Your Daily Phil: What hostages? Nearly half of Americans in the dark, survey reveals
Good Thursday morning.
In today’s edition of Your Daily Phil, we dive into new survey results from Boundless Israel on Americans’ views regarding the war in Gaza. We report on the Jewish Free Loan Association’s role in supporting more than 100 Los Angeles-area families and businesses recovering from January’s devastating wildfires, and the deal reached between Columbia University and the Trump administration to restore the institution’s federal funding. We feature an opinion piece by Jenna Harris about pressure being placed on progressive Jews to excise Israel from their Jewish identity, and one by Deborah Barer with insights about elevating young leaders’ voices; plus Menachem Z. Rosensaft responds to Omer Bartov’s latest pronouncements in The New York Times about the war in Gaza and Israel’s future. Also in this issue: Ozzy Osbourne, Deborah Lyons and Jane Myerson.
What We’re Watching
Mediators have delivered Hamas’ latest response to the Israeli team negotiating a ceasefire and hostage deal, according to the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office; the response is presently being reviewed.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH EJP’S RACHEL KOHN
Nearly half of Americans don’t know that there are still hostages from the Oct. 7 attacks in captivity in Gaza, one of several findings with concerning implications from a just-released survey commissioned by Boundless Israel, a U.S.-based “think and action tank.”
“The fact that roughly half of Americans don’t realize there are still dozens of hostages in Gaza — including at least 20 believed to be alive — is deeply consequential,” Aviva Klompas, co-founder of Boundless Israel, told eJewishPhilanthropy. “It means that many Americans don’t understand one of the primary reasons Israel is still fighting: to bring the hostages home.”
“It also shows that Western leaders and media have stopped talking about the hostages — which reflects a dangerous erosion of moral clarity,” she added. “If the world shrugs its shoulders while terrorists starve civilians in underground cages for nearly two years, it sets a chilling precedent. Hostage-taking becomes a more viable and repeatable tactic.”
The survey, which was conducted in the spring using a nationally representative sample of 794 respondents, also revealed a lack of awareness that Hamas is an internationally recognized terrorist group, as well as increased attribution of sole blame for the conflict to Israel. More than half of respondents said they support neither side or have no opinion, and those supporting Israel dropped from 51% in a November 2023 survey to 39%.
One in four respondents said Israel’s military response is not justified, with even higher numbers among Americans ages 18-34 — and only half of all respondents said Hamas is a terrorist organization.
The survey also identified a growing gap between age groups when it comes to Americans’ perception of the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, attributable at least in part to younger Americans getting their information about the conflict from social media more than traditional news outlets.
While most Americans still rely on traditional media, particularly cable news and major news websites, social media platforms YouTube, TikTok and Instagram continue to grow in influence, especially among younger adults.
Often stripped of context, this social media content should be countered by “focused, emotionally intelligent messaging,” said Mitch Markel, executive vice president and group lead of strategic data insights for the firm that conducted the survey, Burson Insights, Data and Intelligence.
“This data is a wake-up call,” said Klompas. “More and more Americans — especially young people — are absorbing narratives that downplay Hamas’ atrocities and deny Israel’s right and responsibility to defend its people.”
Klompas also highlighted the role politics play in how people respond to ideas about the conflict.
“When we asked, ‘Do you believe the people living in Gaza should be allowed to leave if they want to’, 63% of 18- to 34-year-olds said yes,” Klompas shared. “For many young people, especially those who get their information primarily from social media, the images of destruction and suffering in Gaza are visceral. Supporting relocation may feel like a compassionate, common-sense solution to help civilians get out of harm’s way.”
“But when we ask the same age group if they support ‘the Trump administration’s plan to relocate Palestinians from Gaza,’ support drops to 35%,” she continued. “So what we’re seeing is an issue that feels humanitarian — until politics are introduced; then support fractures. It’s a powerful reminder of how much framing shapes opinion.”
