There are many histories of antisemitism on the market today, and Pamela Nadell has written one of the best. America has prided itself on toleration, particularly religious toleration, since its foundation, and while we as a nation have performed better than some of our European counterparts, the commonly received history papers over many of the darkest chapters. This work tears away the fig leafs of popular history to expose the dark history of discrimination and violence--physical and otherwise--that has marked our country since its inception.

Where I think this book particularly succeeds is in its treatment of antisemitism in America before the Holocaust. Too often, historians focus on the post-Holocaust reckoning with antisemitism which occurred in many Western countries, including the United States. But history did not begin with the Final Solution, nor was it confined to Germany and Eastern Europe. Nadell's discussion of the antisemitic Peter Stuyvesant in the New Amsterdam colony, for example, demonstrates that this oldest form of racism has been woven into the American tapestry since long before the Declaration of Independence. Examples abound from American history of antisemitic legislation and customs, such as quota systems or outright barriers to professional success, which presented challenges to American Jewry.

The book is not, however, entirely dark. Profiled too are those American Jews, and allies, who fought to fulfill the promise of America as a land of equal dignity for all. These fights were rarely easy and were never quick, but form an under-explored chapter in the history of the movement towards full civil liberties and equalities for all Americans.

In light of current events, this book is sadly incredibly timely, as academia and wider society struggle with the scourge of antisemitism on both extreme ends of the political spectrum. By better understanding the history of antisemitism in America, readers are left better equipped to argue back against antisemitic tropes and canards, and are also left simply better informed on this crucial part of the American story. As an educator with a focus on nationalism in general and the Holocaust (and responses to it) in particular, I highly endorse this work and look forward to excerpting it for use in my political science courses in the future, alongside literature on other forms of racism and bigotry.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an e-ARC of the book. I was not compensated in any way for my review other than by receiving an advance copy of the work, and the above thoughts and comments are mine and mine alone.

Antisemitism, an American Tradition by Pamela S. Nadell is a wake-up call for anyone who thinks antisemitism is somehow un-American or a recent import. Spoiler alert: it's been here since day one, literally starting when Peter Stuyvesant tried to kick Jews out of New Amsterdam in 1654.

Nadell walks you through four centuries of American antisemitism—the university quotas, job discrimination, vandalized synagogues, and violent attacks that most Americans probably never learned about in school. Sure, it wasn't as brutal as European pogroms or the Holocaust, but it was persistent and damaging in its own way.

What makes this book work is that Nadell doesn't just dump a depressing list of persecution on you. She also shows how American Jews fought back—creating advocacy groups, taking cases to court, building alliances, and sometimes literally fighting when they had to. The author connects all this history to today's headlines, from Charlottesville's "Jews will not replace us" chants to the Tree of Life synagogue massacre.

Nadell knows her stuff (she's won major awards for her previous books on Jewish women's history) and writes in a way that doesn't make you feel like you're slogging through a textbook. Her main point hits hard: current antisemitism isn't some shocking departure from American values—it's woven into the fabric of American history. If you've been wondering how we got here, this book has your answers.