The Connection – Jews and the American Civic Story

As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, ethnic communities use such occasions to take stock of how they have contributed to the broader society and in turn, how their host country has embraced and supported them.

The American Jewish experience has been described as distinctive, as no nation has so welcomed Jews as the United States, and correspondingly, Jews have made significant contributions to the evolution and development of this democracy. Here, we reference 12 principles that may best define this unique historic connection.

Preserving Religious Liberty:

From the earliest years of the United States, Jewish communities were both beneficiaries and advocates of religious liberty. The American Jewish experience has been deeply connected to constitutional protections for freedom of religion and conscience. Jewish organizations have often participated in legal and civic efforts to defend these principles for people of many faiths and for those with no religious affiliation.

One famous milestone was Moses Seixas’s 1790 letter welcoming George Washington, which prompted Washington’s reply affirming that the government would “give to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance.” That exchange became an enduring symbol of American religious equality.

American Jewish thinkers and organizations have often supported the principle of separation of church and state, the protection of minority religious rights, the promotion of interfaith dialogue and cooperation, and the advancement of legal defense of freedom of conscience for people of many faiths.

Defending Civil Rights and Social Justice:

Many American Jews played important roles in the struggle for equal rights; a few examples include Julius Rosenwald, who helped fund thousands of schools for African American children in the segregated South; Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner, who were murdered during the 1964 Freedom Summer campaign and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whose legal work advanced gender equality and constitutional rights.

Jewish organizations also worked alongside many other groups in campaigns involving voting rights, immigration reform, combating antisemitism, racism, and religious discrimination.

Establishing Major Social-Service Institutions:

Jewish tradition places strong emphasis on tzedakah (charitable responsibility) and gemilut chasadim (acts of loving-kindness). This helped inspire extensive networks of charitable organizations, among them JDC (American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee), JFNA (Jewish Federations of North America) HIAS (Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society) and the ADL (Anti-Defamation League).

These groups, among others, have resettled refugees, supported hospitals and elder care, funded education and community centers, fought discrimination and hate crimes and responded to natural disasters and humanitarian crises. Many of their services have benefited the broader public.

Advancing Education and Historical Memory:

Jewish communal organizations have invested heavily in education, libraries, museums, and scholarship. The preservation and teaching of history—including the study of antisemitism, immigration, civil rights, and the Holocaust—have served to strengthen democratic culture. Institutions such as the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum contribute to a broader public understanding of the consequences of hatred and authoritarianism.

Contributing to Science, Medicine, Research:

American Jews have made major contributions across scientific fields. Examples include Jonas Salk, who developed the first successful polio vaccine. Albert Sabin, who developed the oral polio vaccine. Richard Feynman, whose work transformed modern physics. In medicine, research universities, biotechnology, and public health, Jewish scientists and physicians have had a significant impact on both American and global well-being

Supporting Labor Movements and Workers’ Rights:

Many Jewish immigrants arrived during the great industrial expansion of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and worked in factories under difficult conditions. Jewish activists and labor leaders were prominent in movements advocating safer workplaces, shorter workweeks, child labor restrictions, collective bargaining rights and fair wages.

Encouraging Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Philanthropy:

Like many immigrant communities, American Jews have been active in business, science, technology, and the arts. Individual contributors and institutions have made contributions in a broad array of disciplines. Many Jewish Americans combined commercial success with large-scale philanthropy.  Their charitable giving has supported education, the arts, public health, scientific research, and civic institutions.

Embracing the Arts, Entertainment, and Popular Culture:

Jewish creators helped shape much of twentieth-century American entertainment, while entrepreneurs and artists were also instrumental in the growth of the American film industry, theater and music.

Enhancing Literature and Intellectual Life:

American literature was profoundly influenced by writers such as: Saul Bellow, Philip Roth, and Bernard Malamud. Their works explored immigration, identity, morality, family, and the meaning of the American dream, themes that resonated far beyond Jewish audiences.

Building Bridges Across Differences:

American Jewish organizations have often participated in interfaith dialogue and coalitions. Practical initiatives have included interfaith service projects, joint educational programs, community mediation efforts, and local celebrations of the nation’s diverse heritage.

Nurturing the US-Israel Relationship:

From the outset, this nation has fostered and maintained a special connection with the State of Israel. Beyond the deep religious bonds, there has emerged a strong political and military linkage that has served to defend and protect the Jewish State. American Jewry has likewise played an essential role as Israel’s Diaspora partner in nurturing philanthropic, political and cultural ties with the people and government of Israel.

Celebrating the American Story:

Jewish history in America stretches back to the colonial era. Highlighting that history alongside the experiences of Native peoples, African Americans, and successive immigrant groups, reinforces the idea that the American story has always been pluralistic. The arrival of Jewish settlers in places like New York City and Charleston became part of a broader narrative of religious diversity that has shaped the country.

Summary:

In a broader sense, many Americans would argue that the most meaningful contribution any community can make to the 250th anniversary is active participation in civic life: serving neighbors, strengthening institutions, preserving history, encouraging innovation, and helping sustain the democratic ideals that allow a diverse society to flourish, while sustaining a strong bond of association between this nation and the State of Israel.

Jews have helped to reinforce these ideals in American society:

• Community Responsibility — the belief that individuals have obligations toward the vulnerable.
• The Importance of Education — strong cultural emphasis on literacy, scholarship, and lifelong learning.
• Debate and Questioning — traditions of argument and interpretation that value multiple perspectives.
• Repairing the World (tikkun olam) — a concept often understood as a responsibility to improve society.
• Welcoming Immigrants and Refugees — informed by historical experiences of exile and persecution.
• Balancing Tradition and Adaptation — maintaining cultural identity while participating fully in American civic life.  

What Has Been Especially Unique or Transformative?

Historians often point to these distinctive features:

1. Successful integration without complete assimilation.
   American Jews generally became deeply involved in national life while maintaining religious and cultural traditions.
2. Creation of extensive voluntary institutions.
   Synagogues, community centers, hospitals, charities, and advocacy groups formed robust civil-society networks.
3. Turning minority experience into broader advocacy.
   Experiences with discrimination often encouraged support for wider protections of civil liberties and minority rights.

In this Moment What Can Jews Be Most Proud?

• Helping millions of immigrants and refugees begin new lives.
• Contributing disproportionately to science, medicine, education, literature, and the arts.
• Sustaining charitable and social-service institutions that serve society as a whole.
• Demonstrating that a religious and ethnic minority can preserve its identity while participating fully in the civic, economic, and cultural life of the United States.
• Promoting and maintaining a “special relationship” between Washington and Jerusalem.
• Building thriving communities while remaining committed to American democracy.

Perhaps the broadest achievement is that the American Jewish experience has become a notable example of how a minority community can contribute to the common good while enriching the nation’s diversity, institutions, and cultural life.