An Open Letter to Today's Young Jews
You are not living at the end of the Jewish story. You are living in one of its greatest chapters.
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This is a guest essay by Nachum Kaplan, a longtime journalist and commentator who writes the newsletter, “Moral Clarity.”
You can also listen to the podcast version of this essay on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, YouTube, and Spotify.
Dear Young Jew,
We were supposed to bequeath you a comfortable world.
Instead, you inherited one where people who know nothing about Jews have very strong opinions about us. A world where terrorism is explained away but Jewish self-defense requires a thousand footnotes. A world where your grandparents’ warnings suddenly sound less like ancient history and more like tomorrow’s news.
Welcome. Pull up a chair.
The first thing you need to know is that none of this is new.
Jews have always lived in an age that believed it had discovered the perfect reason to hate Jews. Religion. Race. Money. Capitalism. Communism. Colonialism. Cosmopolitanism. Nationalism.
Today, the fashionable excuse is Israel. The accusation changes every century or so. The target never does.
Do not be intimidated by people who insist they are merely “anti-Zionist.” If the world’s only Jewish state is the only nation they obsess over, if every Jewish student somehow becomes responsible for events thousands of kilometers away, if every synagogue needs police protection while they explain this is all about “politics,” then congratulations, you have discovered antisemitism wearing a fake mustache.
Don’t argue over the mustache. See the face beneath it.
The second thing you need to know is that you owe nobody an apology for existing. Not for wearing a Star of David. Or speaking Hebrew, visiting Israel, or defending Israel. Not for succeeding or surviving. Especially not for surviving.
Your ancestors crossed deserts, survived pogroms, expulsions, inquisitions, gas chambers, and terrorist bombs so that you could stand upright without asking anyone’s permission to be Jewish. Don’t waste their gift by apologizing for it.
You will be told that being proudly Jewish is provocative. Smile politely and stand even more proudly Jewish. Wear the necklace. Celebrate Shabbat. Learn Hebrew. Know your history. Show up. Nothing irritates antisemites quite like happy Jews.
The third thing you need to know is that ignorance is expensive. You cannot outsource your Jewish education. Forget whether you are religious or secular, observant or an atheist. Read the Bible and Jewish history. Learn about Zionism from Zionists instead of TikTok activists who do not know where the Middle East begins and ends. Understand why Israel exists, why it had to exist, and why it must exist.
If your knowledge of Israel begins in 1967, someone has already stolen half the story from you. Israel is not a guilty European experiment. It is the oldest indigenous success story on Earth. It is Jews returning home after history’s longest exile. Know the facts and know them cold. Confidence comes from knowledge, not slogans.
The fourth thing you need to know is that courage is contagious. When one Jew hides a Star of David, another notices. When one Jew refuses to hide it, another notices that too. You have no idea who is watching you. Perhaps another frightened Jewish student. Perhaps your younger sibling. Perhaps your own future children. Your courage gives other people permission to discover theirs.
The fifth thing you need to know is that Israel changes everything. For nearly 2,000 years Jews had prayers. Now we also have fighter jet pilots. For two millennia Jews had hope. Now we have hope and an army. Jews once begged kings for protection. Now Jews protect themselves. That changes Jewish history forever.
Israel is not perfect. Neither are you. Neither is your country. Perfection has never been the admission price for nationhood. Israel’s existence means Jews are no longer guests in history. Never forget what an astonishing privilege that is.
The sixth thing you need to know is to choose your battles wisely. Not every social media troll deserves your attention. Some people are mistaken. Some are ignorant. Some are genuinely curious. Too many are committed antisemites wearing activist language like camouflage. Learn the difference. You can educate the first three. The fourth is simply looking for an audience. Don’t provide one.
The seventh thing you need to know is that Jewish humor remains one of history’s greatest survival mechanisms. Keep laughing. The people who wish us gone absolutely hate that. Every Jewish wedding, every Jewish joke, every Jewish baby, every Friday night dinner, every Hebrew song. And, most importantly, every family argument about who overcooked the brisket.
These are tiny victories over people who wanted Jewish history to end. Existence can be wonderfully spiteful.
