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The Jews and the Left: A Jewish History of Antisemitism, Civil Rights, and the Unraveling of American Politics
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272 pages, Hardcover
First published June 2, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
June 18, 2026
This book would have been better titled “Why American Jews are White and Never Ever Experienced Antisemitism, Ever.” The author ignored systemic antisemitism entirely (no mention whatsoever of Jews dying in Catholic hospitals that refused to treat them, the need for their own ambulance services, Jews not being allowed in country clubs, hotels, etc, Jews changing their last names due to antisemitism, and glossed over Jewish quotas in universities entirely and the fact that said quotas were made specifically to keep Jews out of high education) in favor of every single instance in which Jews were defended against antisemitism by their neighbors. It feels like the author once somewhere heard someone say “Jews are an oppressed minority,” and she was so upset that she wrote an entire book to prove that one person wrong, no matter how much evidence to the contrary that she had to ignore. The truth most likely lies somewhere in the middle: Jews were not oppressed in America to the same level as black people, nor have they been completely accepted as white people by actual white people, and instead, have been relegated as lower class, non-whites up until it was inconvenient to do so. I looked so forward to this book and was unfortunately disappointed.
August 3, 2026
Deeply innacurate. Jews created their own universities because there were quotas keeping them out of most of them. In the early days of our country, Jews were not allowed to live in town or have stores in many towns from the Midwest out, with sundown laws often applying to them. Loans? They had to pool their money as a community and start their own banks, allowed to work for them but not be customers.
Maybe Batya living in a mostly Jewish community allowed her to ignore many of the problems, but someone like me, of similar age who grew up in the South, SOUNDLY beg to differ on this perspective. A few landowners documented pre-1800 didn't mean Jews were all enfranchised, far from it. And post 1990, I've had enough unpleasant dates and abruptly ended friendships with Christians to know how much they truly accept us when the rubber hits the road, or they need to stand up to their friends or family. It's a spotty track record, so they have steps to go to prove themselves to me, while I've generally had to accept and try to understand them, since I am a minority and I know it.
Yes, we stood up in the civil rights movement, because the rights and sometime opportunities afforded us were conditional, depending on the convenience of the actual power structure around us. There was no non-descrimination in law, we had to team with other minorities to get there, and the end result of that helped us, but helped people darker than us even more. And that's cool! Wish they were here when we need it now.
Batya is a lovely person, but is fanciful and sometimes lacking in logic and accurate interpretation. She is correct that the Conservatives feel closer to us now, because they're not rejecting religion and are trying to keep the best of our gains in society, and have more people understanding wars and history and why they happen, but that doesn't mean that either the Left or the Right fully accept Jews and many never will, no matter how kind or loyal we are.
I think this book needed more time to cook, and more debate and research checking her perceptions to see if they lined up with others' experiences when describing history, ancient and modern.
Maybe Batya living in a mostly Jewish community allowed her to ignore many of the problems, but someone like me, of similar age who grew up in the South, SOUNDLY beg to differ on this perspective. A few landowners documented pre-1800 didn't mean Jews were all enfranchised, far from it. And post 1990, I've had enough unpleasant dates and abruptly ended friendships with Christians to know how much they truly accept us when the rubber hits the road, or they need to stand up to their friends or family. It's a spotty track record, so they have steps to go to prove themselves to me, while I've generally had to accept and try to understand them, since I am a minority and I know it.
Yes, we stood up in the civil rights movement, because the rights and sometime opportunities afforded us were conditional, depending on the convenience of the actual power structure around us. There was no non-descrimination in law, we had to team with other minorities to get there, and the end result of that helped us, but helped people darker than us even more. And that's cool! Wish they were here when we need it now.
Batya is a lovely person, but is fanciful and sometimes lacking in logic and accurate interpretation. She is correct that the Conservatives feel closer to us now, because they're not rejecting religion and are trying to keep the best of our gains in society, and have more people understanding wars and history and why they happen, but that doesn't mean that either the Left or the Right fully accept Jews and many never will, no matter how kind or loyal we are.
I think this book needed more time to cook, and more debate and research checking her perceptions to see if they lined up with others' experiences when describing history, ancient and modern.
June 10, 2026
I was excited to learn how American Jews have blessed our country, especially in the early days of its founding. At the same time, I'm saddened by how we've betrayed them.
August 2, 2026
Review to come
June 10, 2026
Batya ungar-sargon is angry--and she has every right to be. This is a powerful, passionate, insightful work that everyone on the political left should read.
August 11, 2026
Batya’s fall from grace is such a bummer. When I read her first book, Bad News, it really opened my eyes to nepotism and elitism in journalism. I loved it and even had her on my podcast. But, like many others from the left, she found it was much more profitable to pander to the right and has gone completely off the rails. Then, October 7th happened, and she wrote a book like this.
Batya’s an amazing writer, and this book actually has some great history about the Jews and their support of the left over the years. Overall, this book is filled with a bunch of nonsense, painting anti-genocide leftists and anti-Zionists as antisemitic. If you read this book uncritically, you’d think the left hates the Jews, and this is a narrative people like Batya have been spinning for a while now. Fortunately, more and more people are starting to see through the nonsense.
The lowest ratings I give to books are ones with propaganda or flat out lies. While you might learn some interesting history in this book, it has a ton of issues.
Batya’s an amazing writer, and this book actually has some great history about the Jews and their support of the left over the years. Overall, this book is filled with a bunch of nonsense, painting anti-genocide leftists and anti-Zionists as antisemitic. If you read this book uncritically, you’d think the left hates the Jews, and this is a narrative people like Batya have been spinning for a while now. Fortunately, more and more people are starting to see through the nonsense.
The lowest ratings I give to books are ones with propaganda or flat out lies. While you might learn some interesting history in this book, it has a ton of issues.
August 13, 2026
This book is a mixed bag. The sections dealing with October 7 and its aftermath are mostly* spot on, but her explanations as why things got that way are somewhat shakier. [* She credits trump with freeing the hostages, which is laughable.]
Her basic thesis is that Jews were naturally incorporated into the American Left through the immigrant experience as manual laborers in exploitative sweatshops, which was a natural fit with their socialist ideology that they brought over from the Old Country. Hence the intensive involvement in the union movement, the participation in drafting FDR's New Deal legislation, which then morphed into support for the civil rights movement. In her telling it was only in 1967, with Israel's surprise victory in the 6-day war and the backdrop of the Vietnam war that the country started to turn on the Jews.
Although she acknowledges that antisemitism has always existed in the US, she paints a rosy picture of how well Jews were accepted historically, dismissing the rampant discrimination and baseless hatred as the work of a few extremists that did not represent the populace or government at large. She really ought to read Antisemitism, an American Tradition and reassess some of her assertions.
She also doesn’t sufficiently differentiate between Left, Liberal, Progressive, and the Democratic Party, lumping them all together interchangeably with the argument that the Democrats no longer represent the Working Class, but rather is a party that has been taken over by the "cultural elite" with their leftist ideology (which she derisively refers to as the "woke mind virus"). Which in turn is the fault of The Academy for embracing post-modernist critical theory that frames everything as the struggle between the oppressed and the oppressor. In this worldview, the oppressed can do no wrong, and the oppressed deserve whatever they get. Which explains the otherwise inexplicable shows of support for Hamas and the victim blaming on Oct 7 on campuses across the nation. But overstates the power that people like Ilhan Omar, Cori Bush, and Jamaal Bowman have in the party (case in point, despite using them as prominent examples the latter two weren't even reelected, and at least for now pro-Israel Schumer and Jeffries still lead the party, not anti-Zionists like Omar. And that's not to mention the tremendous support that President Biden and his administration poured out to Israel and the American Jewish community after Oct 7, which she also conveniently neglected to notice).
One thing that was missing entirely from the discussion was the rest of the world, she views Jews as being more or less equally divided between the US and Israel. Are the same forces that she describes prevalent in the Labour Party in England as in the Democratic Party in the US? Not only does she not address the issue, she doesn't even acknowledge the existence of any other Jewish communities.
I also found it a bit ironic that an English major from Berkeley was railing against cultural elites as if she's a blue collar worker in Indiana. Nor did she make a strong case that the Republican Party would be a better fit for most American Jews, despite significantly downplaying the virulent right-wing antisemitism that has flourished under trump. Some of her arguments were flat-out self-contradictory, others left out a few vital steps of reasoning in order to reach the desired conclusions.
