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This Is How America Can Unite Against Antisemitism
Jewish Americans and supporters of Israel gather at the National Mall in Washington, DC on Nov. 14, 2023 for the “March for Israel” rally. Photo: Dion J. Pierre/The Algemeiner
Hamas’ brutal terror attack on October 7 created shockwaves that are still being felt across the globe. According to American Jewish Committee’s (AJC) State of Antisemitism in America 2023 Report, 78% of American Jews feel less safe in the United States as a result of the massacre.
Our report underscores the painful reality that antisemitism is a longstanding, serious threat in the US, which has become even more dangerous since October 7. We have seen a dramatic increase in antisemitic incidents across the country, including attacks on Jewish businesses, Jewish students, and Jewish institutions.
President Biden rightfully recognized the need for a national mobilization against antisemitism even before the Hamas massacre, and AJC’s Task Force to Implement the U.S. National Strategy is working with the administration to ensure that the US National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, released last May, is implemented. We need tangible results in this time of crisis.
AJC’s Task Force has shared data from the State of Antisemitism in America 2023 Report with staff from the White House and numerous Federal agencies, and we were able to share statistics that relate to the work of specific US agencies.
We asked American Jews and the general population how important it is for hate crimes, including antisemitic crimes, to be reported to a Federal database by local law enforcement. Nine in ten said it was.
Reporting is currently voluntary, which presents a problem. The FBI needs robust data to allocate appropriate resources to fighting antisemitism. Our findings can bolster the FBI’s pleas for data, give Congress impetus to pass bills like the bipartisan Improving Reporting to Prevent Hate Act, and help convince reluctant local law enforcement agencies to do better.
Jewish people and businesses are being targeted and need our support. One in five local Jewish businesses have been targeted by antisemitism through threats, graffiti, broken windows, or other attacks over the past five years, which takes a toll on our communities’ economic health.
As AJC continues our partnership with the Small Business Administration, these statistics highlight the need to address this issue by ensuring that small businesses have the resources they need to address antisemitism and other forms of hate.
But Jew-hatred isn’t limited to the private sector. Schools and universities have become hotbeds of antisemitic incidents. For example, one in four Jewish students said they changed their behavior out of the fear of antisemitism, and one in five felt or were actively excluded from a club or program because of antisemitism. In 2022, that number was 12%, representing a jump of eight percentage points in just one year.
This data is crucial in our conversations with college presidents and administrators, as well as with the Department of Education, as they continue to work with these schools and on Title VI enforcement.
Antisemitism on social media is also of major concern. Since October 7, 62% of American Jews shared that they saw antisemitism on social media, with 56% seeing it more than once. AJC is using this data to urge platforms to protect Jewish users online. We are also bringing these stats to Congress as we push for legislation improving accountability and transparency.
As we — along with other organizations — continue our work with government officials and community leaders at every level, each of us can also take action to ensure the safety and security of the Jewish people. Here are three steps you can take:
1. Use your voice to influence Congress. Join us in urging Congress to take decisive action to ensure the full implementation of the US National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism.
2. Educate yourself about antisemitism. You can see our annual report here, and there are countless other resources online to learn from.
3. Stand up against antisemitism in your community. Your voices are needed at the local, State, and Federal level.
Please join us and become a participant in the urgent fight against antisemitism.
Julie Rayman is the American Jewish Committee’s Managing Director of Policy and Political Affairs.
The post This Is How America Can Unite Against Antisemitism first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel to Issue 54,000 Call-Up Notices to Ultra-Orthodox Students
Haredi Jewish men look at the scene of an explosion at a bus stop in Jerusalem, Israel, on Nov. 23, 2022. Photo: Reuters/Ammar Awad
Israel’s military said it would issue 54,000 call-up notices to ultra-Orthodox Jewish seminary students following a Supreme Court ruling mandating their conscription and amid growing pressure from reservists stretched by extended deployments.
The Supreme Court ruling last year overturned a decades-old exemption for ultra-Orthodox students, a policy established when the community comprised a far smaller segment of the population than the 13 percent it represents today.
Military service is compulsory for most Israeli Jews from the age of 18, lasting 24-32 months, with additional reserve duty in subsequent years. Members of Israel’s 21 percent Arab population are mostly exempt, though some do serve.
A statement by the military spokesperson confirmed the orders on Sunday just as local media reported legislative efforts by two ultra-Orthodox parties in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition to craft a compromise.
The exemption issue has grown more contentious as Israel’s armed forces in recent years have faced strains from simultaneous engagements with Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, Houthis in Yemen, and Iran.
Ultra-Orthodox leaders in Netanyahu’s brittle coalition have voiced concerns that integrating seminary students into military units alongside secular Israelis, including women, could jeopardize their religious identity.
The military statement promised to ensure conditions that respect the ultra-Orthodox way of life and to develop additional programs to support their integration into the military. It said the notices would go out this month.
The post Israel to Issue 54,000 Call-Up Notices to Ultra-Orthodox Students first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Influential Far-Right Minister Lashes out at Netanyahu Over Gaza War Policy
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich attends an inauguration event for Israel’s new light rail line for the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, in Petah Tikva, Israel, Aug. 17, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen
Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich sharply criticized on Sunday a cabinet decision to allow some aid into Gaza as a “grave mistake” that he said would benefit the terrorist group Hamas.
Smotrich also accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of failing to ensure that Israel’s military is following government directives in prosecuting the war against Hamas in Gaza. He said he was considering his “next steps” but stopped short of explicitly threatening to quit the coalition.
Smotrich’s comments come a day before Netanyahu is due to hold talks in Washington with President Donald Trump on a US-backed proposal for a 60-day Gaza ceasefire.
“… the cabinet and the Prime Minister made a grave mistake yesterday in approving the entry of aid through a route that also benefits Hamas,” Smotrich said on X, arguing that the aid would ultimately reach the Islamist group and serve as “logistical support for the enemy during wartime”.
The Israeli government has not announced any changes to its aid policy in Gaza. Israeli media reported that the government had voted to allow additional aid to enter northern Gaza.
The prime minister’s office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The military declined to comment.
Israel accuses Hamas of stealing aid for its own fighters or to sell to finance its operations, an accusation Hamas denies. Gaza is in the grip of a humanitarian catastrophe, with conditions threatening to push nearly a half a million people into famine within months, according to U.N. estimates.
Israel in May partially lifted a nearly three-month blockade on aid. Two Israeli officials said on June 27 the government had temporarily stopped aid from entering north Gaza.
PRESSURE
Public pressure in Israel is mounting on Netanyahu to secure a permanent ceasefire, a move opposed by some hardline members of his right-wing coalition. An Israeli team left for Qatar on Sunday for talks on a possible Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal.
Smotrich, who in January threatened to withdraw his Religious Zionism party from the government if Israel agreed to a complete end to the war before having achieved its objectives, did not mention the ceasefire in his criticism of Netanyahu.
The right-wing coalition holds a slim parliamentary majority, although some opposition lawmakers have offered to support the government from collapsing if a ceasefire is agreed.
The post Influential Far-Right Minister Lashes out at Netanyahu Over Gaza War Policy first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Australia Police Charge Man Over Alleged Arson on Melbourne Synagogue
Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks to the media during a press conference with New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon at the Australian Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, Aug. 16, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Tracey Nearmy
Australian police have charged a man in connection with an alleged arson attack on a Melbourne synagogue with worshippers in the building, the latest in a series of incidents targeting the nation’s Jewish community.
There were no injuries to the 20 people inside the East Melbourne Synagogue, who fled from the fire on Friday night. Firefighters extinguished the blaze in the capital of Victoria state.
Australia has experienced several antisemitic incidents since the start of the Israel-Gaza war in October 2023.
Counter-terrorism detectives late on Saturday arrested the 34-year-old resident of Sydney, capital of neighboring New South Wales, charging him with offenses including criminal damage by fire, police said.
“The man allegedly poured a flammable liquid on the front door of the building and set it on fire before fleeing the scene,” police said in a statement.
The suspect, whom the authorities declined to identify, was remanded in custody after his case was heard at Melbourne Magistrates Court on Sunday and no application was made for bail, the Australian Broadcasting Corp reported.
Authorities are investigating whether the synagogue fire was linked to a disturbance on Friday night at an Israeli restaurant in Melbourne, in which one person was arrested for hindering police.
The restaurant was extensively damaged, according to the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, an umbrella group for Australia’s Jews.
It said the fire at the synagogue, one of Melbourne’s oldest, was set as those inside sat down to Sabbath dinner.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog went on X to “condemn outright the vile arson attack targeting Jews in Melbourne’s historic and oldest synagogue on the Sabbath, and on an Israeli restaurant where people had come to enjoy a meal together”.
“This is not the first such attack in Australia in recent months. But it must be the last,” Herzog said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the incidents as “severe hate crimes” that he viewed “with utmost gravity.” “The State of Israel will continue to stand alongside the Australian Jewish community,” Netanyahu said on X.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese late on Saturday described the alleged arson, which comes seven months after another synagogue in Melbourne was targeted by arsonists, as shocking and said those responsible should face the law’s full force.
“My Government will provide all necessary support toward this effort,” Albanese posted on X.
Homes, schools, synagogues and vehicles in Australia have been targeted by antisemitic vandalism and arson. The incidents included a fake plan by organized crime to attack a Sydney synagogue using a caravan of explosives in order to divert police resources, police said in March.
The post Australia Police Charge Man Over Alleged Arson on Melbourne Synagogue first appeared on Algemeiner.com.