Jewish Contributions to the American Story — A Reminder Amid Rising Hostility

The months since the tragedy of 7 October and the subsequent Gaza War have seen a sharp rise in anti‑Zionism across the United States. Although many insist that anti‑Zionism is unrelated to antisemitism, the lived reality for American Jews tells a different story. Synagogues have been attacked, Jewish businesses vandalised, schoolchildren bullied, and simply walking in public with a kippah, Magen David, or other visible Jewish symbols has become a risk.

In moments like these, it is worth remembering something essential: the United States has benefited profoundly from Jewish contributions for more than 250 years, across civics, science, technology, arts, entertainment, sports, and culture. Jewish Americans have helped shape the country’s identity, strengthen its institutions, and advance its most cherished ideals.

Founding and Civic Life

Jewish involvement in the American story begins before the nation was born. During the Revolution, Haym Salomon played a critical role in financing the Continental Army, raising funds that kept the patriot cause alive. In 1790, Moses Seixas of Newport’s synagogue wrote to President George Washington seeking assurance that Jews would enjoy full liberty in the new republic. Washington’s reply — “to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance” — remains one of the clearest early statements of American religious freedom.

Jewish Americans have since served at every level of public life. Figures such as Justice Louis Brandeis, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Senator Jacob Javits helped shape constitutional law, civil liberties, and bipartisan governance. Jewish legal scholars and activists were instrumental in landmark civil‑rights cases throughout the 20th century.

Science, Medicine, and Technology

The United States’ scientific and technological leadership owes much to Jewish innovators. Refugee scientists fleeing Nazi Europe — including Albert Einstein, Leo Szilard, and Niels Bohr — contributed to physics, nuclear research, and the foundations of modern science.

In medicine, Jewish researchers such as Jonas Salk and Albert Sabin developed the polio vaccines that transformed global public health. In technology and computing, Jewish Americans have been central to innovation: Sergey Brin (Google), Andy Grove (Intel), and Marc Benioff (Salesforce) are only a few examples of Jewish founders whose work reshaped the digital world.

Arts, Entertainment, and Culture

Jewish creativity has been woven into American culture from the start. Many of Hollywood’s founders — Louis B. Mayer, Samuel Goldwyn, the Warner brothers — were Jewish immigrants who built the film industry from the ground up. In music and theatre, names like Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim, and Barbra Streisand have defined American artistic excellence.

Jewish writers and journalists, including Philip Roth, Nora Ephron, and Ben Bradlee, have shaped American literature and public discourse. In sports, Jewish athletes such as Sandy Koufax and Mark Spitz became national icons.

Business, Philanthropy, and Social Leadership

Jewish Americans have also been central in business leadership and philanthropy. The Bronfman, Lauder, and Bloomberg families have supported education, medical research, and humanitarian causes on a vast scale. Jewish-led organisations have consistently championed refugee resettlement, disaster relief, and civil‑society strengthening.

A Moment to Remember What America Is

The United States is not defined by hostility toward minorities — and certainly not by hostility toward Jews. The American experiment is built on a foundational idea: that all people are created equal, endowed with inherent dignity, and free to live according to their conscience. Its strength lies in its constitutional commitments — liberty, equality, pluralism, and the protection of minority rights.

These values are not secondary. They are the core of the American identity. And throughout the nation’s history, Jewish Americans have been among the most consistent contributors to, and beneficiaries of, those ideals.

As antisemitism rises, it is vital to remember this long record of contribution and partnership. Jewish Americans have helped build the United States. They have enriched it, strengthened it, and defended it. Their story is inseparable from the American story — and the American promise of freedom is inseparable from the safety and dignity of its Jewish citizens.