Okay, so doing my own thread on this poll and why I asked.
Here's where the results (of both this version and an older version I did that asked about actual numbers instead of percentages, which was less good because people don't necessarily know the population of the US off the top of their heads) stand: 
That's better than I expected, but there are still 12-13% of respondents who think there are 50 million Jews in the US, or that the US population is over 15% Jewish.
So, no, there aren't 50 million Jews in the US.
The Jewish population of the ENTIRE WORLD in 2018 was not even 15 million.
We're still not even back to pre-Holocaust numbers of ~17 million.
The Jewish population of the ENTIRE WORLD in 2018 was not even 15 million.
We're still not even back to pre-Holocaust numbers of ~17 million.
The question of how many Jews live in the US gets hairy fast, since the question of "who counts as Jewish?" isn't one with a clear answer.
If you define "Jewish" as "affiliated with a Jewish community" of some sort, there are about 4 million of us. (a little over 1%)
If you define "Jewish" as "affiliated with a Jewish community" of some sort, there are about 4 million of us. (a little over 1%)
If you try to define Jewishness as purely a matter of descent, it also gets confusing. The Nazis considered anyone with one Jewish grandparent (even if that person was a Catholic nun) Jewish enough to kill.
Halakha (Jewish law) only recognizes matrilineal descent.
Halakha (Jewish law) only recognizes matrilineal descent.
You can get solidly above 2%--up to over 7 million--if, as a Brandeis study in 2007 did, you include everyone in the same household as someone who identifies as Jewish, even if those household members do not.
But, I mean, that's a BIG stretch.
But, I mean, that's a BIG stretch.
Ultimately, there's not a good way to get numbers, because almost whatever criteria you use, you're either excluding people who consider themselves Jewish, or including people who don't, or including people who Jewish communities don't consider Jewish.
But going by the most common criteria (Gallup and Pew), about 2% of the US population is Jewish.
So, you know, there aren't actually as many of us as you think. And after Israel, the US is the most Jewish country in the world.
So, you know, there aren't actually as many of us as you think. And after Israel, the US is the most Jewish country in the world.
It's a little troubling that, based on those two (admittedly rough) polls, roughly half the people on Twitter think there are a LOT more of us than there actually are.
And given all the scaremongering about Undue Jewish Influence, that's even more troubling.
And given all the scaremongering about Undue Jewish Influence, that's even more troubling.
So.
HI THERE ARE ACTUALLY VERY FEW OF US.
When you hear that 200 Reform rabbis went to a protest? That's 10% of the clergy of the *largest Jewish "denomination" in the country.* (10% of, say, the Methodist clergy would be 4000 pastors)
HI THERE ARE ACTUALLY VERY FEW OF US.
When you hear that 200 Reform rabbis went to a protest? That's 10% of the clergy of the *largest Jewish "denomination" in the country.* (10% of, say, the Methodist clergy would be 4000 pastors)
If you picked a 100-person representative sample of the US, MAYBE 2 people would identify as Jewish, and only 1 of them would be someone who participates in any sort of Jewish community.
Anyway, I just feel like it's really important to remember that when talking about things like synagogue shootings, the Jewish vote, whatever.
