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Jewish communities embrace security staff in face of rising antisemitism
This article was produced as part of JTA’s Teen Journalism Fellowship, a program that works with teens across the world to report on issues that impact their lives.
(JTA) — During one of the recent rainstorms in Los Angeles, a security guard at Amanda Kronstadt’s Jewish high school reminded her to wear her rain jacket on her way home. It was a small thing but the freshman appreciates him going the extra mile.
He’s “always looking out for the students,” she said.
It’s important to her that she feels cared for in this way, especially since the late-2022 wave of antisemitic threats targeted Jewish institutions, including schools. In a 17-day span in October and November, at least 14 United States Jewish day schools reported receiving suspicious phone calls or bomb threats, according to the Anti-Defamation League.
Schools, Jewish community centers and synagogues have come to rely on their security staff. While security at synagogues used to be an afterthought, said Jason Moss, the executive director of the Jewish Federation of the Greater San Gabriel Valley and Pomona, now, “it’s part of all planning and into every aspect of a synagogue.”
After a gunman took hostages at a synagogue in Colleyville, Texas in January 2022, Moss spent time looking at security staff in the Jewish world. “They play a vital role in keeping the community secure,” he said. “That it’s something to be commended for, especially for helping to defend a place that is not a part of who they are in some cases.”
Melissa Levy says she couldn’t do her job as director of congressional engagement at Pasadena Jewish Temple without the security staff.
“They’re a part of the family,” said Levy. “Because they are keeping their eyes and ears open and making sure that we stay safe, we can do the rest of our jobs and really help build community here.”
In 2021, there were 61% more attacks against synagogues and Jewish community centers compared to 2020, according to the Anti-Defamation League. Additionally, antisemitic incidents reached an all time high, with 2,717 occurrences of assault, harassment and vandalism.
The Anti-Defamation League also found that there has been a dramatic spike in belief in antisemitic tropes since 2019.
“In the last several years, there has been not only a rise of antisemitism and hatred overall,” said Moss. This “has caused there to be a greater sense of urgency to take all of these threats seriously.”
Due to rising antisemitism, 54% of synagogues surveyed had some form of armed security guards, a 2018 study found. Only 17% of non-Jewish houses of worship had security guards. The religious buildings that were closest to synagogues in the percentage of security guards were mosques with 28%.
Keeping regular security does not come cheap. Rabbi Daniel Bogard in St. Louis, Missouri estimated that security at synagogues costs at minimum $50,000 and can even be near $150,000 in his 2022 interview with Business Insider. Jason Moss said that many synagogues struggle with funding security because it’s an additional expense.
Because of the costly price tag of security, synagogues can apply to receive assistance from the federal Nonprofit Security Grant Program. In 2022, the program had $250 million available, a $70 million increase from 2021. Despite the quarter billion dollars, only 52% of applicants received funding as requests totaled almost $450 million, per Jewish Insider. Per request of Jewish community leaders, President Joe Biden proposed a $360 million budget for the program in 2023, according to The Jerusalem Post.
Mike Sayegh has provided security to the Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center for nearly four years. Along with his brother, the two run Power House Security, a protection service. The company provides the synagogue a security guard when large groups are on campus, a task he often takes upon himself.
Throughout Sayegh’s work at the Pasadena temple, he has learned more about Judaism and made connections with congregants. As a Christian, he said his work opened up new perspectives and gave him a sense of familiarity with the religion and culture.
Not everyone is on board with beefed-up security at synagogues, especially when guards are armed and in uniform. Some think it undermines the welcoming aspect of a Jewish institution, and many Jews of color and their allies say a heightened security presence can make them feel less safe.
But while acknowledging these objections and somber reasons for having security at synagogues, many congregants have been able to embrace their security team as a part of their community.
That rings true for Samuel Svonkin, a 16-year-old member at Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center. Svonkin has seen security become more prominent at his synagogue in recent years. “Synagogue security doesn’t only benefit the congregation physically but also makes simply existing and being Jewish in the synagogue a more pleasant experience,” he said. “Security does more than protect the synagogue. It allows it and its members to function as one.”
At Carla Kopf’s synagogue, security guards high-five the men, let children jump into their arms and address congregants by name. Kopf, the director of k-12 education and engagement at Temple Isaiah in Los Angeles, California, has witnessed the connection between security and congregants for the past 29 years. “The [care] and love these guys have for our staff and our membership is quite amazing,” she said.
Security guards at Kehillat Israel in Pacific Palisades, California have also built strong connections with their community. Rabbi Carrie Vogel of Kehillat Israel in Pacific Palisades, California said, “Our community has had armed guards for maybe 7-8 years and they have been widely embraced by our community. They know the names of the [Early Childhood Center] kids, wave to everyone and are a friendly and helpful presence when people enter our building,” said Rabbi Carrie Vogel, the director of the Jewish Experience Center at Kehillat Israel.
As Jewish communities embrace their security, the guards embrace them back. “I love it here. I feel appreciated here,” said Sayegh. “I’ve been thanked more times than I can count. I’ve been thanked by people I’ve never met.”
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The post Jewish communities embrace security staff in face of rising antisemitism appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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‘The most Australian name’: Matilda, the youngest victim of the Bondi Beach attack, embodies a nation’s grief
(JTA) — The youngest victim of the Bondi Beach Hanukkah massacre is known by just one name — but it’s all that’s needed to make her a symbol for her fellow Australians.
“I named her Matilda because she was our firstborn in Australia. And I thought that Matilda was the most Australian name that could ever exist,” her father Michael, a Jewish immigrant from Ukraine, said at a vigil earlier in the week. “So just remember – remember her name.”
The poem and song “Waltzing Matilda,” written in 1895, is considered an unofficial anthem in Australia, which has been rocked by the terror attack on Bondi Beach that killed 15 people attending a Hanukkah celebration.
At a vigil on Thursday night at Bondi Pavilion — a public space now transformed into a memorial flooded with flowers and displays of solidarity — hundreds of mourners gathered and sang the song to memorialize Matilda, who at 10 was the youngest among the dead.
Matilda had been filmed shortly before the attack admiring as her father put on tefillin, the phylacteries used in prayer that emissaries of Chabad, the group that organized the Hanukkah celebration, routinely help Jewish men put on to fulfill a religious commandment. She was shot while standing with her mother Valentyna and 6-year-old sister.
Seeking to protect their privacy, the family has asked that their last name not be published in the media. Instead, Matilda has become associated her middle name, Bee.
At the somber memorial, all of the attendees were given stickers with Matilda’s name alongside a smiling bumblebee clutching a menorah, a symbol that has become a quiet emblem of remembrance in the days since her death.
At her funeral on Thursday, held at the Chevra Kadisha Memorial Hall, mourners clutched bee balloons and placed bee posters on the exterior of their cars.
A giant plush bumblebee was placed on Matilda’s small white casket at the funeral, one similar to the many that now adorn the Bondi Pavilion flower memorial alongside illustrations of bumblebees.
On social media, parents and schools around the world have posted children’s illustrations and photos of bees at the request of Matilda’s parents, a tribute that has spread widely as a way of remembering her. On Facebook, Matilda’s father, Michael, has reposted many of the online memorials.
Build a Bear Workshop Australia also announced the production of a limited-edition plush bee in memory of Matilda, with all proceeds going to her family. A GoFundMe page set up by her language teacher has also drawn over $550,000 in donations.
“She loved the outdoors, animals, she went to school, she had friends, everybody loved her,” Rabbi Yehoram Ulman, whose son-in-law, Rabbi Eli Schlanger, was also killed in the attack, said during his eulogy for Matilda. “The tragic, so totally cruel, an unfathomable murder of young Matilda is something that’s painful to all of us as if our own daughter was taken from us.”
Valentyna said at the vigil that until Sunday, she had been happy that her family had moved from Ukraine, which has been at war with Russia since Russia invaded in 2022.
“I came from Ukraine. I brought from Ukraine my oldest son, with him, and I was so happy that he’s not there right now. He’s not fighting for his land, and he’s safe here,” she said as she broke down in sobs. “I couldn’t imagine I would lose my daughter here.”
Chris Minns, the premier of New South Wales, the Australian state that includes Sydney, quoted from “Waltzing Matilda” at Matilda’s funeral.
“She bore the name Matilda to honor this great land, Australia’s heart and spirit forever hand in hand,” said Minns, who wore the bumblebee sticker on his lapel, according to ABC. “Her spirit like a swagman’s will never fade away. She’s waltzing with the angels, where love will always stay.”
The post ‘The most Australian name’: Matilda, the youngest victim of the Bondi Beach attack, embodies a nation’s grief appeared first on The Forward.
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A Wider Bridge, a pro-Israel advocate in LGBTQ spaces, is shutting down
(JTA) — A Wider Bridge, a pro-Israel LGBTQ organization that became a flashpoint in debates over Israel, antisemitism and “pinkwashing” inside the American queer community, announced Friday that it will shut down at the end of the year.
The San Francisco–based nonprofit said it will wind down operations as of Dec. 31, 2025, citing financial strain, according to a statement from board chair Daniel Hernandez that was shared with supporters Friday.
“After 15 years, A Wider Bridge has made the difficult decision to wind down our operations,” Hernandez wrote. “The organization has been weathering difficult financial realities despite efforts to secure sustainable funding.”
The group’s closure also follows a period of internal turmoil. In late 2024, its executive director, Ethan Felson, was charged with sexual misconduct; he pleaded not guilty, and the organization installed interim leadership. Asked whether the case played any role in the decision to shut down, the group responded that the closure was driven by financial realities.
Founded in 2010 by activist Arthur Slepian, A Wider Bridge set out to connect LGBTQ communities in North America with their counterparts in Israel, promoting Israel’s record on LGBTQ rights while pushing back against antisemitism and anti-Zionist exclusion in queer spaces. The group organized trips to Israel, partnered with Israeli LGBTQ organizations, and launched initiatives such as PrideSafe and Queers Against Antisemitism.
Over time, however, A Wider Bridge became one of the most polarizing Jewish organizations in progressive LGBTQ circles, frequently clashing with activists who viewed any pro-Israel presence at Pride as political propaganda.
Critics accused the group of “pinkwashing” — using Israel’s comparatively strong legal protections for LGBTQ people to deflect attention from Israel’s treatment of Palestinians. A Wider Bridge rejected the charge, arguing that LGBTQ rights in Israel were substantive and that efforts to bar Zionist organizations from queer spaces amounted to discrimination against Jews.
Those tensions burst into public view in 2016 at the National LGBTQ Task Force’s Creating Change conference in Chicago, when an event involving A Wider Bridge and an Israeli LGBTQ organization was canceled after activist pressure, reinstated and ultimately disrupted by protesters.
The following year, the group drew national attention after Jewish marchers carrying rainbow flags with Stars of David were asked to leave the Chicago Dyke March. Organizers said the march was anti-Zionist and that the flags made some participants feel unsafe. A Wider Bridge and its allies countered that Jewish identity was being treated as inherently political, and therefore unwelcome, in queer spaces.
The dispute became a template for similar conflicts at Pride events in other cities, as debates over Zionism, antisemitism and Palestinian solidarity intensified inside progressive movements.
In recent years, A Wider Bridge increasingly framed its mission around combating antisemitism within LGBTQ communities, particularly after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza deepened fractures within left-leaning coalitions. It came to the aid of Aguda, Israel’s leading LGBTQ advocacy group, after it was dropped as a member of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Trans and Intersex Association during the war.
The group spent more than it brought in in 2023, according to its federal tax filing from that year. Last year, the group’s budget was more balanced, but it also raised less from supporters, bringing in just $1.1 million, compared to more than $1.6 million in each of the previous two years.
In an email to supporters, A Wider Bridge emphasized what it described as its legacy, pointing to advocacy for LGBTQ rights in Israel, support for Israeli LGBTQ organizations, and efforts to push back against antisemitism and anti-Zionism in queer spaces.
“Though we are winding down, this is not a time to back down,” Hernandez wrote, adding that board members and supporters would continue the work in their individual capacities.
The post A Wider Bridge, a pro-Israel advocate in LGBTQ spaces, is shutting down appeared first on The Forward.
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Why aren’t we hearing about the dramatic growth of the Israeli stock market?
דאָס איז אַן איבערזעצונג פֿונעם ענגלישן אַרטיקל, וואָס איר קענט לייענען דאָ
דעם פֿאַרגאַנגענעם שבת האָב איך געלייענט וועגן דעם אויסערגעוויינטלעכן וווּקס פֿון דער ישׂראלדיקער בערזע זינט דעם 7טן אָקטאָבער — היפּש בעסער ווי דער אויפֿשטײַג פֿון דער אַמעריקאַנער בערזע.
די 35 ישׂראלדיקע אַקציעס מיטן גרעסטן ווערט זענען זינט דעם 7טן אָקטאָבער געוואַקסן מיט נישט ווייניקער ווי 90 פּראָצענט. במשך פֿון דער זעלבער צײַט איז די אַמעריקאַנער בערזע געשטיגן מיט 60 פּראָצענט.
ס׳איז מיר געווען אַ חידוש פֿאַר וואָס איך האָב פֿריִער נישט געהערט וועגן דעם. דערנאָך האָב איך געלייענט וואָס דער פֿאָרזיצער פֿון דער תּל־אָבֿיבֿער בערזע, יודזשין קאַנדעל, האָט געזאָגט בעת אַן אינטערוויו מיט דער אינוועסטאָרן־צײַטונג Investors Business Daily.
„ישׂראל איז באַפֿאַלן געוואָרן, און ווערט נאָך אַלץ באַפֿאַלן פֿון אידעאָלאָגן, וואָס פֿינאַנצירן ריזיקע קאַמפּאַניעס קעגן אונדז,“ האָט קאַנדעל געזאָגט. „אָבער אַפֿילו במשך פֿון די פֿאַרגאַנגענע צוויי יאָר, האָט זיך נישט אָפּגעשטעלט ישׂראלס צוזאַמענאַרבעט מיט אַזוי פֿיל אָרגאַניזאַציעס, פֿירמעס, רעגירונגען און אינוועסטאָרן, נישט געקוקט אויף די דראָונגען און פּראָטעסטן קעגן איר.“
פֿאַר וואָס הערן מיר נישט וועגן אָט די קאָלאַבאָראַציעס?
כ׳האָב גענומען זוכן מער אינפֿאָרמאַציע וועגן דעם אָבער פּלוצלינג האָב איך זיך דערוווּסט וועגן דעם שיסערײַ אויף דער חנוכּה־מסיבה אין באָנדי־ביטש, אויסטראַליע. מיט אַ מאָל איז בײַ מיר פֿאַרשוווּנדן געוואָרן די שבת־מנוחה, ווי אויך מײַן גריבלען זיך אין די פּרטים וועגן ישׂראלס עקאָנאָמישער צוזאַמענאַרבעט.
איך האָב שוין פֿריִער געקלערט וועגן דעם וואָס טעראָריסטן איבער דער וועלט ווייסן גענוי די דאַטעס פֿון אַלע ייִדישע יום־טובֿים. דאָס וואָס די לעצטע שחיטה איז דורכגעפֿירט געוואָרן חנוכּה איז נישט געווען קיין צופֿאַל, און ייִדן איבער דער וועלט ווייסן דאָס גוט.
מיר לעבן איצט איבער אַ לאַנגע קאַמפּאַניע צו ווירקן אויף ייִדן, זיי זאָלן מורא האָבן זיך אויסצולעבן ווי ייִדן. די אַטאַקן אויף ייִדישע יום־טובֿים זענען אַ מיטל אָפּצומעקן ייִדישע פֿרייד, אָפּצומוטיקן ייִדן פֿון היטן ייִדישע טראַדיציעס און אינעם פֿאַל פֿון חנוכּה — אָפּצוּווישן די ייִדישע געשיכטע.
און אפֿשר איז דאָס אויך אַ קאַמפּאַניע צו מינימיזירן די אויפֿטוען פֿון דער ייִדישער מדינה.
עטלעכע פּאָליטיקער האָבן דאָס שוין באַמערקט
עטלעכע פּאָליטיקער האָבן שוין אָנגעהויבן זיך פֿאַרנעמען מיט דעם ענין. ברײַען מאַסט, אַ רעפּרעזענטאַנט אינעם אַמעריקאַנער קאָנגרעס, דער פֿאָרזיצער פֿונעם קאָמיטעט פֿון אויסלענדישע ענינים בײַם רעפּרעזענטאַנטן־הויז און אַ פֿלאָרידער רעפּובליקאַנער, האָט געזאָגט אַז ער זעט „אַ ספּעציפֿישע נעץ פֿון גרופּעס, וואָס קאָלאַבאָרירן צו פֿאַרזייען אַנטיסעמיטיזם איבער דער מעדיאַ, סײַ בײַם לינקן לאַגער סײַ בײַם רעכטן, כּדי צו שטערן די באַציִונגען.“
מיט „באַציִונגען“ מיינט ער די צוזאַמענאַרבעט צווישן די פֿאַראייניקטע שטאַטן און ישׂראל.
רעדנדיק אויף אַ קאָנפֿערענץ וועגן אַנטיסעמיטיזם געשטיצט פֿונעם „האָדסאָן־אינסטיטוט“, האָט מאַסט באַצייכנט די נעץ ווי „זייער אַן ערנסטע גלאָבאַלע סכּנה, וואָס פֿאַרשפּרייט זיך איבער פֿיל־לענדיקע אָרגאַניזאַציעס, דער גלאָבאַלער מעדיאַ, אונדזערע קעגנערס און טעראָריסטישע אָרגאַניזאַציעס.“
ווען ער האָט דערמאָנט דאָס וואָרט „מעדיאַ“, האָב איך גלײַך געטראַכט וועגן דעם וואָס כּמעט קיינער האָט נישט געשריבן וועגן דעם אוגעריכטן וווּקס פֿון דער ישׂראלדיקער בערזע און דעם כּוח פֿון די ישׂראלדיקע אַקציעס.
אַ שטיין אַראָפּ פֿון האַרצן
ס׳קלינגט אפֿשר מאָדנע אָבער לייענענדיק מאַסטס באַמערקונגען איז מיר אַראָפּ אַ שטיין פֿון האַרצן. איך האָב אָפּגעאָטעמט, הערנדיק ווי עמעצער באַשטעטיקט אָט דעם פֿענאָמען, כאָטש איך בין נישט זיכער אַז דאָס וואָרט „נעץ“ איז נישט אַקוראַט.
די וואָך בין איך בײַגעווען אויף אַן אומסעקטאַנטישער מסיבה לכּבֿוד די סוף־יאָריקע פֿײַערונגען, און קיינער האָט גאָרנישט דערמאָנט וועגן דעם שיסערײַ אין אויסטראַליע. ס׳איז מיר געווען אַ חידוש. צי וואָלט דער שמועס אויף דער מסיבה געווען אַנדערש, ווען מע וואָלט באַשאָסן אַ גרופּע מענטשן וואָס צינדן אָן אַ קאָמונאַלן ניטלבוים? וואָס וואָלט געווען דער שמועס אויב דער ציל פֿון די טעראָריסטן וואָלט געווען אַן אַנדער גרופּע, נישט די ייִדן?
ס׳איז שווער צו גלייבן אַז יעדער וואָלט געשוויגן; אַז קיינער וואָלט עס נישט אָנערקענט; אַז אין אַ צימער געפּאַקט מיט מענטשן וואָס אַרבעטן טאָג־טעגלעך מיט ווערטער זאָל קיינער נישט אַרויסרעדן קיין וואָרט וועגן דעם.
