Faces on Faith: Will you stand with us?
Jews in America are experiencing at this moment, the highest number of antisemitic incidents since the start of compilation of such statistics beginning in 1979. Jewish students on American college campuses are threatened, bullied and in some cases assaulted. Police last month had to protect and surround a Jewish student center at Cornell University after online threats to shoot up the dining hall. Jewish students are calling parents informing them that they are leaving campus because they do not feel safe.
Closer to home, the son of a lay leader in the Southwest Florida Jewish community was physically attacked by a neighbor he had known for 12 years, striking him while spewing antisemitic vitriol.
American Jews are beset by fear. Despite securing our synagogues and community facilities with security upgrades and engaging armed police to stand guard during worship, some members have begun to stay away for fear of attack.
We cannot forget the murder of 11 worshippers five years ago on Oct. 27 in Pittsburgh. Here in Southwest Florida, a synagogue was attacked earlier this year. Our online services are under continual threat of “Zoombombing” by antisemites. Bomb threats and hate speech flood our telephones and social media pages. For the first time since the founding of the United States, Jews feel threatened by an organized, and simultaneously chaotic, upwelling of hatred directed at them.
Regardless of sentiments about the current war between Hamas and Israel and shared horror over the number of innocent civilians, men, women, children and the aged killed or kidnapped and held hostage in the conflict, on our shores we are all Americans “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
The Jewish community needs all Americans to stand with us now against hatred and evil. When we battle against evil in this world it is a holy call and it is one that we must answer. Because 70 years ago when called to the battle, we failed. In the face of Hitler’s evil, a great sin occurred, the sin of silence, and too many Americans joined in that sin.
Here’s what you can do about it. If you belong to a church or a civic or social organization, educate your members about antisemitism. Everyone should know about the history of antisemitism and the Holocaust. In a recent survey, 63% of students surveyed born after 1980 did not know that 6 million Jews were murdered in the Holocaust. And a larger percentage could not name a single concentration camp. People should also be informed about the history of the struggle between Jews and Arabs in Israel and Palestine from its beginning in the early 20th century. This is the lens through which Israelis and Palestinians view the conflict.
Don’t know where to begin? Contact the Jewish Federation of Lee and Charlotte Counties. They will put you in touch with resources. If you are a leader of a local organization or house of worship, reach out to local synagogues. Build relationships and strengthen existing relationships. Lastly, talk with your Jewish friends. They need your support more than ever.
Stand with the American Jewish community as allies. As one.
Rabbi Sunny Schnitzer is with the Bat Yam Temple of the Islands.