Finally, the book is in desperate need of some serious editing. Thoughts and facts are repeated two and three times, often using almost verbatim phrasing. The sort of thing that makes sense in a first draft, but is inexcusable in the final published work. There's also a lot of excess detail in certain places that adds nothing to the picture. For instance, she spends several minutes describing the horrific sound of bodies hitting the ground and the grisly spray of blood and body parts that resulted from the awful Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire (which she incorrectly locates in the Lower East Side instead of Greenwich Village, despite stating the correct address). The entire fire was just an example of the sort of harsh working conditions that motivated the Jews to unionize, the manner of death was not the main point and her dwelling on it was gratuitous and exploitative.
Her basic thesis is that Jews were naturally incorporated into the American Left through the immigrant experience as manual laborers in exploitative sweatshops, which was a natural fit with their socialist ideology that they brought over from the Old Country. Hence the intensive involvement in the union movement, the participation in drafting FDR's New Deal legislation, which then morphed into support for the civil rights movement. In her telling it was only in 1967, with Israel's surprise victory in the 6-day war and the backdrop of the Vietnam war that the country started to turn on the Jews.
Although she acknowledges that antisemitism has always existed in the US, she paints a rosy picture of how well Jews were accepted historically, dismissing the rampant discrimination and baseless hatred as the work of a few extremists that did not represent the populace or government at large. She really ought to read Antisemitism, an American Tradition and reassess some of her assertions.
She also doesn’t sufficiently differentiate between Left, Liberal, Progressive, and the Democratic Party, lumping them all together interchangeably with the argument that the Democrats no longer represent the Working Class, but rather is a party that has been taken over by the "cultural elite" with their leftist ideology (which she derisively refers to as the "woke mind virus"). Which in turn is the fault of The Academy for embracing post-modernist critical theory that frames everything as the struggle between the oppressed and the oppressor. In this worldview, the oppressed can do no wrong, and the oppressed deserve whatever they get. Which explains the otherwise inexplicable shows of support for Hamas and the victim blaming on Oct 7 on campuses across the nation. But overstates the power that people like Ilhan Omar, Cori Bush, and Jamaal Bowman have in the party (case in point, despite using them as prominent examples the latter two weren't even reelected, and at least for now pro-Israel Schumer and Jeffries still lead the party, not anti-Zionists like Omar. And that's not to mention the tremendous support that President Biden and his administration poured out to Israel and the American Jewish community after Oct 7, which she also conveniently neglected to notice).
One thing that was missing entirely from the discussion was the rest of the world, she views Jews as being more or less equally divided between the US and Israel. Are the same forces that she describes prevalent in the Labour Party in England as in the Democratic Party in the US? Not only does she not address the issue, she doesn't even acknowledge the existence of any other Jewish communities.
I also found it a bit ironic that an English major from Berkeley was railing against cultural elites as if she's a blue collar worker in Indiana. Nor did she make a strong case that the Republican Party would be a better fit for most American Jews, despite significantly downplaying the virulent right-wing antisemitism that has flourished under trump. Some of her arguments were flat-out self-contradictory, others left out a few vital steps of reasoning in order to reach the desired conclusions.
Finally, the book is in desperate need of some serious editing. Thoughts and facts are repeated two and three times, often using almost verbatim phrasing. The sort of thing that makes sense in a first draft, but is inexcusable in the final published work. There's also a lot of excess detail in certain places that adds nothing to the picture. For instance, she spends several minutes describing the horrific sound of bodies hitting the ground and the grisly spray of blood and body parts that resulted from the awful Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire (which she incorrectly locates in the Lower East Side instead of Greenwich Village, despite stating the correct address). The entire fire was just an example of the sort of harsh working conditions that motivated the Jews to unionize, the manner of death was not the main point and her dwelling on it was gratuitous and exploitative.
July 20, 2026
A thoughtful and provocative examination of the complicated relationship between Jewish identity and the political left. The book offers plenty to consider and challenges some familiar assumptions, even when I didn’t agree with every argument. An engaging, timely read for anyone interested in politics, history, and the evolution of left-wing movements.
September 2, 2026
Every time I hear Batya Ungar-Sargon speak on a news program I'm amazed at her intelligent, logical commentary. I'm always left wanting more--I got it in this book.
