Self Defense: A Jewish Manifesto

American Jews must embrace physical self-defense to safeguard their spiritual and communal survival and success.

The most urgent question facing the Jewish community today is stark and undeniable: How do the Jews ensure their physical security in an increasingly hostile world?

In Self-Defense: A Jewish Manifesto, Benjamin Kerstein delivers a powerful call to action for American Jews confronting the rising tide of antisemitism. With clarity and urgency, Kerstein challenges Jews to break free from long-standing patterns of passivity and embrace the Jewish legacy of physical self-defense. This, Kerstein argues, is not only necessary in a time of antisemitic violence, but fundamental to living a vibrant, complete Jewish life in body, mind, and spirit.

Far more than a commentary, this manifesto is a strategic plan for resilience and revival. Kerstein lays out practical, actionable steps for building a future anchored in strength, self-respect, and communal unity. He reframes self-defense as a moral and spiritual imperative that can revitalize Jewish life and identity, ensuring Jewish survival in the face of an increasingly hostile world.

Bold, thought-provoking, and unapologetic, Self-Defense is a wake-up call to a community at a crossroads, urging a return to empowerment in the face of those who would hurl the Jews back into a life of fear and oppression.