American Jews & Israel: The Sources of Politicized Ethnic Identity

1. American Jews & Israel:The Sources of Politicized Ethnic Identity Kenneth D. Wald & Bryan Williams Published in Nationalism & Ethnic Politics, Volume 12 (Summer 2006), 1-33.

2. Reasons to assume strong support for Israel from American Jewry • Spiritualized ethnic identity • Means to maintain Jewish continuity • Place to recognize Jewish social values • Psychological and symbolic gratification

3. Is Israel Important to American Jews? Both sessions opened with responses to very general questions on what parts of being Jewish the participants found attractive and unattractive. None of the participants in either focus group so much as mentioned Israel during these initial conversations, each of which lasted about half an hour [emphasis mine] . . . For these focus group participants, at least, Israel carries little real import in the private sphere of Jewish identity, the part that is closest to their inner core. --Steven M. Cohen (2002) Another component of young Jewish self-association is Israel – but it is frighteningly weak and ill-defined. Six times we have brought Jewish youth together as a group to talk about their Jewishness and connection to Israel. Six times the topic of Israel did not come up until it was prompted. Six times these Jewish youth used the word “they” rather than “us” to describe the situation, conditions and opinions about the country. There is a distance and detachment between young American Jews and their Israeli cousins --Frank Luntz (2003)

4. Research Question • What accounts for variability in the political centrality of Israel among Jews in the United States? • Examine the micro-foundations or “readiness for mobilization” through an opinion survey of American Jews.

5. Dependent Variable • Disposition of American Jews to “perceive the sociopolitical landscape from the vantage point of the ethnic group” (Lapid,1987) • Also known as • Politicized ethnic identity (Sears et al., 2003) • Politicized collective identity (Simon and Klandermans, 2001)

6. PEI Scale Which of the following statements best describes the importance of the Arab-Israeli conflict to you personally? 1. It is the single most important issue for me 2. It is among the top three most important issues for me. 3. It is among the top five most important issues for me. 4. It is not among the top five most important issues for me. In the next national elections, how important will the candidates’ positions on the Arab-Israeli conflict be in your voting decision – very important, somewhat important, or not important? Which of the following statements best describes the importance of U.S. support for Israel to you personally? 1. It is the single most important issue for me. 2. It is among the top three most important issues for me. 3. It is among the top five most important issues for me. 4. It is not among the top five most important issues for me. Have you ever “written a letter, made a telephone call, or done anything else to express your views on the Arab-Israeli conflict directly to a government official, newspaper, or magazine? (Yes/No)

7. Distribution of PEI

8. Sources of Individual Differences • Hypothesis: Strong ethnic attachment promotes PEI • Constructivist approach to ethnicity • Core domains of attachment (Kotler-Berkowitz, 2005) • Cultural • Social • Cognitive

9. Data • Zogby “culture polls” of 1999-2000 • Period of relative calm and stability in Arab-Israeli conflict • Screened to locate self-identified ethnic groups • Produced Jewish subsample (n=589)

10. Independent Variables • Cultural attachment – synagogue attendance • Social attachment – neighborhood, friendships, age (+), education (-), generation in US (-), economic resources (-) • Cognitive attachment – pride in ethnic heritage, ethnic identity, emotional tie • Misc. controls – gender, Middle East affect, discrimination

11. Influences on PEI

12. Predicted Values of PEI