With a comprehensive history of American Jewry and a detailed timeline of why Jews have been such big supporters of liberal causes, it presents the facts and analyzes the fictional stories set to delegitimize Jews. From the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, which killed a large number of young Jewish women, to the Civil Rights Movement that Jewish leaders championed, each chapter explores the facets of life in the U.S. that have led to the current political landscape.
Covering the rising antisemitism in America, including the college campus encampments and the increasing number of politicians who denounce Zionism, the author gives clear reasons for why our country, and the world, has seemed to go backwards in its acceptance of Jews.
The writing is clear, focused, and propulsive--it's narrative nonfiction at its best. Usually it takes me a few days to read this type of book but I couldn't put it down and breezed through it.
Fascinating, thought-provoking, smart, and above all, a well-researched account that is filled with evidence and credible information. No matter where you stand on the scale of American politics, this book is a must read.
With a comprehensive history of American Jewry and a detailed timeline of why Jews have been such big supporters of liberal causes, it presents the facts and analyzes the fictional stories set to delegitimize Jews. From the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, which killed a large number of young Jewish women, to the Civil Rights Movement that Jewish leaders championed, each chapter explores the facets of life in the U.S. that have led to the current political landscape.
Covering the rising antisemitism in America, including the college campus encampments and the increasing number of politicians who denounce Zionism, the author gives clear reasons for why our country, and the world, has seemed to go backwards in its acceptance of Jews.
The writing is clear, focused, and propulsive--it's narrative nonfiction at its best. Usually it takes me a few days to read this type of book but I couldn't put it down and breezed through it.
Fascinating, thought-provoking, smart, and above all, a well-researched account that is filled with evidence and credible information. No matter where you stand on the scale of American politics, this book is a must read.
September 17, 2026
For the past 100 years, Jews have famously been at the forefront of every liberal cause in America. They were overrepresented in the Civil Rights Movement, in the Labor movement, the pro-choice movement, and the LGBT movement. If you ask them why they are Democrats, many will say it’s because they are Jews. With its slogans about the destruction of Israel and elevation of antisemitic leaders, the Left has become a no-go zone for Jews unless they are willing to denounce their own people. The left has betrayed one of its most dedicated voting blocks.
“American Jews became Democrats because for most of the twentieth century, they stood for labor, fighting Nazis, and civil rights, three causes that defined American Jewry’s values—indeed, its very identity. But in the second half of the twentieth century, the Democratic Party shifted away from labor and civil rights toward identity politics, putting the party on a collision course with Jews, especially those attached to their Jewishness, their people, and the State of Israel. ”
Excerpt From
The Jews and the Left
Batya Ungar-Sargon
https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-j...
This material may be protected by copyright.
“American Jews became Democrats because for most of the twentieth century, they stood for labor, fighting Nazis, and civil rights, three causes that defined American Jewry’s values—indeed, its very identity. But in the second half of the twentieth century, the Democratic Party shifted away from labor and civil rights toward identity politics, putting the party on a collision course with Jews, especially those attached to their Jewishness, their people, and the State of Israel. ”
Excerpt From
The Jews and the Left
Batya Ungar-Sargon
https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-j...
This material may be protected by copyright.
August 6, 2026
This book is a very detailed account of Jewish history, with a focus on the United States and left wing democracy. Originally Jews and democrats were a given. Now, however, with the progressive movement and Democratic Socialism, Jews have been ostracized and Israel treated like a cancer on the world.
Ms. Ungar-Sargon goes very deeply into details of history as she makes her case about the alienation of the Jewish people from the mainstream democratic movement. Jews were very active in advocating for social causes and the very causes they worked for have now turned their backs on them.
I found this book very informative but too heavily detailed for my taste. The Hidden Hand by Warren Kinsella was easier for me to connect with and I highly recommend it. It helps with understanding why Israel and the Jews are facing so much antisemitism and hatred around the world.
Ms. Ungar-Sargon goes very deeply into details of history as she makes her case about the alienation of the Jewish people from the mainstream democratic movement. Jews were very active in advocating for social causes and the very causes they worked for have now turned their backs on them.
