Publications
Reframing the Narrative of American Antisemitism: Beyond the Myth of Jewish Exceptionalism
Forthcoming Monograph | Cambridge Scholars Publishing (2026)
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This work critically interrogates the myth of American Jewish exceptionalism by demonstrating that antisemitism, while less overt than in Europe, was a persistent and evolving force in the United States leading up to and in the immediate aftermath of the Holocaust. The primary objective is to challenge the marginalization of American antisemitism in historical narratives and to reveal its systemic and adaptive nature within American society. This book is needed to fill a significant gap in scholarship: existing studies often isolate Jewish experiences or focus narrowly on religious roots, overlooking broader institutional, social, and political dimensions. This study employs a multidisciplinary approach, analyzing archival documents, legal records, contemporary media, and historiographical debates. Key episodes such as the Leo Frank affair, interwar nativism, and postwar exclusion are examined to trace the transformation of antisemitic attitudes in American institutions and culture. Findings indicate that American antisemitism, though distinct in form, shares deep ideological and structural roots with its European counterpart. This work contributes to research by reframing antisemitism as a central, rather than peripheral, theme in American history and offers a nuanced understanding of how exclusionary ideologies persist and adapt, informing contemporary efforts to combat hate and foster inclusion.
“Tracing Anti-Jewish Ideologies Across the Atlantic”
Forthcoming Chapter in an Edited Volume | DeGruyter (2026)
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This chapter explores how anti-Jewish beliefs rooted in European traditions were carried to and reshaped within American society. Using historical records, migration data, and discourse analysis, it traces the movement of these ideas through literature, religious instruction, political rhetoric, and popular media. The arrival of European immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries played a central role in transferring these narratives, which were then modified to reflect American concerns about modernity, capitalism, and national identity. The chapter examines the institutions and channels that facilitated this process, including print culture, religious organizations, and social movements. It also analyzes how these beliefs were reinterpreted to fit American ideological frameworks, allowing them to persist and evolve. By investigating the transformation of inherited prejudices, the chapter sheds light on the enduring influence of antisemitism in contemporary public discourse.
“The Exceptions to the Rule: Jews in Shakespeare’s England”
European Judaism: A Journal for the New Europe, Vol. 51, No. 2,
Shakespeare and the Jews (Autumn 2018), pp. 6-12.
History has largely ignored Anglo-Jewish history in the years between the expulsion of the Jews from England in 1290 and their readmittance in 1656 by Cromwell. This article revisits that period and disputes the misconception that the Period of Expulsion left England without any Jews for nearly 400 years. Although the small Jewish population ebbed and flowed with the rising and waning tides of English anti-Jewish hostilities, it nevertheless persevered. This article highlights some of the more well-known and thus well-documented of these Jews, the majority of whom were Crypto-Jews of Spanish or Portuguese origin.​​