A majority of Jewish voters in New York City who describe themselves as “liberal” believe that the city has moved “too fast” on racial issues and 70 percent of them believe that anti-Semitism is rising here. The findings were based on a survey conducted by the Daily News on the eve of New York’s mayoralty primaries.
According to the News, 53 percent of Jewish voters think the pace of city action on racial issues is too fast compared to 52 percent of the Irish and 50 percent of Italian voters, two ethnic groups considered far more conservative than Jews on most issues. The News said that seven out of 10 Jews thought anti-Semitism was increasing but only four out of 10 Negroes concurred, the smallest percentage of any group to express that viewpoint. The News concluded that strains over race relations and the issue of anti-Semitism will have a serious impact on almost every problem that the winner of New York’s mayoral election must face.
The News survey showed that Mayor John V. Lindsay had lost a substantial amount of the Jewish voter support he had when he defeated Abraham Became, a Jewish candidate, for mayor in 1965. Asked to rate Mayor Lindsay on a variety of race-related issues, Jewish voters gave him more than 15 percent support on only two–28 percent for “helping the poor” and 26 percent for “preventing racial disturbances,” the News reported.
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.
