Anti-Semitism is no longer a major problem for American Jews except in a few cities where prejudice remains strong, it was disclosed in an extensive nationwide survey of the Jewish people in America, published today in the new issue of Look magazine. The survey was undertaken by William Attwood, one of Look’s editors, with the cooperation of leading Jewish community organizations throughout the country. It established:
1. Best records on lack of prejudice against Jewish people are held by the South, San Francisco, Cincinnati, and Washington, D.C.
2. The last major barrier between Jews and other Americans is “a social one,” barring them from social groups, country clubs, and fraternities. Prejudice now is more of an “irritant” than a problem in this country.
3. At the present rate of advancement, “Jews will eventually have the same social and economic status as other Americans in a few short years.”
4. The American Jewish community will never “lose its identity” or “disintegrate.” Their religion and cultural history has become “the binding element.”
5. The current religious revival in America has affected Judaism as well as other religions. Synagogue affiliation was up ten percent last year. More than half the nation’s Jewish children are now getting formal religious training in synagogues–an increase of twenty percent in two years. Only one out of seven Jews go to weekly services, while 60 percent attend on the High Holy Days.
6. Jews tend to be Democrats rather than Republicans largely because most of them live in big cities. They are inclined to be liberal rather than conservative in politics.
7. American Jews have superior earning power as compared with either American Protestants or American Catholics. It is estimated that though the Jews number 3.5 percent of the population, they received ten percent of the total personal income. Of Americas 9,000 millionaires, about 20 percent are Jewish.
8. The crime, divorce, delinquency and alcoholism rates among Jews are lower than the national average. They have a smaller proportion of prison inmates and a larger proportion of college graduates.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
