In the past 5 years, antisemitic incidents have risen 344% according to the Anti-Defamation League. Antisemitism seems to lurk around every corner, especially for those who identify as Zionists.
The meaning of the word Zionist has changed since its popularization in the early 19th century, shifting to something entirely different from its original intention. It is now a kind of slur in non-Jewish spaces, mirroring the increase of antisemitism and anti-Israel movements.
Since October 7th, many American Jews feel confused. Some lacked a tangible connection to Israel. The brutal attack forced Jews to reconsider their understanding of Zionism. In a survey done by The American Jewish Association, 57% of American Jews feel more connected to Israel than they did before the attacks.
Israel is the manifestation of Zionism, a nationalist movement that defends the establishment and defense of a Jewish state. The popularization of Zionism emerged with Western and Central Europe’s increasing nationalism. With the emergence of nationalism, prejudice against Jews began to arise.
Theodore Herzl is considered the father of modern Zionism, writing important content like The Jewish Question that outlined just what a safe future looked like for Jews.
But a Zionist is not the same thing as a Jew. According to the Foreign Policy Research Institute, some Jews “committed to the idea of Jewish integration, thought that Zionism, by conceding to the permanence of antisemitism, would in turn lead to more antisemitism,” and other, more religious Jews, believed that “Jews had been exiled in ancient times because of their sins and would return only with God’s will and in messianic times.”
Moving to Israel from Europe occurred gradually, beginning pre-World War I in waves called aliyah. Because Jews were usually excluded from national identity and subject to intense prejudice, many turned to Zionism for safety and a sense of community. Zionism is a discrete concept, rather than something inherent to Judaism.
This movement was initially formed for safety, but the perception about Zionism has shifted in recent years. The People’s Forum created a blog post called “We Will Not Apologize: Zionism Is Racism!” stating, “Zionism is synonymous with colonialism and racism.”
This shift primarily occurred in the Pro-Palestinian protests of 2023-2025. It has started to become a slur.
According to Tony Soltis, de Toledo’s AP Language and Composition teacher, “the meaning of a word isn’t static; it’s fluid. The way I use a word this year could be different by next year. It’s not that my feelings have changed; it’s just the way that word is publicly accepted.”
The meaning of words can change naturally through contextual use. Words have connotations. For this reason, anti-Israel groups have recoded Zionism as a word with ill intentions.
“Sometimes words become weaponized,” explained Soltis. The change has been the fuel for the increase in antisemitic incidents. Someone who’s trying to advocate for the Palestinian cause may begin to see Zionists, and in turn Jews, as malicious.
Soltis said, “Language only reflects the real problem; it’s not the problem itself.”
Redefining Zionism as a colonial, racist, white supremacist movement is a reflection of antisemitism.
Many who are against Israel push the idea that antisemitism and anti-Zionism are not the same thing; therefore, anti-zionism is justified. However, newspapers like Al Jazeera, which is Qatar government-funded, maintain that Zionism is a Jewish supremacist movement. Writing that, “Zionists construct Jews as a biological race, which needs to be segregated as part of a utopia of global apartheid.”
In a Harvard study researching racial prejudice and how it is formed within communities, it was found that people living in areas with a higher disease rate are more likely to have prejudice against racial out-groups and prefer to interact with those who are the same race as themselves.
A threat is perceived, and humans are predisposed to gravitate toward people who are similar to them, and prejudice, even hatred, manifests toward those who are not.
Fear creates divisions among people. The association between Jews and Zionists is unavoidable, especially when it comes to extremists. Zionism is distinctly Jewish in the eyes of most people. People perceive Zionism as a supremacist movement, and therefore form a fear of Jews based on their connection to Zionism.
White supremacy has destroyed cultures and communities. It is something that is widely feared, and Jews are becoming increasingly associated with it. As fear builds toward Jews and Zionists, so does hatred.
Soltis said, “People believe that the best way to protect themselves is to hurt the thing that’s scaring them. Even if that thing isn’t the actual reason that they’re scared, if it relieves some of that fear, people do it.”
Redefining words creates fear, which creates prejudice. Jewish people do not deserve to deal with this prejudice against them, no people do.
