I have had a gestalt shift--one might say that I am "Woke"--on American Jewry this morning via just a tiny bit of research. Many of the feelings below Jewish friends have expressed to me personally and privately. To them personally and publicly I express my deep remorse at my, I hope uncharacteristic, lack of empathy and understanding.
Having made this heartfelt apology, and with self-understanding that I will think about the related issue more, I cannot unsay, even at this moment, any of the equally heartfelt bitter recriminations I have made of the actions of the Israeli and American regimes' responses to the October 7 attacks, which I now appreciate were felt by world Jewry as attacks on world Jewry.
Google AI:
The period following October 7, 2023, has been characterized as a time of profound, ongoing trauma, anxiety, and sleeplessness for many in the American Jewish community, driven by the brutality of the Hamas attack, the plight of hostages, and a dramatic, sustained rise in antisemitism. The impact has been described as a "collective trauma" affecting American Jews regardless of their direct connection to Israel.
Key Aspects of the Post-October 7 Experience: Heightened Anxiety and Sleep Disturbances: Many, including educators and community leaders, have reported ongoing nightmares sleeplessness, and intrusive thoughts reminiscent of the attack.
Feelings of Isolation: Many American Jews reported that their grief was not acknowledged, or was met with indifference and "traumatic invalidation," creating a sense of being abandoned by friends or progressive allies.
Safety Concerns: A vast majority of American Jews reported feeling less safe, with many observing a, "tsunami of hate" that has transformed their daily lives and public identity.
"Traumatic Invalidation": The experience has been aggravated by a rise in rhetoric that denies or justifies the events of October 7, sometimes labeling the attack as "resistance" or blaming victims.
The trauma has been described as a "recalibration" of the American Jewish experience, where a sense of insecurity is now a constant factor in daily life.
Scholarly article abstract:
Traumatic invalidation in the Jewish community after October 7
The October 7, 2023 attacks in Israel by the Hamas terrorist organization triggered profound trauma within the Jewish community, not only stemming from the events themselves but also from the response of others in the aftermath. Rather than being met with compassion and care, many individuals instead encountered emotional neglect, criticism, blame, and even outright denial of their pain. These responses occurred on individual, institutional, and societal levels. Drawing from Harned’s (2022) conceptualization of traumatic invalidation, this paper applies this framework to understand the psychological impact of the rise in antisemitism on the Jewish community. Traumatic invalidation, as defined by Linehan (2015), involves chronic or extreme denial of an individual’s significant private experiences, characteristics, or reactions, often by influential figures or groups upon whom the individual relies. Such invalidation can result in profound shifts in self-perception, emotional regulation, and worldview. This paper aims to shed light on the dynamics of traumatic invalidation within the Jewish community post October 7...
