The resurgence of antisemitism in 2024 has been deeply troubling, with incidents rising both globally and locally. From hate crimes in the streets to harassment on school campuses, many Jewish communities are feeling increasingly unsafe. This context makes the upcoming discussion on Thursday, Sept. 12 at Washington University especially timely.
Antisemitism in 2024: A Modern Crisis”
Jonathan Judaken, the Gloria M. Goldstein Professor of Jewish History and Thought at WashU and newly appointed chair of the university’s Department of Jewish, Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies (JIMES), will lead the conversation, drawing from his latest book, “Critical Theories of Anti-Semitism.” His work explores the roots of antisemitism and highlights how it is intertwined with other forms of discrimination, framing it not just as a historical issue but as a persistent challenge for modern societies.
In addition to his academic work, Judaken has written numerous journalistic and op-ed pieces for Ha’aretz, Inside Higher Ed, Times Higher Education, The Huffington Post, Tablet, Tikkun and The Forward. His expertise and writing have made him a key voice in contemporary discussions on antisemitism, offering both scholarly and public-facing insights into this pressing issue.
“Critical Theories of Anti-Semitism”: A Conversation with Jonathan Judaken
On Sept. 12, Judaken will be joined by fellow Professors Flora Cassen, Adrienne Davis and Mark Oppenheimer to discuss the definitions, causes and targets of antisemitism, tracing its evolution from medieval times to the present and examining its connections with other forms of racism. The event will feature each of the three scholars responding to Judaken’s book, followed by his reflections on their critiques, before opening the floor for a Q&A session. The event, held at Umrath Lounge on the Danforth campus, begins with a reception at 5:30 p.m., followed by the main program at 6 p.m.
This timely discussion offers essential insights into how antisemitism reflects broader societal tensions, with Judaken’s perspective shedding light on these critical issues in 2024.
This event can be viewed live online
About Jonathan Judaken
Judaken’s career spans continents, cultures and academic fields. Born in apartheid South Africa, he has lived in Israel, Paris and Memphis, with each location influencing his perspective on race, antisemitism and identity. His intellectual journey has taken him through the philosophies of existentialists like Jean-Paul Sartre and Hannah Arendt, ultimately leading him to explore how antisemitism intersects with other forms of discrimination.
Now, as the Goldstein Professor and Chair of JIMES, Judaken combines his administrative role with his ongoing research on the history of ideas, Jewish thought and critical theories of antisemitism.
To provide readers with a deeper understanding of Professor Judaken’s academic journey, passions and ideas, we offer an exclusive verbatim interview.
An Interview with Jonathan Judaken
What does it mean to be the “Goldstein Professor of Jewish History and Thought” and chair of the Department of Jewish, Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies (JIMES)?
I couldn’t believe it when I got the email from WashU to ask if I was interested in applying for the Goldstein Professor of Jewish History and Thought. I actually thought that they had created this position just for me! But in fact, it was previously held by Hillel Kieval, a distinguished professor of Czech Jewry, who more recently has written about modern blood libel cases in Central Europe.
My own work is at the intersection of the history of ideas, Jewish studies and philosophy. I have written about French intellectuals and the Jewish Question, existentialism and critical theory. So getting this endowed chair, which is a joint position in history and in the Department of Jewish, Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies (JIMES) is a real honor.
An endowed chair and chair of a department are not the same thing. So, after a year at WashU, I have now stepped into leading JIMES as Chair of the Department, which is an administrative role.
What initially inspired your interest in Jewish history and thought, and how did that evolve into a focus on antisemitism and race?
I was training as an intellectual historian, or historian of ideas, and I was primarily interested in postmodernism, i.e. the most current tendencies in contemporary French philosophy. One central question within postmodernism is how the western tradition has conceived of the Other.
In the midst of my studies, I was really disillusioned with the academy and the hypocrisy I experienced. To take a break from this, I ended up going to Israel with an ultra-Orthodox group, Aish HaTorah, and being exposed to yeshiva life, and I was smitten. I came back and started re-orienting my focus from how the Other is conceived in French thought more abstractly to how Jews and Judaism were represented by French intellectuals from the Dreyfus Affair to the present.
My first years of teaching were in Memphis. As a former Jim Crow southern city, it felt like I was living in a post-Apartheid context, since in many ways it was similar to South Africa, where I was born and raised. I then began to explore the cross-over between French intellectuals on Jews and their considerations of anti-Black racism and colonialism.
You’ve explored the philosophies of thinkers like Jean-Paul Sartre and Hannah Arendt in relation to antisemitism. How did you first become drawn to their work, and what impact have their ideas had on your own scholarship?
I was first exposed to Sartre in college in a course on existentialism. Part of why I love teaching existentialism is because it asks the biggest questions college students are facing: Who am I? How do I make meaning in a broken world? How can I lead a purpose-driven life? What should I do with my life? Those are life-changing questions and that was true for me, too.
Like Sartre, Arendt is one of the most important thinkers of the 20th century. I started reading her seriously while I was in Israel as a postdoctoral student at Hebrew University. Steven Aschheim, a renowned scholar at Hebrew University for whom I served as a teaching assistant, held a conference in Jerusalem, later published as a book called Arendt in Jerusalem. I started digging seriously into her work in preparation for the conversations at that conference.
Both Sartre and Arendt, the one a non-Jew and the other a Jew, understood the Jewish Question to be at the center of key issues in the 20th century, which include racism, imperialism, genocide and Israel/Palestine. Exploring these issues is at the center of my scholarship.”
Can you share a pivotal moment in your career that shaped your current approach to studying antisemitism and race?
My most recent book, “Critical Theories of Anti-Semitism,” began in 1998. I was in Israel on a postdoc. I hadn’t landed a job and I was stranded. My wife and I started talking about going to work on a kibbutz. But there were several faculty members at Hebrew U who were incredibly supportive of me. I was encouraged to put together a proposal for a new project, which at the time I called “Theorizing Anti-Semitism.” On the basis of this proposal, I was given a second year as a postdoc at Hebrew U, and eventually, 25 years later, I was finally able to finish this project.
How has your understanding of antisemitism changed or deepened over the course of your career?
When I first began my study of antisemitism, I was strongly influenced by scholars like Robert Wistrich and the Jerusalem school (since they were my teachers). Over time, I have become quite critical of their approach, which I term “exceptionalist,” since it argues that Judeophobia is unique: different from other racisms like Islamophobia, Negrophobia (or anti-Black racism), and xenophobia.
These differing forms of racism are certainly distinctive in certain ways. But I maintain that a proper understanding of antisemitism requires us to understand the ways in which it is entangled with other racisms over time. For example, you cannot understand the history of antisemitism in America separately from the history of slavery, Jim Crow segregation and the post-Holocaust integration of Jews into white America. You can’t understand French Judeophobia today separately from Islamophobia, since half the Jews in France today come from former colonies with vast Arab populations. So, a deeper understanding of antisemitism requires us to understand its entangled history.
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This event is hosted by WashU and co-sponsored by JCRC and the St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum
