1 in 5 young Americans think Holocaust was a myth

A fifth of Americans ages 18-29 believe the Holocaust was a myth, according to a new poll from The Economist/YouGov.

While the question only surveyed a small sample of about 200 people, it lends credence to concerns about rising antisemitism, especially among young people in the U.S.

Another 30 percent of young people said they didn’t agree or disagree with the statement, while the remaining 47 percent disagreed. Only 7 percent of Americans overall believe the Holocaust is a myth, according to the poll.

Congress and the White House have placed special attention on fighting antisemitism in recent weeks as the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza continues to divide public opinion. Leaders of top universities were grilled by a House committee this week on the topic, drawing criticism for vague answers on what comments constituted antisemitic harassment.

About a third of Americans described antisemitism as a “very serious problem” in the poll, with just more than a quarter of young people saying the same. 

On Friday, a bipartisan group of senators, led by Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), introduced a bill to reauthorize the Never Again Education Act, providing federal funding for Holocaust education.

“Failing to educate students about the gravity and scope of the Holocaust is a disservice to the memory of its victims and to our duty to prevent such atrocities in the future,” Rosen said in a statement. “At a time of rising antisemitism, reauthorizing the bipartisan Never Again Education Act will help ensure that educators have the resources needed to teach students about the Holocaust and help counter antisemitic bigotry and hate.”

Sens. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.) also signed onto the legislation.

The House version of the bill was introduced late last month.

The Economist/YouGov poll also found a majority of Americans support the U.S. backing Israel in its war against Hamas. About 61 percent of Americans said it was either “very” or “somewhat important” to support Israel.

Despite strong support for Israel in the conflict, about half of Americans disapprove of President Biden’s response, according to the poll, including just less than 30 percent of Democrats and 69 percent of Republicans.

The poll surveyed about 1,500 people online early this week, with a margin of error of about 3.1 percentage points.