HELPING HAND
Jewish Free Loan offers lifeline after wildfires destroy L.A. homes and businesses
The Jewish Free Loan Association announced earlier this week that it has distributed more than $1.9 million in interest-free loans to 111 homeowners and small business owners impacted by the wildfires that devastated parts of the Los Angeles region in January, reports Ayala Or-El for eJewishPhilanthropy.
‘Room to breathe’: Despite its name, JFLA offers loans to people of all faiths, and its website is filled with heartfelt testimonials from Jewish and non-Jewish members of the community who lost everything in the fire. Anne Marie Molina and her husband Carlos, who have five children, ages 10 to 26, along with three dogs and a cat, had to cover rent for both the home they evacuated during the Eaton fires and their temporary housing. “We couldn’t find a space big enough for all of us, so our family was split up. We maxed out credit cards and drained our savings just to get by,” said Molina. “When we finally returned home, we had to replace all of our furniture and the stress was overwhelming.” After learning about JFLA, they applied and soon received a loan. “It gave us room to breathe and helped us get back on our feet without drowning in new debt.”
DONE DEAL
Columbia reaches $200 million settlement with Trump administration
Columbia University will pay a $200 million settlement over three years to the federal government as part of a deal reached with the Trump administration in order to restore the embattled institution’s federal funding, reports Haley Cohen for eJewishPhilanthropy’s sister publication Jewish Insider. The university also agreed to settle investigations brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for $21 million, as well as a number of open civil rights investigations into the university alleging harassment of Jewish students.
Not an admission of guilt: In March, $400 million in federal funding to Columbia was cut by the government due to the university’s record dealing with antisemitism since the Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attacks in Israel. “While Columbia does not admit to wrongdoing with this resolution agreement, the institution’s leaders have recognized, repeatedly, that Jewish students and faculty have experienced painful, unacceptable incidents, and that reform was and is needed,” the university said in a statement released yesterday.
Read the full report here and sign up for Jewish Insider’s Daily Kickoff here.
INEXTRICABLY BOUND
My identity as a progressive Zionist Jew shouldn’t be at stake
“I attended the same law school, moved in similar professional circles and loudly advocated for the same social justice issues as many of the folks arguing to disentangle Zionism from Judaism,” writes Jenna Harris, senior counsel and K-12 legal specialist for the StandWithUs Saidoff Legal Department, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy. “Nevertheless, I do not believe it is prudent — or even possible — to discard my connection to Israel as though it were an outdated trend or a chipped mug.”
Not going anywhere: “Why should I abandon Israel instead of loving it and grappling with it in all of its complexities? Why can I not be grateful that a Jewish state exists after centuries of exile and oppression and still pray for the day when it reflects the truest expression of democracy and justice for all? Why should we abandon the difficult work of holding these contradictions in tension, of teaching our children to love a place fiercely and to question it honestly? I cannot see how severing my connection to Israel will do anything to ease the wounds of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Far from being an act of integrity, it feels like cowardice and abandonment.”
JEWISH LEADERSHIP PIPELINE
Passing the mic: How we let students take the lead
“A few months ago, I was sitting with three college students – Anna Weiss, Sami Jinich and Yadid Orlow – who would become the hosts of ‘Future Tense,’ a new podcast from the Shalom Hartman Institute. We were talking about the campus climate in an age of rising antisemitism and increasingly divisive Israel politics when Anna said something that has been running through my head ever since. Adults kept asking her about the situation on campus, she said. ‘They ask — but then they still don’t listen,’” writes Deborah Barer, a member of senior faculty at the Shalom Hartman Institute, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy.
A learning experience for all involved: “As an educator who has spent most of my career working with young adults, I understand the concerns that so many of us have for this generation of students and the impulse we have to want to protect them… They are living in difficult times, but too often our response has been to assume that our young people are unable to meet the challenges that they face — even when they are telling us otherwise… [W]e created the podcast ‘Future Tense’ to elevate these leaders’ voices and to provide them with the space they need to wrestle with their biggest questions about Judaism, Israel and their own Jewish futures in conversation with Hartman faculty. As the faculty advisor on this project, my experience not only renewed my optimism about the Jewish future but also helped me understand my work as a Jewish educator in a new light.”
