A survey by the Washington-based Institute for Social Policy and Understanding found Jews are the least Islamophobic religious group in the U.S.
By Pesach Benson, United with Israel
Jews are the least “Islamophobic” religious group in the U.S., according to a new study by a pro-Muslim advocacy group.
The study was performed by a Washington-based organization called the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU), which “provides objective research and education about American Muslims to support well-informed dialogue and decision-making.”
The ISPU survey found that Jews scored a mere 17 points out of a possible 100 on the research institute’s Islamophobia index. The study was the ISPU’s sixth annual Islamophobia index.
The ISPU said the annual index is meant to gauge the “endorsement of anti-Muslim stereotypes,” which “predict[s] public support for discriminatory policies toward Muslims.”
The 2022 study found that white evangelical Christians had the highest score of 30, with Catholics ranking second with 28 points.
Jews showed less Islamophobia than even Muslims, who scored 26 points. The IPSU attributed this to “negative stereotypes about one’s own community,” noting higher scores among Muslims who have “lived the majority of their lives after 9/11,” an Islamic terror attack that claimed the lives of thousands of Americans in 2001.
When asked to agree or disagree with the statement that American Muslims are prone to violence, only nine percent of the Jews agreed, while 24% of the Muslims agreed — a higher rate than the Christian responses.
Of the Muslims surveyed, 19% agreed with the statement that Muslims are less civilized than others.
And while only four percent of Jews agreed with the statement that American Muslims are hostile to the U.S., 19% of Muslims agreed with it.
The IPSU questioned 2,159 American adults, including 807 Muslims, 351 Jews, and 1,001 from other faith groups. Jews make up an estimated 2.4% of the U.S. population, while Muslims are 1.1%.