I found this book very informative but too heavily detailed for my taste. The Hidden Hand by Warren Kinsella was easier for me to connect with and I highly recommend it. It helps with understanding why Israel and the Jews are facing so much antisemitism and hatred around the world.
June 15, 2026
After discovering she was not able to become either rich or pampered by being on the left after receiving her Ph.d in the 17th century novel from Berkeley, because in fact, Elon Musk not Michael Foucault actually runs the world, our affluent and well connected heroine switched sides and has spent her time writing books like this one, which is about how antisemitism was not a problem in the U S. until the left discovered and promoted it appropriately 5 years ago. She also writes about how Republicans love the working class, especially Donald Trump. In her new role as rightwing Makeup Artist she was now achieved her dreams. All it cost her was her soul.
June 17, 2026
I listened to the audiobook, read by the author. I really appreciate Batya Ungar-Sargon's fresh perspective and thoughtful approach to different topics, especially her ability to explore different groups' motivations without demonising those she disagrees with.
The book was a fascinating history of American Jewry and made some points I needed to hear about antisemitism in America. Now, I'd like someone to write a similar book about the history of British Jewry and the history of antisemitism here (I've read David Baddiel's Jews Don't Count - it's very good but does not give the historical perspective I'm after.). I also now need to read some Jonathan Sarna books!
The book was a fascinating history of American Jewry and made some points I needed to hear about antisemitism in America. Now, I'd like someone to write a similar book about the history of British Jewry and the history of antisemitism here (I've read David Baddiel's Jews Don't Count - it's very good but does not give the historical perspective I'm after.). I also now need to read some Jonathan Sarna books!
July 31, 2026
As others have stated this book of 200 pages glosses over the history of the Jews in America until the 1960’s. Life was great for Jews, there was little discrimination combined with much acceptance. When she does come to the current relationship between Jews and The Left she is definitely hurt by the betrayal. The betrayal is real but for the author it is deeper because she thought the Left loved the Jews. What is ignored or minimized is those elite universities have always discriminated against Jews either by limiting the student body but also in faculty.
That being said, the book is an important reminder that in America you can never be sure who your friends are.
That being said, the book is an important reminder that in America you can never be sure who your friends are.
June 10, 2026
A good novel that answers a question I have had for years: why are all Jews democrats? That question only grew louder in my head in the wake of hamas' invasion and Zohran Mamdani becomming mayor of New York. Barya Ungar-Sargon answers the question, but I won't reveal it here. I will say that the answer is both sad and scary all in the same boat. If you want to discuss the answer read the book then message me.
June 9, 2026
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley!
Happy release month! I enjoyed this read as much as you can given the topic and the times but left learning a lot of information and with new thoughts. A special shoutout for the inclusion of one of my labor heroes, Clara Lemlich, that made my day.
I was given the opportunity to read this title by NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.
Happy release month! I enjoyed this read as much as you can given the topic and the times but left learning a lot of information and with new thoughts. A special shoutout for the inclusion of one of my labor heroes, Clara Lemlich, that made my day.
I was given the opportunity to read this title by NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.
September 6, 2026
3.5, really interesting to hear the background / history of the Jewish people in the US but I think the author’s thesis on why things are the way they are today only covers half of the story and misses a segment of the population. Overall enjoyed the listen, and learned a nice amount on US jewish history
June 14, 2026
An incredible history of American Jews in the context of a post October 7th world. Batya is one of the sharpest and most articulate political commentators of our time.
My only criticism is that she didn't comment on Grant's embrace of Jews in his later life.
My only criticism is that she didn't comment on Grant's embrace of Jews in his later life.
June 27, 2026
Timely
An excellent book. It brings home some sore truths that ignore at your peril. Batya is thoughtful, and easy to read.
Her research is impeccable.
An excellent book. It brings home some sore truths that ignore at your peril. Batya is thoughtful, and easy to read.
Her research is impeccable.
July 1, 2026
This is a perfect July 4 read. Batya: my grandfather fought for this country in WWII. Having attended college in the south, your chapters on southern Jews really resonated with me. I hadn’t thought of this before… but tomorrow when I go to Shabbat services, it’s a pretty patriotic thing to do, no? God Bless America. 🇺🇸
July 25, 2026
Really good context and history
August 10, 2026
A solid and enjoyable book
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews