Torn at the Roots: The Crisis of Jewish Liberalism in Postwar America » (1st Edition)

Michael E. Staub teaches English and American Studies at Bowling Green State University. He is the author of Voices of Persuasion: Politics of Representation in 1930s America. He lives in Ann Arbor, MI.

This book explodes the myth of a monolithic, liberal Judaism and tells the story of the many fierce battles that raged in postwar America over what an authentically Jewish position ought to be on issues ranging from desegregation to Zionism, and from Vietnam to gender relations, sexuality, and family life.

Library Journal

Staub (English and American studies, Bowling Green State Univ.) explores divisions within Jewish liberalism during the Sixties and into the Seventies, showing that Jews have long differed in their stances on political issues. Chapters examine such key topics as Jewish attitudes toward the sexual revolution, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Cold War. Staub shows that the initial Jewish response was often very different from what one might expect. Instead of being uniformly liberal, many Jews felt uncomfortable with the seemingly radical role embraced by Vietnam War peace demonstrators. The Jewish community in this country could be very complacent about Jewish identity, and it wasn't until the Six Day War in 1967 that many Jews began having a greater feeling of Jewish identity and pride. Staub also discusses the role of Jews in civil rights, which was often very ambivalent; many northern Jews professing liberal ideals felt weary about pushing Jews in the conservative South to greater action. Staub's book will be best appreciated by an academic audience and is recommended for libraries with strong holdings in Jewish studies or in the social sciences. Paul Kaplan, Lake Villa Dist. Lib., IL Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.