59% of Israelis hide being Jewish when traveling abroad - poll

The new data, presented at the Knesset, found that 28% of young Israelis fear for their safety when traveling abroad, leading to the disguise.

 Travellers seen at the Ben Gurion International Airport, on December 22, 2021.  (photo credit: FLASH90)
Travellers seen at the Ben Gurion International Airport, on December 22, 2021.
(photo credit: FLASH90)

A new survey on the state of antisemitism found that 28% of young Israeli Jews ages 18-29 are "very much" or "extremely" afraid for their personal safety when traveling abroad and 59% of Israeli Jews would hide Jewish symbols when traveling outside of the country. 

The poll of more than 1,000 Israelis, commissioned by the Ruderman Family Foundation and conducted by Dialog, Israel’s leading human resources consulting agency, shows a decrease in safety concerns as the age demographic gets higher, with just 16 percent of Israeli Jews over 60 fearing for their safety in foreign countries.

The findings were released on Monday at Israel's parliament (the Knesset) during a special session of the Caucus for Israel-American Jewry Relations.

Jay Ruderman, President of the Ruderman Family Foundation (credit: RUDERMAN FAMILY FOUNDATION)
Jay Ruderman, President of the Ruderman Family Foundation (credit: RUDERMAN FAMILY FOUNDATION)

Ruderman Family Foundation President Jay Ruderman said the study reveals that antisemitism is rising in all parts of the globe. 

“While the Foundation’s Knesset Caucus has traditionally worked to strengthen the Israel-American Jewry relationship by ensuring that elected officials in Israel are consistently and comprehensively informed of the defining issues that shape Jewish life in the US, our new survey powerfully shows that pressing American Jewish concerns such as rising antisemitism are in fact shared concerns for the Jewish communities on both sides of the Atlantic and around the world," he said.

"Although Israelis live in a Jewish state, we should not and cannot assume that they are somehow immune from the threat of antisemitism. In turn, the shared nature of this threat can serve to unite American and Israeli Jews in efforts to combat it.”