Synagogues are vandalized. Jewish students are threatened on college campuses.
Holocaust denial spreads like wildfire online, dressed up as political critique.
In France, Jews are warned against wearing yarmulkes.
In London, convoys blare "Kill the Jews" through neighborhoods.
In America, swastikas deface playgrounds and dormitories.
The tipping point came on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas terrorists brutally slaughtered Israeli civilians. It should have been a moral reckoning.
Instead, it unleashed a new wave of pro-Hamas demonstrations on American streets and campuses. Jewish students at Columbia, Harvard, and New york University (NYU) were told to stay home — because they dared be visibly Jewish in elite American institutions.
Let that sink in: in 2024 America, Jews are told to hide — not because they are unsafe in Gaza, but because they dared show their faces at Ivy League universities.
A recent Gallup poll makes it painfully clear: support for Israel among Americans has dropped to an all-time low — just 46%.
Meanwhile, sympathy for Palestinians and a so-called two-state solution has reached a record high of 33%.
Among Democrats, more people now side with the Palestinians than the Israelis. These numbers aren’t just statistics. They’re signals of a profound cultural and political shift — one that erodes moral clarity and legitimizes antisemitism under the cover of "human rights."
Even more chilling is the rise in support for Hamas and other terrorist groups masquerading as liberation movements.
These organizations, whose charters explicitly call for the extermination of Jews, are now openly celebrated in rallies across Western capitals.
Entire sections of the progressive left have embraced Hamas as some sort of revolutionary vanguard, ignoring the fact that they murder children, use civilians as shields, and throw dissidents off rooftops.
All of this is happening while decent people — Jews and non-Jews alike — are trying desperately to fight back. Groups like the ADL, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, StandWithUs, and the American Jewish Committee continue to raise awareness, report incidents, push for stronger legislation, and educate the next generation.
But let’s be honest: we are on defense.
The other side is not only on offense — they are winning the narrative war.
They have cloaked their hatred in the language of justice.
They chant about liberation while glorifying terror.
They control the conversation on college campuses, flood social media with propaganda, and pass off bigotry as progressivism.
This is not just a battle of ideas.
It’s a war of perception. And we’re being outgunned.
But there is a path forward — and it demands a bold shift in strategy.
There is only one long-term solution to defeating antisemitism.
We must go on offense.
That means reaching across America and the world to win hearts and minds, especially among youth and on college campuses, where future leaders are formed, and narratives are set.
It’s not enough to condemn antisemitism after the fact:
- We must proactively shape public opinion, instill pride in Jewish identity, and reframe the conversation around Israel and Jewish values.
- We must stop allowing others to define us, and start defining ourselves — loudly, proudly, and unapologetically.
Only by winning hearts and minds can we break the cycle — from antisemitic indoctrination to violence and back again.
This is not just about Jewish safety. It is about moral clarity, civilizational integrity, and the survival of Western values themselves.
We must stop apologizing for our outrage.
There is no moral equivalency between Israel and Hamas. There is no excuse for tolerating Jew-hatred in universities or our streets. And there is no future for a society that treats antisemitism as just another political opinion.
This is a five-alarm fire. And we need to start acting like it.
That means demanding clarity from our leaders: you’re either against antisemitism or you’re enabling it. There is no middle ground. It means holding universities accountable for failing to protect Jewish students. It means forcing social media platforms to police hate speech with the same zeal they do “misinformation.” And it means ending the absurd notion that support for Israel is controversial. It isn’t. It’s a moral obligation.
Jews should not and cannot be the only ones in this fight. History has proven, time and again, that societies that let antisemitism flourish do not remain free for long.
If this is what the world looks like 80 years after the Holocaust — with memory still fresh and survivors still alive — imagine what it will look like in another 20 years, when there are no more witnesses, no more firsthand stories, and no more urgency.
We must reverse this trend now. Because if we lose this fight — we lose far more than a battle. We lose our moral compass, our cultural soul, and eventually, our freedom.
And that is a price the world cannot afford to pay.
Robert Chernin is a business leader, political adviser, and podcast host. He has been a consultant on presidential, senatorial, congressional, and gubernatorial races, including roles in the campaigns of George W. Bush and John McCain. Robert serves as chairman of Israel Appreciation Day, American Center for Education and Knowledge, and The American Coalition. Read Robert Chernin's Reports — More Here.