FACT CHECK
Democratic Israel lives: Responding to Omer Bartov yet again
“In a wide-ranging interview in yesterday’s New York Times, professor Omer Bartov doubled down on his charge that Israel is not only perpetrating a genocide in Gaza, but is on its way to becoming, in his words, ‘a full-blown apartheid authoritarian state. And such states don’t last very long,’” writes author and genocide law expert Menachem Z. Rosensaft in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy. “Despite claiming that he is ‘a big supporter of the state of Israel’ and that he is ‘not against Zionism at all,’ Bartov has in effect given up on Israel, declaring categorically that ‘the kind of Zionism that exists in Israel now, the kind of state it has become, I can’t support it.’”
Missing from the picture: “What of the hundreds of thousands of Israelis who demonstrate regularly against the Netanyahu government in the streets of Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and other Israeli cities and towns, calling for a ceasefire and the return of the hostages? What of those present and former political leaders who publicly challenge the Netanyahu government’s policies regarding the Gaza war? … They are on the front lines upholding Israel’s democratic essence. Do they not deserve, if not support, then at least an acknowledgment of their stance and actions?… Yes, Israel is confronted by serious problems, some of them demons of its own making. But that doesn’t mean that those of us who believe in Israel should abandon it because of the policies of its present government, and it does not absolve the Palestinians of their share of responsibility for the death, destruction and suffering in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023.”
Worthy Reads
Good Night, Sweet Prince: He’s best known for his role as the frontman of the metal band Black Sabbath and his family’s long stint on reality TV, but, in the Jewish News, Annabell Sinclair remembers “Prince of Darkness” Ozzy Osbourne, who died this week at 76, for his support for Israel and vocal stance against antisemitism. “In March 2025, Osbourne and his wife Sharon were among more than 200 public figures who signed an open letter demanding an independent inquiry into the BBC’s handling of its Gaza documentary… The letter accused the BBC of promoting ‘Hamas propaganda’ and urged it to confront its ‘systematic problem of bias against Israel.’ It wasn’t a one-off gesture. Osbourne refused to allow rapper Ye (formerly Kanye West) to sample ‘Iron Man’ in 2024, citing the artist’s repeated antisemitic outbursts. ‘He IS an antisemite and has caused untold heartache to many,’ he posted on X. His connection to Judaism was also deeply personal. Sharon Osbourne, born Sharon Levy, is the daughter of Jewish music manager Don Arden. In a 2024 interview with The Jewish Chronicle, she described Judaism as ‘the only religion I have and the only one I’m comfortable with,’ adding that it was ‘at the heart of our household.’” [JewishNews]
The Difference $5 Could Make: In The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Brett Egan proposes “a federated campaign to support the arts” in order to replace lost federal funding. “Through small contributions from Americans who care about their museums, arts organizations, and libraries, a national fund could be built that provides steady, apolitical support to these institutions. The ask is simple: five dollars per taxpayer per year. If America’s 153 million taxpayers contributed, the campaign would well exceed the approximately $600 million in grants awarded last year by the NEA, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and Institute of Museum and Library Services combined. Public radio and television, also in tumult, could be included for another dollar or two per year. Of course, not every taxpayer would donate, but I suspect many would give more, as would corporations and foundations, making up for those who opt out.” [ChronicleofPhilanthropy]
Word on the Street
The Knesset overwhelmingly passed a nonbinding resolution calling for Israeli annexation of the West Bank…
Brazil is finalizing efforts to join South Africa’s case in the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of commiting genocide in Gaza…
Kehillat Israel, America’s largest Reconstructionist synagogue, located in Pacific Palisades, Calif., announced plans to withdraw from Reconstructing Judaism over its inaction on growing anti-Zionism in its ranks…
