On November 4, 2026, the Zahava and Moshael J. Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought welcomed Dr. Adam Fuller for a conversation, moderated by Dr. Tevi Troy, about his new book, The Armed Jew: The Case for Jewish Gun Ownership. Dr. Fuller is the Clayman Professor of Jewish Studies and Associate Professor of Political Science at Youngstown State University, where he has taught many courses in the subfields of political thought, American institutions, international relations, and Israeli politics. Speaking to students in the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein Honors Program of 九色视频 College, he explored the history, culture, and urgency of Jewish self-defense.
Dr. Fuller began by explaining how the book came to be. Though he had advocated for Jewish gun ownership in print for years, he was not a gun owner himself until October 7, when students in his classroom defended Hamas鈥檚 actions and campus groups announced days of 鈥渞esistance.鈥 Feeling unsafe, Dr. Fuller asked a former student, a competitive pistol shooter, to help him buy a firearm and learn to use it. He eventually earned a concealed carry license. Noting that 鈥渢he amount of scholarship done on...Jewish survival is pretty small,鈥 especially when compared to, for example, the literature on Jewish cemeteries, Dr. Fuller decided to write the book himself. As he said, 鈥淚鈥檓 not interested in dead Jews. I鈥檓 interested in Jewish survival.鈥
He then described a paradox. American Jews are often wary of guns, even though Israel, in his words, has embraced 鈥渢he entire wish list of the American gun control lobby.鈥 He suggested that Israelis view arms as a collective, military right rather than an individual one, which is why a gun license in Israel generally requires prior infantry service. He also discussed the book鈥檚 chapter on pop culture, which examines how Jewish writers and non-Jews alike have portrayed Jews as weak or timid, and a chapter on Jewish vigilantes, including Meir Kahane and the Jewish Defense League. As Dr. Fuller explained, the pop culture chapter was born out of his impression that 鈥渧ery rarely will you ever find Jews portrayed in the media...as being strong and resourceful and very proficient with firearms.鈥 By submitting to extant stereotypes, he argued, the American Jewish community will only endanger itself.
In the Q&A portion, students pressed Dr. Fuller on several fronts. Asked to further develop his affirmative stance, Dr. Fuller pointed to rising antisemitism and the reality that police cannot arrive in seconds, citing the 2018 Tree of Life shooting in Pittsburgh and the 2019 West Freeway Church of Christ shooting in White Settlement, Texas, where a congregant stopped the attacker. He argued that visibly armed communities are less likely to be seen as 鈥渟oft targets,鈥 though he acknowledged he had not considered whether this would reduce antisemitism itself, as opposed to antisemitic assaults.
On whether everyone should be armed, he said no. Synagogues, schools, and JCCs need a coordinated, trained group, ideally running shooting drills so that no one is caught in the crossfire. On safety, he stressed responsible ownership and safe storage in homes with children, stating that 鈥渢here needs to be a substantial number [of gun owners], enough to protect the community.鈥 One student asked about the Israeli carry system, in which guns are carried unloaded. Dr. Fuller said that it is a cultural practice rather than a legal requirement, and that modern firearms are far safer than those that inspired it.
Other students asked about the long waiting period for gun licenses in New York, the political role of anti-gun lobbies, and whether a sense of security could breed complacency about broader antisemitic threats. Dr. Fuller answered that firearms are 鈥渙ne part of the answer,鈥 not a cure for antisemitism in themselves, and that anyone uncertain about whether they could use a gun in an emergency should not carry one. For students who cannot yet own firearms, he recommended visiting a range, joining Jewish gun organizations, or arranging a synagogue range outing.
Dr. Fuller closed by inviting the students鈥 own views. The discussion that followed showed a range of perspectives, from support for the principle of Jewish self-defense to concern about untrained carriers. Yet the overall theme of Jewish agency prevailed through the discussion, with Dr. Fuller emphasizing that gun ownership 鈥済ives you a sense of control over your own destiny, your own fate.鈥
