A contingent of some 2,000 representing the hostages and families led this year’s unusual “Israel Day on Fifth” procession, followed by over 40,000 more marching in support of Israel, calling for the immediate release of all the hostages still alive, and the remains of those who are already dead.
“What do we want? All of them.”
“When do we want it? Now.”
“Bring them home NOW.”
“Bring them home NOW.”
was the constant refrain over the hours and miles of the route along 5th Avenue.
Organized by the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, with support from the UJA- Federation of NY, the theme of this year’s Israel Day gathering was themed “One People, One Heart” and drew some 44,000 participants, Israeli and U.S. politicians, dignitaries, celebrities, and family members of hostages, calling for the hostages to be released.
“For decades, Jewish New Yorkers and allies of all backgrounds have marched together up Fifth Avenue to showcase their love and support for Israel and its people and culture,” wrote JCRC-NY CEO Mark Treyger. “This year, however, is the most important parade of my lifetime. On October 7th our community was changed forever; we suffered the worst loss of Jewish life since the Holocaust and have seen alarming increases in antisemitism in the following months. This mega-event is not simply a response to the horrors we have witnessed and the trauma we have endured. Israel Day on Fifth is a strong, public affirmation of who we are and what we stand for.”
The event was designed to provide a platform for some 2,000 members of the abductees’ families and former hostages organized and led by the Hostage and Missing Families Forum as well as residents of several southern Israeli communities – including Kfar Aza, Be’eri and Nahal Oz.
Federal, state, and local elected officials, including Governor Kathy Hochul, Senator Chuck Schumer, Congressmen Tom Suozzi, Ritchie Torres, Ron Goldman and Grace Meng and NYS Attorney General Letitia James and comptroller Tom DiNapoli were among those standing with the New York Jewish community.
Even in these challenging times, tens of thousands of marchers representing more than 200 schools, synagogues, and other organizations from across the tri-state area and asfar as Pennsylvania joined the march.
“For thousands of years, the Jewish people have been scattered throughout the world. In different conditions and countries, we have developed a wide array of customs, movements, languages, and rituals, which sometimes cause internal division,’ Treyger wrote. “If we zoom out for a moment, however, one can see how our differences do not define us. All together, our diversity forms a beautiful banner of resilient Jewish communities. It is this banner under which we will march on Sunday: Am Echad, Lev Echad – One People, One Heart.”
Before the march began, three New York Congressmen – Tom Suozzi, Ritchie Torres and Ron Goldman – held a press conference with families of two of the eight American hostages taken by Hamas on October 7 – Omer Neutra, 22 years old, who grew up in Plainview Long Island and deferred admission to SUNY Binghamton to join the IDF where he became a tank commander; and Itay Chen, 19, who was killed during the Hamas massacre on Oct. 7, but his remains were taken and used by Hamas for a bargaining chip.
Where is the outrage? Eight Americans are still being held by Hamas, 8 months after the savage October 7 massacre of 1,200 including 45 US citizens, over 200 taken hostage of whom some 125 remain hostages, though it is unclear how many are still alive.
Where is the outrage that followed 13 American soldiers dying in a bomb attack as they tried to organize the evacuation of Afghanistan?
Where is the outrage that followed after 9/11?
Why is it that for the first time in American history, Americans being held by a terrorist organization does not provoke that level of outrage?
That’s what Congressmen Tom Suozzi, Richie Torres and Dan Goldman, want to know.
“As Americans, never forget Americans are imprisoned in those terror tunnels,” said Congressman Ritchie Torres (NY-15). “We owe it to fellow Americans to secure their release, bring them home. In the rapidly growing amnesia of October 7, their names and stories must be front and center. The abduction of any one American should be seen as a crime against all.
“The international community is pressuring Israel, there is less pressure on Hamas to release hostages – that is overwhelmingly one sided. Hamas is emboldened. All want the end of war. Above all else, release the hostages. The International community must put pressure flatly where it belongs, flatly on Hamas. Never forget the names of those in captivity.”
Congressman Ron Goldman (NY-10), standing with families of two of the eight American hostages held in brutal captivity, said, “I don’t remember time in US history where Americans have not been outraged when Americans were held captive. It’s not proportionate for these 8 hostages.
“President Biden has laid out clearly an agreement to end conflict. US, Qatar, Egypt, Israel agreed. If you want a ceasefire, an end to conflict, the one party you should be pressuring is Hamas. Hamas controls whether or not this war continues. If Hamas releases hostages, conflict will end. All of those who care about horrific conditions in Gaza, as we do, if you want it to end, direct your energy to Hamas, focus more on these families suffering, their loved ones remain held by terrorist group In Gaza.
“Gazans deserve a better life than under Hamas. Hamas use humans as weapons, as shields. We need all of us to pressure Hamas to end the war today – release the hostages and war will end.”
More typically called the Celebrate Israel Parade in the 60 years the event has been held, this year’s much more somber event was called “Israel Day on Fifth” but the energy was reminiscent of the early days of Israel’s creation, and its sense of fighting for its survival, against an international tide turning away, was palpable.
Among the marchers, members from colleges, faculty and students, countering the widespread pro-Palestinian protests: Faculty Against AntiSemitism, CUNY faculty, Columbia Faculty & Staff Supporting Israel, and students from various Hillels on college campuses. “We Stand With Our Students: CUNY Faculty for Israel,” one sign read.
And in a twist on the pro-Palestinian chant, “From the River to the Sea,” which calls for the eradication of the State of Israel, several held signs, “From the River to the Sea, Hamas Will Cease to Be.”
“This year’s Israel Day on Fifth was an extraordinary affirmation of our Jewish community’s connection to New York City and the State of Israel,” stated Treyger,. “Our coming together was a demonstration of unwavering support for Israel and her people and pride in our identity as Jews and Zionists. It was also a call for the immediate and safe return of the hostages – we must “Bring Them Home Now!” In these challenging times, this year’s event was the most important we’ve ever had, and the outpouring of support from New Yorkers was overwhelming.”
In his keynote address at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Annual Days of Remembrance Ceremony, President Biden spoke out against antisemitism, saying that the hate that culminated in the Holocaust in which 6 million Jews – one third of the population of Jews in the world – were extinguished by Nazi Germany, did not begin with Hitler and did not end with World War II. Here is a transcript of his remarks.
In his keynote address at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Annual Days of Remembrance Ceremony, President Biden spoke out against antisemitism, saying that the hate that culminated in the Holocaust in which 6 million Jews – one third of the population of Jews in the world – were extinguished by Nazi Germany, did not begin with Hitler and did not end with World War II. Here is a transcript of his remarks.(c) Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.comvia MSNBC
During these sacred Days of Remembrance, we grieve. We give voice to the 6 million Jews who were systematically targeted and murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators during World War Two. We honor the memory of victims, the pain of survivors, the bravery of heroes who stood up to Hitler’s unspeakable evil. And we recommit to heading and heeding the lessons that [of] one of the darkest chapters in human history, to revitalize and realize the responsibility of “never again.”
Never again, simply translated for me, means “never forget.” Never forget. Never forgetting means we must keep telling the story. We must keep teaching the truth. We must keep teaching our children and our grandchildren.
And the truth is we are at risk of people not knowing the truth.
That’s why, growing up, my dad taught me and my siblings about the horrors of the Shoah at our family dinner table. That’s why I visited Yad Vashem with my family as a senator, as vice president, and as president. And that’s why I took my grandchildren to Dachau, so they could see and bear witness to the perils of indifference, the complicity of silence in the face of evil that they knew was happening.
Germany, 1933. Hitler and his Nazi party rise to power by rekindling one of the world’s oldest forms of prejudice and hate: antisemitism. His rule didn’t begin with mass murder. It started slowly across economic, political, social, and cultural life: propaganda demonizing Jews; boycotts of Jewish businesses; synagogues defaced with swastikas; harassment of Jews in the street and in the schools; antisemitic demonstrations, pogroms, organized riots.
With the indifference of the world, Hitler knew he could expand his reign of terror by eliminating Jews from Germany, to annihilate Jews across Europe through genocide the Nazi’s called the “Final Solution” — concentration camps, gas chambers, mass shootings.
By the time the war ended, 6 million Jews — one out of every three Jews in the entire world — were murdered.
This ancient hatred of Jews didn’t begin with the Holocaust; it didn’t end with the Holocaust, either, or after — or even after our victory in World War Two. This hatred continues to lie deep in the hearts of too many people in the world, and it requires our continued vigilance and outspokenness.
That hatred was brought to life on October 7th in 2023. On a sacred Jewish holiday, the terrorist group Hamas unleashed the deadliest day of the Jewish people since the Holocaust.
Driven by ancient desire to wipeout the Jewish people off the face of the Earth, over 1,200 innocent people — babies, parents, grandparents — slaughtered in their kibbutz, massacred at a musical festival, brutally raped, mutilated, and sexually assaulted. Thousands more carrying wounds, bullets, and shrapnel from the memory of that terrible day they endured. Hundreds taken hostage, including survivors of the Shoah.
Now, here we are, not 75 years later but just seven and a half months later, and people are already forgetting. They’re already forgetting that Hamas unleased this terror, that it was Hamas that brutalized Israelis, that it was Hamas who took and continues to hold hostages. I have not forgotten, nor have you, and we will not forget. (Applause.)
And as Jews around the world still cope with the atrocities and trauma of that day and its aftermath, we’ve seen a ferocious surge of antisemitism in America and around the world: vicious propaganda on social media, Jews forced to keep their — hide their kippahs under baseball hats, tuck their Jewish stars into their shirts.
On college campuses, Jewish students blocked, harassed, attacked while walking to class.
Antisemitism — antisemitic posters, slogans calling for the annihilation of Israel, the world’s only Jewish State.
Too many people denying, downplaying, rationalizing, ignoring the horrors of the Holocaust and October 7th, including Hamas’s appalling use of sexual violence to torture and terrorize Jews.
It’s absolutely despicable, and it must stop.
Silence — (applause) — silence and denial can hide much, but it can erase nothing. Some injustices are so heinous, so horrific, so grievous, they cannot be muri- — buried, no matter how hard people try.
In my view, a major lesson of the Holocaust is, as mentioned earlier, it’s not — was not inevitable. We know hate never goes away; it only hides. And given a little oxygen, it comes out from under the rocks.
But we also know what stops hate. One thing: all of us.
The late Rabbi Jonathan Sacks described antisemitism as a virus that has survived and mutated over time. Together, we cannot continue to let that happen.
We have to remember our basic principles as a nation. We have an obligation — we have an obligation to learn the lessons of history so we don’t surrender our future to the horrors of the past. We must give hate no safe harbor against anyone — anyone.
From the very founding — our very founding, Jewish Americans, who represent only about 2 percent of the U.S. population, have helped lead the cause of freedom for everyone in our nation. From that experience, we know scapegoating and demonizing any minority is a threat to every minority and the very foundation of our democracy.
So, in moments like this, we have to put these principles that we’re talking about into action.
I understand people have strong beliefs and deep convictions about the world. In America, we respect and protect the fundamental right to free speech, to debate and disagree, to protest peacefully and make our voices heard.
I understand. That’s America.
But there is no place on any campus in America — any place in America — for antisemitism or hate speech or threats of violence of any kind — (applause) — whether against Jews or anyone else.
Violent attacks, destroying property is not peaceful protest. It’s against the law. And we are not a lawless country. We’re a civil society. We uphold the rule of law.
And no one should have to hide or be brave just to be themselves. (Applause.)
To the Jewish community, I want you to know I see your fear, your hurt, and your pain.
Let me reassure you, as your President, you are not alone. You belong. You always have, and you always will.
And my commitment to the safety of the Jewish people, the security of Israel, and its right to exist as an independent Jewish state is ironclad, even when we disagree. (Applause.)
My administration is working around the clock to free remaining hostages, just as we have freed hostages already, and we will not rest until we bring them all home. (Applause.)
My administration, with our Second Gentleman’s leadership, has launched our nation’s first National Sec- — Strategy to Counter Antisemitism that’s mobilizing the full force of the federal government to protect Jewish communities.
But — but we know this is not the work of government alone or Jews alone. That’s why I’m calling on all Americans to stand united against antisemitism and hate in all its forms.
My dear friend, and he became a friend, the late Elie Wiesel, said, quote, “One person of integrity can make a difference.” We have to remember that now more than ever.
Here in Emancipation Hall in the U.S. Capitol, among the towering statues of history, is a bronze bust of Raoul Wallenberg. Born in Sweden as a Lutheran, he was a businessman and a diplomat. While stationed in Hungary during World War Two, he used diplomatic cover to hide and rescue about 100,000 Jews over a six-month period.
Among them was a 16-year-old Jewish boy who escaped a Nazi labor camp. After the war ended, that boy received a scholarship from the Hillel Foundation to study in America. He came to New York City penniless but determined to turn his pain into purpose, along with his wife, also a Holocaust survivor. He became a renowned economist and foreign policy thinker, eventually making his way to this very Capitol on the staff of a first-term senator.
That Jewish refugee was Tom Lantos, and that senator was me.
Tom and his wife, Annette, and their family became dear friends to me and my family. Tom would go on to become the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to Congress, where he became a leading voice on civil rights and human rights around the world.
Tom never met Raoul, who was taken prisoner by the Soviets, never to be heard from again. But through Tom’s efforts, Raoul’s bust is here in the Capitol.
He was also given honorary U.S. citizenship — only the second person ever, after Winston Churchill.
And the Holocaust Museum here in Washington is located on a roal- — a road in Raoul’s name.
The story of the power of a single person to put aside our differences, to see our common humanity, to stand up to hate. And it’s an ancient story of resilience from immense pain, persecution to find hope, purpose, and meaning in life we try to live and share with one another. That story endures.
Let me close with this. I know these Days of Remembrance fall on difficult times. But we all do well to remember these days also fall during the month we celebrate Jewish American heritage — a heritage that stretches from our earliest days to enrich every single part of American life today.
Great American — great Jewish American named Tom Lantos used the phrase, “The veneer of civilization is paper thin. We are its guardians, and we can never rest.”
My fellow Americans, we must — we must be those guardians. We must never rest. We must rise against hate, meet across the divide, see our common humanity.
And God bless the victims and survivors of the Shoah.
May the resilient hearts, the courageous spirit, and the eternal flame of faith of the Jewish people forever shine their light on America and around the world, pray God.
In his keynote address at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Annual Day of Remembrance Celebration, President Biden honors the memory of the six million Jews killed in the Holocaust – and makes clear that we must recommit to heeding the lessons of this dark chapter: ‘Never Again.’ The President raises:
The importance of recounting the crimes of the Holocaust and the events that led to it as the world watched with indifference.
The atrocities of October 7th – the deadliest attack committed against the Jewish people since the Holocaust – and how too many people are downplaying both events.
The unacceptable acts of Antisemitism we’re seeing on campuses and across the country.
How all Americans must stand united against Antisemitism and hate in all its forms.
During Holocaust Remembrance Day, the Biden-Harris Administration announced several new actions to counter the abhorrent rise of Antisemitism in the United States. President Biden will speak at the Days of Remembrance commemoration hosted by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, reaffirming our Nation’s sacred commitment to the Jewish people following the Holocaust: Never Again.
This year’s remembrance is particularly sobering, as it comes seven months after the terrorist group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7th, the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust. Since that time, there has been an alarming rise of Antisemitic incidents across the country and throughout the world—most recently, in instances of violence and hate during some protests at college campuses across the Nation.
Today’s new actions build on the work of the President’s National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, the first-ever such strategy, which was released one year ago this month. The strategy represents the most comprehensive and ambitious U.S. government effort to counter Antisemitism in American history. It includes over 100 actions the Biden-Harris Administration has taken, and continues to take, to address the rise of Antisemitism in the United States, as well as over 100 calls to action for Congress, state and local governments, companies, technology platforms, students, educators, civil society, faith leaders, and others. It has involved actions by the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security to provide greater security to Jewish institutions, as well as actions by the Department of Education to address antisemitism and by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum to further support education around Jewish history.
The Biden-Harris Administration has taken aggressive action to implement the strategy and to speak out forcefully against hate of all kinds, especially in the wake of the October 7th attacks. Through the National Security Supplemental, President Biden secured an additional $400 million for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, which funds security improvements and training to nonprofits and houses of worship, including campus organizations and community centers. This funding has been critical to the security of Jewish institutions. Last week, for example, the Biden-Harris Administration sent a guide to the leadership of more than 5,000 colleges and universities with information on resources to promote campus safety from the Departments of Justice, Homeland Security, and Education.
Today, the Biden-Harris Administration announced additional actions to counter Antisemitism in Year Two of the Strategy, building on its work over the past year:
Today, the Department of Education’s (ED) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued new guidance through a Dear Colleague Letter to every school district and college in the country, providing examples of Antisemitic discrimination, as well as other forms of hate, that could lead to investigations for violations of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI). This guidance is meant to ensure that colleges and universities do a better job of protecting both Jewish students and all of their students.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will work with interagency partners to build an online campus safety resources guide and landing page to provide the range of financial, educational, and technical assistance to campuses in one, easy-to-use website.
DHS will develop and share best practices for community-based targeted violence and terrorism prevention to reduce these assaults and attacks. Federal agencies will elevate ongoing efforts to address the fear felt in targeted communities and ensure that resources are widely known among communities that need them.
The Office of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism at the Department of State will convene technology firms to identify best practices to address Antisemitic content online. Departments and agencies will continue to provide technology companies with relevant information about symbols and themes associated with violent extremism online to help them enforce their terms of service.
These new actions build on actions taken to date:
Title VI Enforcement
ED-OCR has opened more than 100 investigations over the past seven months into complaints alleging discrimination based on shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, including Antisemitism. The previous administration opened 27 such investigations in all four years.
On Friday, Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona sent a letter to more than 5,000 leaders at institutions of higher education across the country to reiterate that federal law protects against Antisemitic discrimination that violates Title VI. He also shared a Campus Safety Resource Guide to serve as a one-stop-shop of federal resources. ED OCR has issued several DearColleague Letters to every school district and college in the country and conducted training and outreach reminding them of their obligation to provide educational environments free from discrimination, as well as the tools available to report discriminatory incidents. OCR maintains a website with more resources on shared ancestry discrimination.
ED OCR updated its complaint form specifying that Title VI’s protection from discrimination, including harassment, based on race, color, or national origin includes discrimination against students based on shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, including those who are or are perceived to be Jewish, Muslim, Arab, Hindu, or Sikh.
Eight Cabinet-level agencies clarified for the first time in writing that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits certain forms of antisemitic, Islamophobic, and related forms of discrimination in federally funded programs and activities. In addition, these agencies—the Departments of Agriculture (USDA), Health and Human Services (HHS), DHS , Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Interior, Labor (DOL), Treasury, and Transportation (DOT)—have taken a number of steps to raise awareness of Title VI protections and other relevant statutes among Jewish and other communities, including by translating Title VI fact sheets into languages such as Yiddish and Hebrew and creating new Title VI landing pages to serve as a one-stop-shop of resources.
Campus and School Safety
Since October 7th, FBI and DHS have taken steps to expand and deepen engagements with campus law enforcement and others to improve school safety. DHS has engaged with schools to identify security enhancements and raise awareness of SchoolSafety.gov, which offers school safety information and resources. DHS also has shared information via threat briefings and partner calls with the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators. The Federal Emergency Management Agency offers a training course called Crisis Management Affecting Institutions of Higher Education: A Collaborative Community Approach, through which campus members can learn how to effectively manage a crisis using a whole community approach, effective crisis communication, and more.
In the wake of October 7th, DHS’s Cybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) tasked its field force to proactively engage with schools to understand and address their needs. CISA has further expanded security capacity-building services to synagogues, community centers, and Jewish day schools. These services include risk assessments, planning assistance, and active shooter and bomb prevention-related training. CISA has held sessions on active shooter preparedness; an introduction to bomb threat management; tabletop exercise packages for synagogues; and a training on responding to suspicious behaviors and items. Since June 2023, CISA personnel have conducted over 400 in-person visits with Jewish houses of worship and other institutions. Additional security trainings, information and resources are found here.
USDA has held sessions with university leaders from 80 land-grant universities and rural colleges to share promising practices to address Antisemitism, Islamophobia, and other forms of hate.
Under the National Strategy, the Department of Justice (DOJ) launched a pilot curriculum for middle and high school-age youth designed to prevent youth hate crimes and identity-based bullying. In year two of the National Strategy, the curriculum will be rolled out this August, before the school year begins.
Community Safety Resources
DHS broadened access to the Nonprofit Security Grant Program by holding several webinars, expanding its Protecting Places of Worship Week of Action, and leveraging partnerships with DOJ. During the Biden-Harris Administration, this program has made 2,960 grants to Jewish institutions for a total of $397 million in funding to Jewish institutions.
To assist campus public safety and law enforcement identify available federal financial assistance opportunities, DHS published guidance clarifying the eligibility of law enforcement agencies at institutions of higher education to receive both State Homeland Security Program (SHSP) and Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) grant funding.
DHS hosts the Prevention Resource Finder to provide stakeholders the full range of federal resources available to help prepare for and prevent targeted violence and terrorism across our country. Resources on the website include community support resources, grant funding opportunities, information-sharing platforms, evidence-based research, and training opportunities for campuses and communities to reduce the risk of hate-based and targeted violence. Since its launch in March 2023, it has been viewed over 58,000 times.
Through the DHS Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3), DHS is strengthening the country’s ability to prevent targeted violence and terrorism nationwide through funding, training, increased public awareness, and partnerships across government, the private sector, and local communities.
The U.S. Secret Service’s National Threat Assessment Center (NTAC) conducts training on threat assessments and the prevention of targeted violence. These resources examine attacks against colleges and universities, among other locations.
Hate Crimes Prevention and Response
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) widely disseminated its updated hate crimes threat response guide to inform Americans about steps they can take if they receive a threat. The guide, published on the FBI’s hate crimes resource page, has been shared with organizations and state and local law enforcement entities across the nation. The FBI reviews every tip it receives to ascertain the credibility of the information and, if it learns of a credible threat, quickly takes action. FBI’s campus liaisons enhance information-sharing with campuses.
DOJ has expanded its engagement with Jewish community groups in support of the National Strategy. The FBI has held over 650 engagements with faith-based and community organizations since October 7th. DOJ and the FBI have used robust and diverse outreach to local law enforcement agencies to improve the reporting of hate crime data. DOJ’s United Against Hate community outreach and engagement initiative has held over 300 engagements involving over 10,000 participants to educate community members about hate crimes, build trust between community and law enforcement, and strengthen local networks to combat unlawful acts of hate. DOJ’s Community Relations Service provides mediation, training and consultation services to assist communities come together, develop solutions to conflict and prevent future conflict. DOJ has also developed and released twodocuments that explain civil rights law prohibiting national origin discrimination and religious discrimination and provide information to the public on identifying and reporting national origin and religious discrimination in the civil and criminal context.
Throughout the spring, USDA is providing hate crime trainings, including Antisemitic hate crimes, for law enforcement agents of the U.S. Forest Service. The Department of the Interior (DOI) has distributed new resources on Jewish American heritage through the National Park Service.
Addressing Discrimination and Religious Accommodations
USDA is making kosher food more accessible by working to ensure equal access to all USDA feeding programs for customers with religious dietary needs.
The Department of Defense (DOD) leveraged existing survey data to estimate the prevalence of Antisemitic and Islamophobic behavior in the military workplace and to evaluate its policies to counter discrimination, discriminatory harassment, and extremist activity. This analysis was the first to specifically estimate Antisemitic and Islamophobic activity in the military workplace.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has disseminated materials on nondiscrimination and religious accommodation in the workplace and has held more than 50 outreach and training events on Antisemitism at its field offices around the country.
The HHS Office for Civil Rights issued a Dear Colleague letter and guidance to U.S. hospital and long-term care facility administrators, reminding organizations of their legal obligations under relevant regulations and federal civil rights laws to ensure that facility visitation policies do not unlawfully discriminate against patients or other individuals receiving care, including on the basis of religion. HHS’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s National Child Traumatic Stress Network has released a toolkit of behavioral health resources pertaining to the Israel-Hamas war, as well as additional resources on how to talk with children and youth about hate crimes and identity-based violence, including Antisemitism.
DOL published a “Know Your Rights” resource for union members regarding their right to be free from discrimination based on religion, national origin, or race in the workplace.
On Thursday, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) will convene state education officials to discuss best practices in Holocaust education, including the incorporation of the history of Antisemitism, and opportunities to expand such education.
The USHMM concluded its first tour of the Americans and the Holocaust traveling exhibitions. Launched in fall 2021, the exhibition visited 41 states, reaching more than 330,000 visitors. Thirty-four college courses have incorporated content from this exhibition. The USHMM and American Library Association will launch a second tour of the exhibition in September 2024 at an additional 50 libraries.
Several federal agencies have incorporated information about Antisemitism, workplace religious accommodations, and related topics into employee training programs as they carry out their obligations under Executive Order 14035 (Executive Order on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in the Federal Workforce). To support this work, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) surveyed federal agencies about their existing trainings. OPM, EEOC, and the White House Office of Management and Budget have provided learning sessions for agency diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility officers on Antisemitism, Islamophobia, and related forms of discrimination, as well as workplace religious accommodations.
Data Tracked by New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services Shows 425 Percent Increase in Online Hate Speech Against Jewish Communities and 417 Percent Increase Against Muslim Communities
Governor Deploys $3 Million to Expand State’s Successful Threat Assessment and Management Team Model to All College Campuses; Builds on State Efforts to Combat Extremist Violence Launched in the Wake of White Supremacist Mass Shooting in Buffalo
Governor Directs Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services to develop a Media Literacy Tool Kit for K-12 Schools to Provide Critical Training and Resources to Youth; State Creates Informational Guide For Parents to Talk to Their Children About Online Hate Speech this Holiday Weekend
Governor Kathy Hochul is deploying new resources to continue combating the ongoing rise in online hate speech across New York, including allocating $3 million to expand the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services’ Domestic Terrorism Prevention Unit’s Threat Assessment and Management training to all colleges and universities in New York State.
The Governor also directed the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services to develop and distribute a media literacy toolkit to help public school educators teach their students how to spot misinformation/disinformation/malinformation (“MDM”) online, sent a letter to major social media companies calling for increased monitoring of content that could incite violence, and released an informational guide for parents to help start conversations around the destructive impacts of hate and hate speech with young adults upon their returns home during the holiday season.
These actions follow a 400 percent increase in nationwide antisemitic and Islamophobic threats online since the beginning of October and the continued spread of hate speech in online spaces.
“The rising tide of hate is putting all New Yorkers at risk — and as Governor, I’m committed to tackling this crisis head-on,” Governor Hochul said. “We’re deploying physical security resources, expanding our Threat Management and Assessment teams, calling for stronger action from social media companies, and encouraging families and communities to come together to fight hate. New York has always been a beacon of hope, tolerance and inclusivity, and we will be defined by how we come together to condemn hate in all forms.”
In remarks introducing the measures, Governor Hochul said:
Across our state, New Yorkers are afraid. If they have family or friends in Israel, in Gaza, other places, they’re afraid for their safety. At home, many people are wrestling with the fear for the first time ever sometime in their lives of being the victim of a hate crime. I wish I could tell you these concerns were misplaced, but tragically the data all across America is showing that hate crimes have surged in the last six weeks.
Since October 7, there has been a 400 percent increase in threats against Jews, Muslims, and Arabs. And make no mistake, we’ve not stood idly by. My number one priority has been and will continue to be protecting the safety of our residents. That’s why I want to inform you about some of the actions that we’re taking to keep New Yorkers safe from extremism and violence.
We have a four pillar plan. It’s comprehensive and it’s far reaching. First of all, we’re strengthening physical security of locations. We’re also making the digital world safer by identifying credible, online threats. And we’re also calling out social media companies who have failed their responsibility to create a safe, public square. And creating resources and toolkits for parents and schools alike.
First, let me share how we’ve already taken action to protect our vulnerable communities safe, and to protect physical security. Two weeks ago, I told New Yorkers we were activating law enforcement to protect them. We mobilized State Police to protect at risk sites. We established a hate and bias reporting hotline. We made $50 million available for local law enforcement, $25 million to protect vulnerable locations.
We also encouraged the use and understanding of our red flag laws to ensure that guns don’t get into the hate filled hands of individuals looking to do harm to others. That’s just the start. Let’s talk today about what we’re trying to do to make the digital world safer. We know that social media is an emotion amplifier. If the emotion is love, and that’s amplified, that is a good dynamic. If the emotion is hate, and that’s amplified, that’s the chaos that we’re falling into today.
It can also amplify the hate that just boils up from this toxic stew of ignorance, and it becomes festered online. So we’re creating strategies, for the first time ever, to help identify hate at the source and prevent crimes before they occur. As I’ve often said, I’d rather be in the business of preventing crimes than solving them.
And that’s where our threat assessment and management teams come in – the TAM teams. This is an initiative I actually launched over a year and a half ago in the aftermath of the Buffalo Massacre after a racist shooting by a white supremacist who targeted 10 of my neighbors. That’s when we activated more surveillance of critical threats for harm online.
They work to track and stop violent acts of hate before they happen. And today, I’m announcing $3 million in additional investment to ensure that every single college campus now has these in the State of New York. So let me be clear. These teams are working to identify violent threats. They’re not looking at your Instagram sunset post or your tweets about your favorite football team.
And they’re not here to penalize anyone for their political views. They have a simple goal, to find out what’s driving hateful behavior and intervene early before harm is done. And to give people who are being radicalized online an off ramp. They work with mental health professionals, establish reporting systems, so classmates and others can raise red flags and train adults on how to spot the warning signs.
We have 36 county-based TAM teams right now. Again, these are the threat assessment and management teams. They’re already tackling over 50 cases now as we speak. But that’s just one strategy to help protect New Yorkers online. We’re building off the success of other initiatives. We already use targeted ads to encourage people to anonymously seek help from trained counselors. We have that going on as we speak.
But also, help parents understand what’s available to them. If they start seeing signs that their own child could be radicalized online, because I assure you, most parents are never aware. And we’re also continuing to train our mental health professionals in de-radicalization strategies. But here’s the truth, so much of this hate originates on social media platforms like TikTok who refuse to take action necessary to protect our children and young people.
Just look at what happened this week. A prominent message, shared on TikTok, was one from none other than the mastermind of the 9/11 massacre of thousands of New Yorkers, Osama bin Laden. It was shocking to see young people extolling the virtues of a terrorist kingpin. That only proves the power that social media has over our young people. And therefore, they have a responsibility.
I refuse to accept this as the new status quo. That’s why I’m pushing back against these companies, pushing back hard. And as the steward of the 21st Century public square, TikTok and other social media companies, they must start to regulate vile hate speech that originates on their platforms.
They say they do this, but it’s a responsibility they’ve obviously neglected to uphold. That’s why I’ve called out the leadership of every major social media company to express not just my indignation, but to demand that they take concrete action to reduce the sickening hate that is being spread on their sites.
They need better oversight, they need larger moderation teams, and greater transparency. And I told them that in a letter that I’ll be releasing to all of them today. I’m expecting a response. I’m expecting a response from all of them.
Now you know what we’re doing in our attempt to stop hate on social media. I want to be clear about what we’re not doing. We’re not preventing anyone from exercising their First Amendment rights to speak. We’re not preventing anyone’s right to peacefully assemble. We’re not blocking anyone from expressing opposition or support for political or military action in the Middle East. That’s what we’re not doing. But we’re not tolerating the spread of hate. That’s the difference.
And the final component of our efforts centers around empowering educators and parents about the power of these radicalization efforts, and how to take steps for de-radicalization, to dial down the temperature, to bring back some sense of calm and normalcy that seems to be so evasive these days.
Let’s start with our schools. Today I’m directing the Director of the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services to develop media literacy tools for K-12 in our public schools. This will teach students, and even teachers, to help understand how to spot conspiracy theories and misinformation, disinformation, and online hate. Start talking about what we’re seeing out there. Give the teachers the tools they need to help these conversations in school.
And by teaching younger New Yorkers about how to discern between digital fact and digital fiction, we can better inoculate them from hatred and the spread of it and help prepare them for a very fast moving and often confusing world.
And now I want to speak to parents directly. As a mom, I know as we approach this holiday season, Thanksgiving, it offers a meaningful and sometimes rare opportunity to gather everyone around the table – your children, younger, high school students, college kids who may be home for the first time since they left you in August. I encourage you to talk to your kids, not just about the rise in hate, but listen to them too.
Ask them what’s going on in their school and on their campuses and what their friends are talking about. Be the adult in the room. Listen to them, but help them find the path. What are they seeing? What does it feel like? Are they subjected to this? Are they seeing their classmates being so hurt by vile speech and signs at protests? How does it make them feel? Encourage your children, especially the older ones. Don’t just be a bystander, be an upstander. Stand up for your classmates, stand up for your friends.
And talk about engaging each other in a respectful, tolerant way because the lessons that are being taught now, what young people are absorbing and understanding, will be with them for the rest of their lives. This is a time of great influence on our young people. And parents have a responsibility and an opportunity to guide them to do what’s right so as adults, they understand the beauty of diversity, celebrate our differences. But also, if you’re a parent who’s worried about the path your child is on, you’re seeing things, you’re hearing things, you’re anxious, there are opportunities for you as well.
Explain to your children the difference between disagreeing on a policy that a government may take and displaying hate toward an entire group of innocent people. There is a difference. And counselors are available to help parents as well with the messaging, how you help reduce the tension.
The only way that New York State stands true to our core values of tolerance and inclusivity is for all of us to do our part to create the kind of society we want to live in. At the end of the day, what is New York but a place that’s comprised of people from all over the world? They come here because they’re persecuted elsewhere. They came here for a better life. Jewish, Muslim, Arab, Black, Brown, White, young, old – it doesn’t matter. They all came here. They’re living here, and there’s so much out there that should bring us together instead of driving us further apart. We don’t always have to agree with each other. I don’t expect we will. Most people don’t agree with the person sitting across them at the Thanksgiving dinner table. But that’s all right. Just do it with respect and a foundation of understanding and love.
And honestly, that’s what the majority of New Yorkers are doing. Most of us walk through the world with care in our hearts and reject hate wherever it appears. That’s why I will not allow our state to be defined by the angry few that peddle in hate and violence. Instead, as Governor, I’ll continue to remind us of our shared values so going forward, we’ll be defined by how we come together to condemn, with one voice, the evils of antisemitism and Islamophobia, which are so rampant today.
As always, the nation, and indeed the world, are watching, waiting for New York to lead. And that’s exactly what we’re doing here today.
With a new $3 million investment in the DHSES’ Domestic Terrorism Prevention Unit’s (DTPU) the State will expand its Threat Assessment and Management (TAM) training and support to all colleges and universities statewide.
The DTPU will conduct training for New York State colleges and universities; educate school administrators, professors, and staff on how to develop and maintain TAM teams; and provide constant training to supported entities. DHSES will also help connect existing networks that are currently operational within the SUNY and CUNY systems and ensure information sharing between these new college and university TAM efforts and the county-led multidisciplinary TAM teams being established across the state since the May 2022 domestic terror attack in Buffalo, New York.
Under this effort, these new TAM Teams would:
Use multidisciplinary teams of trained professionals to assess risk and create management plans for individuals on the pathway to violence;
Recognize concerning behaviors and define appropriate escalation protocols;
Establish a centralized reporting mechanism to receive reports of concerning behaviors from students and other bystanders; and
Educate administrative staff and professors on risk factors and warning signs to identify concerning behaviors early before an escalation to violence.
Recent international events have had direct impacts here in New York, including the Israel-Hamas conflict and the War in Ukraine. Each have led to a surge in the on-line spread of misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation. MDM has been used by foreign adversaries and domestic extremists to sow divisions among New Yorkers and reduce community cohesion, as well as cause anxiety, fear, and confusion. With the prevalence of MDM, and an increasing percentage of young people receiving their news and information through online sources, its important students are prepared to think critically about the sources of information they engage with and how to interpret it.
As part of the new media literacy program, the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services (DHSES) will partner with education experts in media literacy to develop and distribute an age-appropriate, ideologically neutral toolkit on media literacy for students in primary and secondary schools throughout New York. This proven approach to understanding information will develop students’ ability to analyze, evaluate, and assess all forms of media including information delivered through social media. Utilizing various age-dependent trainings, this media literacy toolkit will encourage critical thinking and create a better understanding of how media systems work and the many equities that may be in play when someone chooses to distribute information online.
The holidays are also a time to reflect on the importance of family and what it means to be part of a community as unique and diverse as New York. As the holidays approach, the Governor is calling on New York families to discuss the importance of inclusivity, pluralism, and rejecting bigotry. With so many college and university students returning home for Thanksgiving, New York has produced an informational guide for parents to help start conversations around the destructive impacts of hate and hate speech.
“There has been a disturbing rise in online hate, especially when it comes to antisemitic, Islamophobic and anti-Arab threats. Now more than ever, its critical young adults have the tools they need to be able to critically analyze what they see online and help prevent the further spread of hateful rhetoric,” New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services Commissioner Jackie Bray said.
These new initiatives build on the extensive work already underway in New York to address the spread of hate and extremist violence.
In the immediate aftermath of May 2022’s racist mass shooting in Buffalo, Governor Hochul signed Executive Order 18 which required each county and New York City develop Domestic Terrorism Prevention Plans; and created the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Unit within DHSES, to support the creation of local Threat Assessment and Management – or TAM – teams. These multi-disciplinary teams bring together law enforcement, mental health professionals, school officials, and other community stakeholders to identify, assess, and manage threats of targeted violence.
Since the launch of this effort, 36 of the 58 counties outside of New York City have established TAM teams. Sixteen of the 36 teams are already meeting and hearing cases, while the remaining 20 are meeting and expected to begin hearing cases in the near future. All counties in New York have expressed their intent to create a TAM team. Prior to Governor Hochul’s Executive Order 18, there were only three county-based TAM teams statewide, which were supported through grants from DHSES.
In the last quarter alone, TAM teams held 53 meetings and reviewed dozens of cases that were referred by variety of community stakeholders:
94 percent of these teams had at least one case referred to them by law enforcement. 67 percent of these teams had at least one case referred to them by an educational partner. 53 percent of these teams had at least one case referred to them by a mental health partner; and 27 percent of these teams had at least one case referred to them by social services.
Other key stakeholders, such as public health professionals, religious and culture institutions, and private sector entities, also reported cases to TAM teams.
In November 2023, Governor Hochul has activated law enforcement to keep New Yorkers safe by mobilizing the State Police to increase protection. This included $50 million made available to law enforcement to expand the use of the red flag law and $25 million in security.
The Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services (DHSES) provides leadership, coordination, and support to prevent, protect against, prepare for, respond to, recover from, and mitigate disasters and other emergencies. For more information, follow @NYSDHSES on Facebook, Instagram, and X (formerly known as Twitter) or visit dhses.ny.gov.
“We can’t stand by and stand silent [in the wake of Antisemitic and Islamophobic incidents]. We must, without equivocation, denounce Antisemitism. We must also, without equivocation, denounce Islamophobia.” – President Biden
The Biden-Harris Administration is taking new actions and resources to address the alarming rise of reported Antisemitic and Islamophobic incidents at schools and on college campuses since the October 7th Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel. These actions will help protect students, engage school and university leaders, and foster safe and supportive learning environments.
The Justice Department (DOJ) has published an updated hate crimes threat response guide from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to inform Americans about the steps they can take if they receive a threat. The guide, published on the FBI’s hate crimes resource page, has been shared with organizations and state and local law enforcement entities across the nation.
Actions the Department of Education (ED) is taking include:
The National Center for Safe and Supportive Learning Environments, a technical assistance center funded by ED, is releasing two collections of specialized resources designed to help educators, students, parents, and community members prevent Antisemitism, Islamophobia, and related forms of discrimination – one for P-12 schools and the other for institutions of higher education.
This week, senior ED leaders will host listening sessions with P-12 school leaders and university leaders to glean key insights from the field about how some schools are keeping students safe in the wake of the Israel-Hamas conflict. In addition, listening sessions with Jewish, Muslim, Arab, Palestinian, Sikh, and other students, educators, and staff are planned for the next few weeks. ED will share notable examples of ways schools and campuses can prevent and address Antisemitism and Islamophobia.
Additionally, on December 6th, ED’s Office of Elementary and Secondary Education will launch a webinar series to develop, strengthen, and share evidence-informed strategies that help schools prevent and respond to hate-based threats, bullying, and harassment. The webinar series kicks off with a session on “Creating a Welcoming Environment” on Dec. 6, followed by webinars on “Full Student Participation” on Dec. 13, “Conflict Mediation” on Jan. 17, and “Ongoing Support” in February.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) USDA is partnering with the Department of Education and Muslim and Jewish groups to host a webinar on November 16 on best practices for countering Antisemitism, Islamophobia, and other forms of hatred on rural college campuses.
Additional actions by the Biden-Harris Administration to combat Antisemitism and Islamophobia at schools and on college campuses include:
The Departments of Homeland Security (DHS) and Justice (DOJ) have taken the following steps to increase campus safety:
DHS and DOJ have disseminated public safety information to and hosted calls with campus law enforcement as part of broader outreach to state, local, tribal, and territorial officials to address the threat environment and share information about available resources. DHS has also shared relevant resources with campus partners nationwide. As part of its continued outreach to campuses, DHS’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is leveraging its 10 Regional field offices and their vast capabilities to conduct outreach and provide resources, tools, and services to K-12 and higher educational institutions to support their security requirements. On behalf of the U.S. Departments of Education, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, and Justice, CISA continues to oversee the SchoolSafety.gov platform, which provides schools and districts with actionable recommendations to create safe and supportive environments for students and educators. The site serves as a one-stop access point for information, resources, guidance, and evidence-based practices on a range of school safety topics and threats. On Oct. 30, the DOJ announced that is awarding over $38 million in grants to support the investigation and prosecution of hate crimes, increase hate crimes reporting, expand victim services, and improve community awareness. This includes over $8 million in grants to community-based organizations and civil rights groups, including awards to organizations serving Jewish and Arab American communities.
DOJ’s Community Relations Service continues to provide support on college campuses and remains in dialogue with Jewish, Muslim, Arab, and other impacted communities on college campuses nationwide.
ED has taken a number of steps to address prohibited forms of Antisemitic and Islamophobic discrimination under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI).
On Nov. 7, ED’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a new Dear Colleague Letter reminding schools of their legal obligations under Title VI to provide all students, including students who are or are perceived to be Jewish, Israeli, Muslim, Arab, or Palestinian, a school environment free from discrimination based on race, color, or national origin. Secretary Cardona also has cautioned that if schools violate those obligations, ED has the authority to investigate and take action to redress violations, including by withholding federal dollars. As ED noted in the letter, the Department interprets its regulations consistent with the requirements of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Therefore, all of ED’s actions enforcing Title VI must comport with First Amendment principles, and ED’s regulations should not be interpreted to require recipients to enact or enforce codes that punish the exercise of protected free speech. ED OCR also recently released an updated complaint form specifying that Title VI’s protection from discrimination based on race, color, or national origin extends to students who are or are perceived to be Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, or Sikh, or based on other shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics—making it easier for students and others who experience such discrimination to seek redress for it. ED additionally made clear that anyone who believes that a school has discriminated against a student based on race, color, or national origin may file a complaint of discrimination with ED OCR, and that the person who files the complaint need not have been the target of the alleged violation. ED continues to offer technical assistance webinars to school communities as well as community organizations on these applications of Title VI. To request such a training, please contact ED OCR at [email protected].
ED also continues to offer information about recently resolved complaints under Title VI, including complaints alleging discrimination based on shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics. That information is available here.
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced a series of actions to deploy all available resources to keep New Yorkers safe following a surge in hate and bias incidents in the weeks following the October 7 Hamas terror attacks.
In an address to New Yorkers, Governor Hochul highlighted $50 million available for local law enforcement agencies to prevent and solve hate crimes and other crimes, $25 million in security funding for at-risk community groups and cultural centers, an expansion of the New York State Police’s social media analysis unit, and a new initiative from the Division of Human Rights. Governor Hochul also announced that Judge Jonathan Lippman, the widely respected former Chief Judge of New York and Chief Judge of the New York State Court of Appeals, will conduct an independent third-party review of the City University of New York’s policies and procedures related to antisemitism and discrimination.
“My top priority is to protect the safety and well-being of all New Yorkers,” Governor Hochul said. “Let me be clear: we cannot allow hate and intimidation to become normalized. As Governor, I reaffirm that there is zero tolerance in New York for antisemitism, Islamophobia, or hate of any kind, and it’s critical we deploy every possible state resource to keep New Yorkers safe.”
“In this moment, it is critical that we look out for each other and ensure New Yorkers from all backgrounds are protected from hate and supported with love,” said Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado.“We will make sure communities across our state are safe and that people are free to be who they are.”
The AntiDefamation League has documented a 400 percent increase in anti-Semitic incidents since the start of the Israel-Hamas War on October 7th.
$50 Million for Law Enforcement Agencies Across the State
New York State is making $50 million available in law enforcement technology and equipment to modernize their operations and more effectively solve and prevent crimes, including hate crimes. DCJS is administering the funding and the deadline for submissions is noon on Wednesday, November 8, 2023. DCJS issued the request for applications after obtaining feedback from police departments and sheriffs’ offices last fall about the type of technology and equipment they need. Agencies can seek funding for a variety of equipment and technology, including but not limited to license plate readers, mobile and fixed surveillance cameras, computer-aided dispatch systems, software, unmanned aerial vehicles, gunshot detection devices, and smart equipment for patrol vehicles and police officers.
$25 Million for Securing Communities Against Hate Crimes Grants
Governor Hochul announced an additional $25 million for the Securing Communities Against Hate Crimes (SCAHC) grants are available. Given ongoing hate and extremism at home and abord, the Governor also directed DCJS to develop new innovations and strategies to incorporate within the SCAHC program in the future – such as increases to the maximum award amount, a streamlined, rolling application process, and evaluations of the deployed protective equipment and technology. These potential changes will help respond to the current needs and challenges faced by organizations that are at-risk of hate crimes.
In July, the Governor announced the most recent SCAHC funding awards to 497 organizations statewide for 1,081 projects totaling $51,680,910, with $8,899,091 going toward 187 cybersecurity projects. Administered by DCJS, the SCAHC program provides funding to strengthen security measures and prevent hate crimes against nonprofit community and civic centers, cultural museums, day care centers, and other nonprofit organizations that may be vulnerable because of their ideology, beliefs, or mission. This funding can be used to support exterior or interior security improvements, including but not limited to lighting, locks, alarms, panic buttons, fencing, barriers, access controls, shatter-resistant glass and blast-resistant film, public address systems, and for the first time, measures to strengthen cybersecurity. Funds can also cover costs associated with security training.
Third-Party Review of CUNY Policies and Procedures Related to Antisemitism and Discrimination
The review of CUNY policies and procedures, which Governor Hochul has asked Judge Jonathan Lippman to conduct, will include recommended actions for the CUNY Board of Trustees to bolster its antidiscrimination polices and help protect Jewish students and faculty. Judge Lippman, of Counsel in the New York office of Latham & Watkins, will be supported by his firm in the review. The review is expected to include interviews, research, and other consultations and to cover the following topics:
Campus environment, including an assessment of attitudes and perspectives of antisemitism on various CUNY campuses.
Current University policies, procedures, and systems of investigating antisemitism complaints.
Consistency of treatment by the University in handling of antisemitism complaints and all other types of discrimination.
Appropriate balance of free speech rights with protection of students’ right to receive education free of antisemitic threats, intimidation, or discrimination.
A report of Judge Lippman’s findings is expected in the Spring.
“As a Judge and lawyer, my focus has always been first and foremost on fairness and equal justice,” said Judge Jonathan Lippman. “That same sense of fairness, and freedom from intimidation, for Jewish students and all others in CUNY’s academic community, will be at the center of my review. Antisemitism and discrimination in all its forms are unacceptable and I am honored that the Governor has asked me to carry out this important task.”
Expand Social Media Analysis to Identify Threats and Criminal Activity
The New York State Police use publicly available social media activity and posts to assist in identifying credible criminal activity happening in the state. But the pool of information is so large and rapidly changing that the State Police’s current efforts only scratch the surface of what is possible to detect and interdict.
Governor Hochul announced an additional $700,000 to enhance the Social Media Analysis Unit at the NYSIC by staffing a team of analysts to perform daily analysis of publicly available social media activity — particularly that which pertains to school violence threats, gang activity, and illegal firearms — to tie information back to existing criminal investigations, initiate new investigations, and communicate information on threats to appropriate field personnel.
Community Circles
In response to recent events in the Middle East, The Division of Human Rights (DHR) Hate and Bias Prevention Unit will be offering community circles to discuss how community members have been affected by these events and to help each other as we struggle to cope and heal. These Circles will be in-person and will be community specific, to allow for a safe space for all.
This announcement builds on Governor Hochul’s efforts to increase safety protocols against hate and bias crimes in the wake of Hamas’ attack on Israel. Last week, Governor Hochul announced the launch of a new hotline and online form for New Yorkers to be able to quickly report hate and bias incidents. Immediately following the Hamas terror attacks, Governor Hochul fully activated the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services Office of Counterterrorism, expanded State Police monitoring of social media, and directed MTA and Port Authority leaders to patrol high-risk transit hubs. In July, Governor Hochul announced more than $51 million in grant funding to improve safety and security of organizations at risk of hate crimes.
The Office of Victim Services supports 239 victim assistance programs statewide that provide direct services and support to victims and survivors of crime and their families, as well as reimbursement and compensation for crime-related expenses if an individual has no other resources to pay for them. Visit ovs.ny.gov for more information.
New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services Commissioner Jackie Bray said, “Coordination across levels of government and agencies is essential to protect New Yorkers. This investment will strengthen the partnership between New York State and the FBI and increase everyone’s capacity to curtail and stop hate fueled violence.”
New York State Office of Victims Services Director Elizabeth Cronin said, “Experiencing any crime can be traumatizing for victims, but being the victim of a hate crime can have a devastating impact on not only a person’s physical health, but also their mental health. We offer resources and support for these victims and survivors to help them move forward. I applaud Governor Hochul’s commitment to ensuring that all New Yorkers are safe on our streets.”
Amid record rates of antisemitism and hate crimes – given added fuel with the Israel-Hamas war – for the first time, eight federal agencies make clear that a key civil rights protection prohibits certain forms of antisemitism; actions are major deliverable in implementing the President’s National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism.
According to an Oct. 7 analysis by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), the instances of antisemitic rhetoric and calls for violence against Jews social media greatly increased following Hamas’ sneak attack on Israel earlier that day which killed more than 1,200 Israelis and resulted in hundreds more being taken hostage. On platforms favored by white supremacist extremists, however, hateful and violent rhetoric targeting Jews increased by 488 percent, the ADL said. New York State, New York City, and Long Island, home to the largest population of Jews outside of Israel, have had to step up police protection.
New York State Governor Kathy Hochul led a bipartisan coalition of 17 governors to stand in solidarity with Israel, issuing a joint letter to federal leaders to express the broad support for Israel and condemnation of terror attacks from Hamas on October 17. The governors also reaffirmed their commitment to work with the U.S. Department of State to ensure the safe return of Americans.
“The bonds between America and Israel are unbreakable – now and forever,” Governor Hochul said. “As the Governor of the largest Jewish population outside Israel, I recognize we have a unique and solemn responsibility to support Israel during this critical moment. I’m proud to stand with my fellow Governors to show our support for Israel, and grateful to my colleagues for their bold moral leadership.”
The letter reads:
As Governors representing more than 144,000,000 Americans, we stand with Israel and unequivocally condemn the despicable acts of war and terror perpetrated by Hamas on Saturday, October 7, 2023, which have already claimed the lives of hundreds of innocent people in Israel. In the days since these initial attacks, we have joined with members of our communities to mourn and pray, and we have experienced first-hand the deep emotional toll this horrendous evil has taken on so many. We also know that there are several Americans that have already been confirmed killed as a result of this violence, and we know that number is likely to rise in the days ahead.
We stand united in support of Israel in its efforts to secure the safe return of hostages and ensure the ongoing safety of its people. We commend President Biden for his swift response in providing increased military assistance to Israel, and members of Congress from both parties for their firm statements of support for Israel. We urge immediate and continued U.S. aid to Israel in the weeks and months to come. We also urge the Senate to swiftly confirm nominees to key diplomatic roles in the region, including ambassador roles in Israel, Egypt, Lebanon, Oman, and Kuwait as well as move forward with consideration of all pending military nominations and promotions to ensure that our most experienced leaders are occupying the most important jobs for our national defense.
Each of us has taken action in our respective states to increase security in Jewish communities and at Jewish houses of worship. Given these concerns, and the rise of antisemitism across the country, Congress should ensure funding for states and local governments to support activities and programs to ensure resources to safeguard houses of worship and religious-affiliated groups are available to combat antisemitism at home. We will continue to work with federal, state, and local law enforcement to monitor for potential domestic threats and provide support to community leaders as needed.
We stand ready to provide additional support to Israel and to work with the United States Department of State to ensure the safe return of Americans in Israel. Our prayers remain with those who have been lost, their loved ones, the people of Israel, and the Jewish community worldwide.
This fact sheet was provided by the White House on September 28, 2023, more than a week before Hamas massacre of 1400 Israelis in surprise attacks on October 7: As part of President Biden’s National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, eight federal agencies clarified—for the first time in writing—that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits certain forms of antisemitic, Islamophobic, and related forms of discrimination in federally funded programs and activities. These wide-ranging protections provide important tools to curb discrimination based on shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics and to better protect the civil rights of all Americans.
The Departments of Agriculture, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, Treasury, and Transportation will also ensure that agency staff understand and are ready to respond to this kind of discrimination, engage with entities that are prohibited from discriminating in these ways to explain their legal responsibilities, and inform communities of their rights to be free from such discrimination and how to file complaints. In addition, the agencies will continue to investigate complaints under Title VI and other civil rights authorities and vigorously enforce protections within federally funded programs and activities they administer. Examples include shielding people from harassment or discrimination on transit systems funded by the Department of Transportation (DOT); in housing funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD); or in U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)-funded food programs.
Each agency today is clarifying the ways in which Title VI covers discrimination on the basis of shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, including certain forms of antisemitism, Islamophobia, and related forms of bias and discrimination. These actions were developed with support from the Department of Justice (DOJ) and provide details about how these protections may cover individuals of many different faith traditions, such as people who are Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, Christian, Hindu, or Buddhist. Agency fact sheets are being translated into Yiddish, Hebrew, Arabic, Punjabi, and other languages to ensure that a diverse array of populations can access this vital civil rights information, and additional languages will be available upon request.
Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act applies to all programs and activities supported by federal financial assistance. Thus, these protections are wide-ranging and provide important tools to prevent and curb discrimination. Today’s announcement is a deliverable of President Biden’s National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, released in May 2023. This strategy represents the most comprehensive and ambitious U.S. government effort to counter antisemitism in American history. It includes over 100 actions the Biden-Harris Administration is taking to address the rise of antisemitism in the U.S. Since the release of the strategy, agencies have taken dozens of actions. Highlights include:
• The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Department of Justice (DOJ) published a resource guide for houses of worship and other faith-based institutions to increase security while sustaining an open and welcoming environment.
• DHS has held listening sessions nationwide with communities impacted by targeted violence to better understand evolving threats and address their safety and security needs, with an emphasis on underserved communities. These sessions are ongoing and will help improve accessibility and information-sharing of DHS’ resources to meet the needs of those impacted by hate-motivated violence.
• The Department of Education (ED) launched an Antisemitism Awareness Campaign to ensure all students are able to attend schools free of discrimination. To open this campaign, in May, ED issued a Dear Colleague Letter specifically on antisemitism to schools, reminding them of their legal obligation under Title VI. The Department of Education has long detailed how Title VI applies to shared ancestry and ethnic characteristics in the educational setting. To further these crucial efforts to counter antisemitism, today, ED will launch the first of several Fall site visits to address and learn about antisemitism at schools and colleges. Deputy Secretary of Education Cindy Marten will visit the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco to engage with students, educators, school administrators, and community leaders around countering antisemitism. Then, the ED team will join San Francisco Hillel for a closed-door conversation with Jewish students from Bay Area colleges around their experiences of antisemitism on college campuses.
• The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency at DHS is expanding security capacity-building services to historically targeted communities, including Jewish communities. This includes sessions on active shooter preparedness; an introduction to bomb threat management; tabletop exercise packages for places of worship, such as synagogues; a training on responding to suspicious behaviors and items; and a workshop held at the White House, in cooperation with the White House and DHS Offices of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, on Sept. 28.
• DOJ released updated informational materials about the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), which provide an overview of the law and DOJ’s enforcement efforts, as well as information about how to identify and report violations. DOJ also announced that it will host a series of outreach events on RLUIPA in 2023 and 2024.
• By the end of September, DOJ will launch the United Against Hate program in all 94 of its U.S. Attorneys’ Offices to strengthen trust between law enforcement and communities that are often the targets of hate, including Jewish communities, teach community members how to identify and report hate crimes and hate incidents. DOJ has already held more than 200 events nationwide.
• DOT, through the Federal Transit Administration, has initiated research to identify the data available at the transit-agency level to better understand the extent to which race, ethnicity, and religion or religious appearance impact assaults on, harassment of, and discrimination against transit riders, including antisemitism. DOT completed interviews at the nine largest transit agencies in the United States and plans to share its findings in a future report.
• The Small Business Administration (SBA) is providing training and resources for small business owners and employees on preventing and responding to antisemitism, Islamophobia, and related forms of hate. For example, SBA is working with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to encourage small businesses and employees to report antisemitic and other hate incidents to the proper authorities. SBA will host a webinar to share these resources broadly.
• The EEOC has disseminated materials on nondiscrimination and religious accommodations in the workplace, including a fact sheet to inform employees of their rights when they face antisemitism at work. Since last October, it has held more than 40 outreach and training events at its field offices around the country.
• HUD issued a letter to 200 federally-funded fair housing partners on how to identify and counter antisemitism, Islamophobia, and related forms of bias and discrimination in housing.
• The U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) will extend its national tour of the Americans and the Holocaust exhibition at public and academic libraries in partnership with the American Library Association. To date, it has reached more than 300,000 visitors at 50 host sites across the country. The tour will continue to an additional 50 libraries in 2024.
• AmeriCorps circulated resources to its grantees and sponsors, who support about 200,000 AmeriCorps members and AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers in nearly 40,000 locations across the country, on ways to help counter antisemitism and hate, and enhance the physical security of religious communities.
• The Department of the Interior (DOI) is distributing new resources on Jewish American heritage through the National Park Service (NPS). Additionally, starting in October, NPS will integrate guidance on stopping or preventing antisemitic behavior in parks into staff trainings. NPS will also add tools on countering antisemitism to bystander intervention and conflict de-escalation trainings that are available to all DOI staff.
• In November, USDA will host a summit in Omaha, Nebraska that will include a diverse group of more than 100 religious leaders from across the country to assess the state of antisemitism, highlight effective strategies to counter antisemitism, and build solidarity across faiths.
• The Department of State and the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism produced a report documenting existing overseas programs, policies, and actions that counter antisemitism to help inform domestic efforts to counter antisemitism.
• The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is providing ongoing trainings on antidiscrimination laws to medical students nationwide. HHS is also holding listening sessions with Jewish and Muslim chaplains on religious discrimination in healthcare settings. These sessions will inform future HHS departmental priorities.
• The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) will launch its Artists for Understanding and Connecting initiative in October. Through this work, the NEA will raise awareness of the power of the arts to counter antisemitism, Islamophobia and others forms of hate.
• The National Endowment for the Humanities has placed a special call for applications within existing funding opportunities to encourage research and projects on antisemitism and Islamophobia. Additionally, last week, NEH announced $2.8 million in funding in every state and jurisdiction through its United We Stand: Connecting Through Culture initiative for humanities-based programming that counters hate-motivated violence as well as antisemitism, Islamophobia, and related forms of bias and discrimination in the United States.
This year’s Israel Day Parade along New York City’s Fifth Avenue, themed “Israel @75: Renewing the Hope,” celebrated the nation’s 75th anniversary since its historic founding, and may well have been the largest.
With some 40,000 marchers from throughout New York City, Long Island, Westchester, Rockland, New Jersey and as far as Pennsylvania, Ohio and Canada, it is the largest display of solidarity for Israel in the world.
This year’s was especially jubilant, and is typical, not without its protesters. This year, many of those marching, as well as a smattering on the sidelines, held signs in support of the pro-democracy movement
The Israel Day Parade (also known as the Salute to Israel or the Celebrate Israel Parade) is an annual parade held in New York City each June to celebrate the creation of the State of Israel in 1948.
The parade is billed by the organizers as the largest meeting of people in support of the nation of Israel in the world.
As is the tradition, the parade got underway with the blowing of shofars – Stanley Hochhauser, a CPA from Hicksville, Long Island has done the honors for the past 25 years – to open the festivities, followed by colorful floats and marching bands.
Another tradition of the Israel Day Parade are the protesters.
Marchers, who had been showing great energy and enthusiasm, became most animated when hit the line of anti-Israel/anti-Zionism protesters – a cluster of ultra-Orthodox Jews co-existing with pro-Palestinian protesters. Joyful chants of celebration turned to angry defiant ones.
The youngest children were bewildered at seeing ultra-Orthodox Jews who condemn the creation of Israel (until the messiah has come) allied with pro-Palestinians; teen boys were the most animated in a not-going-to-take-it-anymore way, felt empowered being in the majority, separated by fencing, and for one of the rare times in Jewish history, with the power-edge. And their respective group organizers did an excellent job of moving people along in order to avoid any confrontation.
Further up along the march, the protesters were pro-israel but anti Netanyahu’s far-right bend toward authoritarianism. Many of the 40,000 marchers celebrating Israel’s 75th year of Independence also carried signs “Freedom. Equality. Democracy.”
But 40,000 to perhaps 100, if that many. A rare imbalance of that proportion to a minority people that has suffered anti-Semitism since the beginning of time, with the exception of Israel, founded as a Jewish state.
It is an opportunity for politicians to also show their solidarity with Israel – among them, US Senator Charles Schumer, who noted he is the highest ranking American Jew ever in government (higher than Douglas Emhoff,the first ever Jewish Second Gentleman); Congressman Jerrold Nadler, Governor Kathy Hochul, Attorney General Letitia James (who notes she spent 10 years as the representative for Crown Heights, Brooklyn), Comptroller Tom DiNapoli, NYC Mayor Eric Adams and the City’s Councilmembers; Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman and County Legislator Mazi Melesa Pilip.
Among the celebrities, Dr. Ruth Westheimer, the renowned sex therapist, media personality and a Holocaust survivor.
The parade, along Fifth Avenue from 57th Street to 77th Street, has been an annual event in New York 1965,when thousands of American Zionist youth walked down Riverside Drive in support of the young State of Israel. This impromptu walk gradually evolved to include Jewish community organizations, synagogues, marching bands, and floats as it morphed into the Salute to Israel Parade on Fifth Avenue.In 2011 the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York assumed management of the Parade and officially changed the event’s name to the Celebrate Israel Parade to focus on celebrating the vibrant and diverse State of Israel.
Jill and I will pause to mourn the six million Jews who were systematically and savagely murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators during the Holocaust — and to grieve the Roma and Sinti, Slavs, people with disabilities, LGBTQ+ individuals, and political dissidents who were also killed. As we join nations around the world in bearing witness to this dark chapter in our shared history, we also honor survivors and their stories—pledging to always remember, and to keep faith with that sacred vow: “never again.”
“Never again” was a promise my father first instilled in me at our family dinner table, educating me and my siblings about the horrors of the Shoah. It’s a lesson I’ve passed on to my own children and grandchildren by taking them to Dachau to understand for themselves the depths of this evil—and the complicity of those who knew what was happening, yet said nothing. Seeing neo-Nazis and white nationalists march from the shadows in Charlottesville in 2017, spewing the same antisemitic bile we heard in the 1930s in Europe, drove me to run for president.
Sadly, we have seen over and over again that hate never goes away. It only hides—waiting to reemerge whenever it is given just a little bit of oxygen. And today, across our country, we are seeing swastikas on cars, antisemitic banners on bridges, verbal and physical attacks against Jewish businesses and Jewish Americans – even Holocaust denialism. It’s vile. It goes against everything we value as Americans. And each of us must speak out against this poison. Together, we must affirm, over and over, that hate has no safe harbor in America.
That is exactly what my Administration is doing. Working with partners around the country, we held a historic White House Summit on combating hate-fueled violence. We appointed the first Ambassador-level Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism. We are developing a national strategy to fight antisemitism. We’ve secured the largest increase in funding ever for the physical security of non-profits—including synagogues and Jewish Community Centers. We continue to support Holocaust survivors to ensure they can live the rest of their lives with dignity and security. And to mark this day of remembrance, the Second Gentleman of the United States, Douglas Emhoff, is participating in a commemoration ceremony at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp in Poland, and will be visiting Berlin, Germany to coordinate international efforts to combat antisemitism.
On International Holocaust Remembrance Day and every day, the United States stands with Holocaust victims, their families, and their descendants. We remember. We honor their stories. We will face down the hate and the lies that carry in them the terrifying echoes of one of the worst chapters in human history. And for generations to come, we will continue to defend our foundational values as a nation—freedom, equality, and dignity for all human beings.
Nearly one out of every four Jews in the U.S. experiences antisemitism. It’s become normalized across our culture — on social media, in pop culture and politics, and on the streets, writes the organizers of a Shine a Light event in which Jews were called upon to proudly display their identity in lighting the menorah at Times Square. Leaders from President Joe Biden and New York State Governor Kathy Hochul and on down have declared that antisemitism, bigotry and hate will no longer be tolerated.
Antisemitism is on the rise across the United States. The Anti-Defamation League which tracks antisemitic behavior nationwide, found 2717 incidents in 2021, a 34 percent rise over 2020 – accompanied by unabashed rise and weaponization of fascism and political violence, the attacks more brazen, more violent, more deadly and more politically strategic.