די דראָונג איז נישט בלויז די דראָונג וואָס דער רעפּרעזענטאַנט מאַסט האָט באַשריבן, אָדער די דראָונג וואָס קאַנדעל האָט באַשריבן. פּונקט אַזאַ סכּנה אויך דאָס שווײַגן — אַ שווײַגן וואָס איז אַזוי בולט אַז מע קען עס זען ווי אַ ליכטל אין דער פֿינצטער.
ווי אַזוי מע דאַרף רעאַגירן אויף דעם שווײַגן
איך ווייס אַליין נישט ווי מע דאַרף רעאַגירן אויף אַזאַ שווײַגעניש אָבער אפֿשר ווייסן קליגערע מענטשן פֿון מיר, וואָס מע דאַרף טאָן.
נעכטן שפּעט בײַ נאַכט האָב איך דערזען ווי עס פֿאָרט פֿאַרבײַ אויפֿן „ניו־יאָרק סטייט טרוּוויי“ (אַ באַקאַנטן ניו־יאָרקער שאָסיי) אַ לאַנגע ריי אויטאָס מיט חנוכּה־לעמפּ אויף די דעכער. די ריי אויטאָס האָט זיך געצויגן און געצויגן. דער שטילער באַטײַט איז געווען: „האָט נישט קיין מורא.“ בײַ מיר איז דאָס קלאָר געווען אַן אָפּרוף אויף „באָנדי־ביטש“.
איך האָף אַז מע צינדט איצט מער חנוכּה־לעמפּ, נישט ווייניקער, ווי פֿריִער. איך האָף אויך אַז מיר קענען אין דער ליכטיקייט אַנטפּלעקן די כּלערליי שיכטן פֿון אמת. אַ מאָל קענען אָט די שיכטן רעפּרעזענטירן סײַ אַ געזונטע דאָזע רעאַליטעט, סײַ אַן אַנטימיטל קעגן ייִאוש.
יאָ, אַ טאַטע און אַ זון זענען באַפֿאַלן די ייִדן אין אַ ייִדישן יום־טובֿ. ס׳איז אָבער אויך וויכטיק און אמת, אַז אַ נישט־באַוואָפֿנטער מוסולמענישער טאַטע און פֿרוכט־פֿאַרקויפֿער מיטן נאָמען אַכמעד אַל אַכמעד האָט געשפּרונגען אויף איינעם פֿון די טעראָריסטן און אַ דאַנק דעם אָן שום ספֿק געראַטעוועט דאָס לעבן פֿון אַ סך מענטשן.
דער ווידעאָ פֿון זײַן העלדישן אַקט דאַרף יעדער איינער זען. עס דערמאָנט אונדז אַז אפֿשר איז אויך דאָ אַן אַנדער „נעץ“ פֿון מענטשן וואָס שטעלן זיך אַנטקעגן אַזאַ שׂינאה. אַכמעד אַל אַכמעד האָט אונדז באַוויזן דעם כּוח פֿון אַ יחיד, און דעם כּוח פֿון איין שיכט פֿונעם אמת.
וואָס שייך דעם שווײַגן וועגן די ישׂראלדיקע פֿירמעס וואָס האָבן מצליח געווען, נישט געקוקט אויף דער מלחמה און די בויקאָטן; וואָס האָבן געהאָלפֿן פֿאַרהעכערן דעם אינדעקס מיט 90 פּראָצענט זינט דעם ערגסטן טאָג אין דער געשיכטע פֿון מדינת־ישׂראל; וואָס האָבן נישט אויפֿגעהערט זייער מיטאַרבעט מיט שותּפֿים איבער דער וועלט, נישט געקוקט אויף דער קאַמפּאַניע זי אויסצושליסן — אַפֿילו אין דער פֿינצטערניש, אַפֿילו דורכן שווײַגעניש, זײַ וויסן, ישׂראל: מיר זעען דיך.
אַבֿיה קושנער איז די שפּראַך־קאָלומניסטקע פֿונעם „פֿאָרוואַרד“
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