The eighth thing you need to know is that allies matter. You do not need to fight alone. Many decent people reject antisemitism completely. Find them, work with them, and thank them. Yet never become dependent upon them. Jewish self-reliance is indispensable.
Finally, remember this: You belong to one of humanity’s oldest stories. A tiny tribe who gave the world ethical monotheism, the Hebrew Bible, extraordinary scholarship, remarkable science, astonishing literature, Nobel Prizes galore, startup companies, life-saving medicine, and an annoying habit of surviving everyone who predicted our disappearance.
That last achievement seems to upset people the most. Good. Let it. There will always be fashionable movements declaring that Jewish history has reached its conclusion. Ignore them. Rome is gone. The Nazis are gone. The Soviet Union is gone. Countless empires are museum exhibits. The Jewish People are still arguing over dinner.
Bet on us. Walk taller than you feel. Know more than your critics. Love your people without embarrassment. Defend Israel without hesitation. Reject victimhood without denying danger. Refuse to surrender either your confidence or your sense of humor.
Above all, remember this simple truth: You are not the last Jews. You are the next Jews. Act accordingly. Even I have to admit immodestly that was a pretty inspiring valedictorian-like speech. There is only one thing wrong with it: It does not quite fully capture what I feel.
You are growing up at a strange moment. Not because antisemitism has returned. It never left. What has changed is that millions of people have decided that it no longer embarrasses them. They have simply updated the vocabulary. They do not hate Jews. They just happen to despise the world’s only Jewish state, not Jewish existence.
They just believe the only nation whose disappearance they openly discuss should be Israel. They do not boycott China, Russia, Iran, Qatar, or North Korea. Just the Jews. Amazing coincidence.
The first lesson is this: Never let someone else define your identity. Your enemies certainly will. To them you are never simply a student, a lawyer, an engineer, a musician, or a bartender. You are “the Zionist.” “The colonizer.” “The privileged one.” Maybe the oppressor. Funny how Jews are simultaneously accused of being weak, powerful, rich, poor, white, non-white, capitalist, communist, indigenous, and foreign.
When accusations become mutually contradictory, stop treating them as arguments. They are symptoms.
The second lesson is even simpler. Never apologize for surviving. The world has spent 2,000 years trying to teach Jews that survival itself is offensive. We survived Pharaoh, Rome, the Crusades, pogroms and expulsions, Auschwitz, Soviet persecution, suicide bombers, and even deadly levels of idiocy. Now you are expected to apologize because Jews possess fighter jets and are damn good at flying them. No. Absolutely not.
The world had centuries to discover a better solution to the so-called Jewish problem. Instead, Jews solved it themselves. It is called Israel. Get used to saying that without lowering your voice.
You will hear endless lectures about Jewish power. Listen carefully. The people delivering them almost always mean one thing. That they preferred Jews when we were powerless.
Powerful Jews make antisemites deeply uncomfortable. Good. I like making such people uncomfortable. Given history, Jews should value being armed more than being admired. Personally, I want to be admired for the strength of Israel’s army.
Understand something your generation desperately needs to hear: Approval is not security, likes are not allies, and trending hashtags are not history.
The same campuses that celebrate every minority often discover remarkable philosophical nuance the moment Jewish students ask not to be harassed. The same newspapers that can identify oppression in a supermarket parking dispute somehow lose their reading glasses when Hamas publishes its objectives. Do not chase applause from people who resent your existence. You will never earn it.
Another piece of advice: Stop trying to be the “good Jew.” Every generation invents one. The Jew who condemns Israel loudly enough, or distances himself from other Jews and assures hostile audiences that he is one of the acceptable ones. Beyond being misguided, “good Jews” are boring, and I do not share my Arak with boring people.
“Good Jews” must learn that antisemites do not grade on a curve. When hatred arrives, distinctions disappear. They never ask whether you voted Left or Right, if you attend synagogue, keep kosher, or posted enough Palestinian flags throughout our neighborhood.
They simply notice your surname. Learn from history before history reminds you.
Now let us discuss Israel. Israel is not just another country, and if you say it is, I will give you a good clip around the ear. Israel is the insurance policy history wrote in Jewish blood. For nearly 2,000 years Jews relied for safety on kings, governments, neighbors, and corrupt international organizations. Each eventually and inevitably failed.