Charlottesville (where a woman was murdered, after which Trump said there were “good people” on both sides). The Tree of Life Synagogue massacre in Pittsburgh.
“This is the highest total we have ever tracked in more than 40 years of doing this work,” Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and National Director, Anti-Defamation League said on Newshour on PBS. “And we should keep in mind that antisemitic acts were going down in the United States for almost 15 years, and then, in 2016, they started to move up. And we’re now at the point where we have nearly triple the number of incidents today that we did in 2015.” In 2022, assaults increased 167 percent, with increases in incidents of vandalism and harassment.
“So I think antisemitism really isn’t just a Jewish problem. It’s an American problem,” he asserted. “[Antisemitism] is typically the canary in the coal mine. And so, as things are beginning to unravel more broadly, the Jewish community is often the target of scapegoating and victimized in that way.”
Antisemitism is not new in America, but Greenblatt noted, “We have never seen a situation like this before. You had Jews being beaten and brutalized in broad daylight, say, in the middle of Times Square or Los Angeles or the Strip in Las Vegas, where people who were simply identified as Jewish came under assault and attack. That was new. And I think what you’re seeing is a kind of normalization of antisemitism and extremism.”
Taking a cue from Trump, whose entire political career has been built upon fear-mongering bigotry, politicians who once would never have dared profess support for Hitler and Nazism will actually be in positions of power in Congress, including Marjorie Taylor Greene (who charged that Jewish space lasers were to blame for California’s wildfires and who embraces QAnon, which has repackaged the Jewish Blood Libel conspiracy from the Middle Ages to incite attacks on Jews), while others, like Speaker Wannabe Kevin McCarthy and incoming Congressman George Santos, stand by instead of denouncing attacks.
Celebrities like Kanye West, who command the following of millions use social media to incite attacks on Jews. Only last week, a 63-year old man was attacked in Central Park by a man who shouted anti-Semitic slogans and had a sign, Kanye 2024.
In just the few weeks since the recent takeover of Twitter by billionaire Elon Musk, who fired moderators and brought back those who were thrown off for inciting violence, hate-filled tweets have increased fivefold.
“The Holocaust didn’t begin with systematic murder of 6 million Jews, it began with rhetoric, normalization of rhetoric that the average person picked up on and ran with; it began with attacks on individuals, businesses, communities, perpetrated by citizens with permission by rhetoric,” Rabbi Michael Knopf, Temple Beth-el, Richmond, told “All Things Considered’ on NPR.
“We ought not to wait around for another Charlottesville, another [Tree of Life Synagogue massacre in] Pittsburgh. “When it manifests, it requires calling out.”
The Jewish community, he said, has a propensity to dismiss anti-Semitic rhetoric, and not draw too much attention. “That is really dangerous. Not just celebrities, but celebrities endorsed by and in relationship with incredibly powerful figures, the former president, refuse to distance themselves from that ideology, welcome and embrace it”. Indeed, they embrace them as their voting base.
But the time is passed for dismissing, or ignoring, or minimizing.
Nearly one out of every four Jews in the U.S. experiences antisemitism. It’s become normalized across our culture — on social media, in pop culture and politics, and on the streets, writes the organizers of a Shine a Light event in which Jews were called upon to proudly display their identity in lighting the menorah at Times Square. Antisemitic incidents and attacks have mushroomed on college campuses, even at City University of New York – indeed, the menorah was lit by four CUNY students who have been victims of antisemitism. Washington DC-area high schoolers, interviewed on NPR’s All Things Considered, how they are made to feel like outsiders, diminished, less equal, and have new fears of being attacked.
Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, chairing the first-ever White House summit to combat antisemitism and hate-fueled violence, cited “an epidemic of hate, a rapid rise in antisemitic rhetoric and acts. Let me clear, words matter. People are no longer saying the quiet parts out loud, they are literally screaming them.”
President Biden is taking action, establishing an inter-agency group led by Domestic Policy Council staff and National Security Council staff to increase and better coordinate federal government efforts to counter antisemitism, Islamophobia and related forms of bias and discrimination. The President has tasked the inter-agency group as its first order of business to develop a national strategy to counter antisemitism by raising understanding about antisemitism and the threat it poses to the Jewish community and all Americans, and addressing antisemitic harassment and abuse both online and offline. The President also has secured the largest increase in federal funding ever for the physical security of non-profits, including synagogues and Jewish Community Centers.
One can almost process antisemitism in rearing up in places where there are few Jews and therefore so easy to fabricate the fantastical conspiracies and caricatures. But New York City? Long Island? New York State, which has the largest population of Jews outside of Israel, which is the most richly filled melting pot of nationalities, religions, races on the planet? What does that say?
Governor Kathy Hochul, who came out to the Shine a Light on Antisemitism event in Times Square on Monday, days earlier announced the launch of a new statewide Hate and Bias Prevention Unit, within the state’s Division of Human Rights. The unit is charged with leading public education and outreach efforts, serving as an early warning detection system in local communities, and quickly mobilizing to support areas and communities in which a bias incident has occurred.
“New York State will use every tool at its disposal to eliminate hate and bias from our communities,” Governor Hochul said. “We will not let the rise in hate incidents that we see happening online, across the country and across the world, take root here at home.” Among the issues she raised during the Shine a Light event was the need to teach about the Holocaust with substance, not passing lip service. Holocaust education is mandated in the state’s curriculum.
The Governor announced $96 million in state and federal funding to safeguard nonprofit, community-based organizations at risk of hate crimes and attacks; and directed $10 million in state grant funds to support county governments as they develop domestic terrorism prevention plans and threat assessment and management teams.
The Hate and Bias Prevention Unit will be responsible for establishing and implementing a statewide campaign promoting acceptance, inclusion, tolerance, and understanding of diversity, as required by legislation signed last month by Governor Hochul, The campaign will coordinate and cooperate with public and private organizations, including, but not limited to, local governments, community groups, school districts, places of worship, charitable organizations, and foundations and will develop educational materials to be published on the internet, social media, and other platforms to reach the public. The Division also works with the New York State Police to educate New Yorkers on the State’s hate crimes laws.
The Shine a Light event – which drew New York Attorney General Letitia James (who called antisemitism “a malignant cancer” that must be wiped out) in addition to Governor Hochul and was organized by UJA Federation New York, AJC New York, Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, ADl-New York/New Jersey– was aimed at giving Jews an opportunity to proudly display their identity and commitment to their faith and heritage and raise awareness more broadly of antisemitism.
The MC of the event, comedian Ariel Elias, who grew up in Kentucky (very few Jews there) related how a video of her performing in a comedy club went viral after someone threw a beer can at her. She only connected it to antisemitism after noting the timing of the incident: it coincided with Kanye West’s “defcon3” tweet.
“What I was talking about [before the beer can was thrown] was being Jewish and growing up in Kentucky,” Elias said. “But because antisemitism doesn’t always look the way it used to, it took a long time for me to connect the dots when it first happened.”
“Antisemitism is intensifying. Our efforts to fight it must be even stronger.Nearly one out of every four Jews in the U.S. experiences antisemitism. It’s become normalized across our culture — on social media, in pop culture and politics, and on the streets,” the Shine a Light organizers stated. Shine a Light comprises more than 80 Jewish and non-Jewish organizations which are committed to addressing rising antisemitism.
Antisemitic incidents and attacks have mushroomed on college campuses, even at City University of New York – indeed, the menorah in Times Square was lit by four CUNY students who have been victims of antisemitism. Washington DC-area high schoolers, interviewed on NPR’s All Things Considered, how they are made to feel like outsiders, diminished, less equal, and have new fears of being attacked.
UJA-Federation CEO Eric Goldstein, who spoke at the Shine a Light event, told the New York Jewish Week that putting on an event like this in a public place is important in order to show that Jews are standing up to antisemitism. “A really important piece of this is to live [a] proudly public, happy Jewish life.”
Around Manhattan, there were numerous trucks manned by Orthodox Jews, playing festive music. “Are you Jewish,” someone would ask, and offering a Hanukkah kit in a box.
“We live in a very challenging world, and the only thing we can use to overcome hatred, intolerance, prejudice and antisemitism is light – because light overcomes darkness and hatred,” Nassau County Legislator Arnold W. Drucker (D – Plainview) said at a “Latkes and Lights” celebration at the county executive building.
Drucker, a member of the county’s Task Forceto CombatAntisemitism which was formed in May, said “The biggest problem is education. The task force intends to meet with school district administrators to get input –from faculty, student body – as to the root cause of antisemitism “rearing its ugly head. We are seeing symptoms throughout the country. We don’t want it to happen here. One example is too many.” He said he has reached out to Hochul’s office to being named as a Long Island representative on the satellite offices she is setting up throughout the state.
But in fact, there are been many instances, now, of antisemitism on Long Island, including leaflets left in neighborhoods suggesting a Jewish cabal controlling government, and only weeks ago, a Long Island man arrested at Penn Station with weapons who had made threats against the Jewish community.
Just this month, Municipal Leaders Against Antisemitism was formed to counter an uptick in antisemitic incidents in Long Island. There were 28 incidents in Nassau County so far this year, up from 24 in 2021.
At a Hanukkah reception at the White House, Biden stated that in the face of emboldened antisemitism in the US and around the world, “silence is complicity and we must forcefully say that all forms of hate, antisemitism and violence can have no safe harbor in America.”
Still, the question must be despite all these positive pronouncements and announcements and initiatives, whether it is just lip service or actual action, and whether these programs will be sustained long enough to reverse course again, making antisemitism culturally deplorable.
Happy Hanukkah for all those who celebrate – proudly.
