Chauvinist

My friend describes herself as a Jewish Chauvinist. I told her that chauvinism is always a negative concept. Am I correct?

I think that you are right. According to the Wikipedia definition the word chauvinism is extreme and unreasoning partisanship on behalf of a group to which one belongs, especially when the partisanship includes malice and hatred towards a rival group. The term is derived from Nicolas Chauvin, a soldier under Napoleon Bonaparte, due to his fanatical zeal for his Emperor. That means that chauvinism should really not be the way that a Jew describe themselves. It is true that the Jewish Nation is a close-knit people but we should not have any feeling of malice or hatred towards other groups and nations unless there is an overwhelming historical reason to do so.