Israel exists because “Never Again” is not a plea by Jews; it is a warning from Jews not to fuck around with us or you will pay a fearsome and terrible price. “Never Again” requires borders, soldiers, pilots, intelligence officers, engineers, and, sadly, taxpayers. It needs parents willing to send their children to defend a country that much of the world judges by standards it has never applied to anyone else.
You do not have to pretend Israel is perfect. Only children think perfection exists. Adults compare. Compare Israel to its neighbor states. Compare its courts, elections, free media, minority rights, hospitals, and scientific achievements. Then ask yourself why the world’s outrage seems permanently reserved for Jerusalem while genuine tyrannies — ones that impose apartheid against the female half of their population — receive little more than diplomatic throat-clearing.
Be proudly Jewish, not performatively so. It need not be aggressive, but it must be unapologetic. Wear the Star of David, learn Hebrew, know your history, celebrate your holidays, read Jewish books, and support Jewish institutions. Visit Israel one day.
Do not forget to laugh loudly for the sole reason that it chafes antisemites’ ears. Nothing infuriates them more than Jews who refuse to behave like victims.
One more thing: Develop a sense of humor. Seriously. You will need it.
The people chanting for “liberation” while celebrating Islamist murderers are often the same people who need emotional support after receiving the wrong oat milk. Treat their moral lectures accordingly.
Mercilessly mock pomposity, ridicule hypocrisy, and laugh at absurdity. Humor has always been one of the sharpest Jewish weapons because tyrants and fools cannot tolerate being laughed at.
Finally, understand your place in history. You are not living at the end of the Jewish story. You are living in one of its greatest chapters. For the first time since the Maccabees, Jews possess sovereignty and children speak Hebrew as their native tongue in the streets. For the first time since antiquity, Jews can defend themselves without asking permission from kings who rarely intended to grant it.
Do not squander that miracle trying to impress people who despise it.
Walk taller. Study harder. Build businesses. Write books. Win Nobel Prizes. Raise families. Volunteer. Argue. Invent. Prosper. And box the ears of antisemites when needed.
When someone tells you that Jews have no future, smile. The Romans, Crusaders, Cossacks, Nazis, and Soviets said that — and they are gone. The Jews are still here. One lesson of history is that Jews are always hated. Another is that those who built their identity around hating Jews eventually disappeared into history’s footnotes.
The Jews wrote the next chapter. So will you.
Nahum, this is really an open letter to you—and to anyone who has any influence with what I call the Jewish swamp: our large, bloated Jewish organizations that constantly ask for money but too often fail to address what I believe are our most urgent needs.
You've written a wonderful letter to young Jews. But let me suggest something that I believe would make an even bigger difference.
Every Jewish school and every Jewish institution should make self-defense training mandatory for Jewish children. Not optional. Not something only wealthy parents can afford through private lessons. Mandatory, and funded by our Jewish organizations.
Let me be absolutely clear: this is not a call to violence. It's the exact opposite. Nothing gives a young person more confidence than knowing they can take care of themselves if they have to. Confident people are less likely to be victims, and bullies are, by nature, cowards who usually prey on those they think won't fight back.
I've been writing letters and posting this idea for the past two years, and nothing ever seems to come of it. But I remain convinced it's one of the most important things we could do.
When I was young, becoming involved with the JDL changed me. Yes, the JDL was criticized, and in some instances deservedly so because some members went too far. But the principle of Jewish self-defense was never wrong. Learning how to defend yourself isn't about becoming violent. It's about having the confidence and ability to avoid violence whenever possible.
I would go even further. Why stop with children? Offer the same training to seniors as well. Imagine a Jewish community where no student graduates high school without basic self-defense skills and every older Jew who wants that training has access to it. Within just a few years, I believe it would fundamentally change the confidence and resilience of our community.
Will it happen? Sadly, I doubt it. It doesn't seem to be on the agenda of the Jewish swamp. But if we're serious about preparing the next generation, let's stop talking only about antisemitism and start giving young Jews practical tools to face it with confidence.
Excellent article. Should be required reading by all Jews, young and old.