In The Canadian Jewish News, former antisemitism envoy Deborah Lyons shares her struggles in the role in the first interview she’s given since resigning from the position on July 17…
Sid Jacobson JCC‘s annual Golf & Games Outing, held at Fresh Meadow Country Club in Lake Success, N.Y., raised $600,000 to support the agency’s essential programs and services; the event included a special tribute to David Black, celebrating his 14 years as the JCC’s executive director…
After more than 100 years serving the community, Levi Hospital in Hot Springs, Ark., will close its doors on Aug. 1 and transition to a new role as a community health foundation…
The Jewish Community Relations Council of Southern New Jersey, in partnership with the India Temple Association in Berlin, N.J., brought 50 community members to visit the BAPS Swaminarayan Akshardham Temple in Robbinsville, the largest Hindu temple in the United States…
Writer and scholar Dina Greenberg has been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to spend three months in Kosovo researching and documenting the country’s small and dwindling Jewish community…
The Jewish News profiles incoming campus rabbi and director of education for Hillel at Arizona State University, Rabbi Aviva Funke…
Jane Myerson, a co-founder of the northwest Tucson, Ariz., Jewish community and a Jewish institutional lay leader in her former community of Kingston, N.Y., died at 77…
Major Gifts
A $100 million matching grant from the Weill Family Foundation will bring together two leading cancer centers to launch the Weill Cancer Hub West…
Pic of the Day
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Rabbi Dovid Hofsteter (center) of Dirshu, an international organization focused on strengthening and encouraging Torah study, accompanies U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee (right) this week on a visit to meet rabbinical leaders in Bnei Brak, Israel.
Birthdays
Partner in Frost Brown Todd and author of The Liberal Case for Israel, he was the first-ever Jewish statewide elected official in Kentucky (state treasurer), Jonathan Miller…
Philanthropist and former U.S. ambassador to Romania, now senior counsel at Covington and Burling, Alfred H. Moses… Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter who worked for ABC News and CBS’ “60 Minutes,” Lowell Bergman… Israeli physician, author and playwright, he is the younger brother of PM Benjamin Netanyahu, Iddo Netanyahu… Political consultant known for his role in both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns, Joel Benenson … Retired Los Angeles-based business and real estate attorney, Michael Jeffrey Bordy… Radio anchor and reporter on both CBS nationally and NYC’s WCBS, Michael Sugerman… Member of Congress (D-FL) until 2022, he previously served as the governor of Florida, Charlie Crist… Russian businessman and Chairman of the Board of Patrons of The Conference of European Rabbis, Boris Mints… Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit, Judge Patty Shwartz… Presidential historian, professor at McGill and senior fellow in Zionist thought at the Jewish People Policy Institute, Gil Troy… Director of donor development for AIPAC, he is a retired NFL player who played for the Packers and the Cowboys where he won in Super Bowl XXVII, Alan (Shlomo) Veingrad… Founder of the Migdal Oz seminary for women in Gush Etzion, she is a granddaughter of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Esti Rosenberg… Film director and producer, Douglas Eric Liman… Author, he writes the “My Ride” column for The Wall Street Journal on exotic cars, A.J. Baime… Mayor of Asheville, N.C., she was elected in 2013, 2017 and 2022, Esther E. Manheimer… Actress, writer, podcaster and comedian, Jamie Denbo… President of Access Computer Technology in West Bloomfield, Mich., he is a rabbi, entrepreneur and social media expert, Jason Miller… President and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, Rabbi Noah Zvi Farkas… Executive vice president and CFO of Morgan Stanley, Sharon Yeshaya… Actress, screenwriter and director, Lauren Miller Rogen… Member of the board of directors of the Jewish Federation of Greater Rochester (N.Y.), Aviva M. Futerman Schochat… Co-founder and partner at Orfin Ventures, Adam Finkel… Media director at Access Brand Communications, Sarah Citrenbaum… Actress, best known for her role as Nomi Segal on the Freeform comedy drama “Grown-ish,” Emily Taryn Arlook… CEO and founder of Learned Hand, building AI tools for judges, Shlomo Klapper…
