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We Must Give Our Jewish Youth Hope, Not Despair
College students hold dueling demonstrations amid Israel’s war with Hamas in April 2024. Photo: Vincent Ricci via Reuters Connect
Walk into any Chabad on campus, scroll through Instagram, or attend a panel on “Jewish identity in 2025,” and you’ll feel it: exhaustion.
The faces are younger, but the weight they carry is old — heavier than it should be for college students trying to find meaning, connection, and joy in their heritage. Antisemitism is surging, yes. The headlines are overwhelming. The betrayal of supposed allies stings. But here’s the deeper crisis we need to talk about: we’re burning out the very generation we’re trying to awaken. And we’re doing it with good intentions.
We’ve built an identity around crisis. Every gathering starts with the stats: “This amount of hate crimes.” “These many campus protests.” “These politicians failed us.” The algorithm serves us fear on a loop. The message? Being Jewish today means being a victim. Being Jewish means you’re losing. Why, then, are we surprised that some young Jews are opting out?
They aren’t indifferent. They’re uninspired. They’re not apathetic. They’re allergic to despair.
Victimhood Is Not an Identity
Jewish history is filled with trauma, but it is also filled with triumph. For millennia, our people have turned pain into purpose, exile into renewal, and scarcity into genius. We are not here because we were victims. We are here because we are survivors, builders, dreamers, and creators.
But in the last few years, we’ve allowed antisemitism to dominate the narrative. Every Jewish conference has a keynote on Jew-hatred. Our newsletters lead with the latest outrage. Our talking points are soaked in fear. The result? We’ve made Judaism feel like a burden, a fight, a cause to defend — rather than a light to share.
We’ve turned off the very people we need to turn on.
They Don’t Want a Protest Movement. They Want a Purpose.
Young Jews don’t want to be told their identity is something to protect. They want to be told it’s something to celebrate. And they want to celebrate it in their own way — not just through Holocaust remembrances and antisemitism awareness panels.
They want to build startups with a Jewish soul. Create art that reflects our ancient values. Reimagine what it means to be a Jewish leader in politics, tech, fashion, or sports. They want to innovate, not litigate their existence.
And we should let them.
If we only hand them a Judaism defined by its enemies, we shouldn’t be surprised if they reject it. If all we offer is a defense mechanism, why would they embrace it with pride?
Being the Light Isn’t Just a Slogan
The world doesn’t need more Jewish martyrs. It needs more Jewish mentors.
We must tell stories of Jewish greatness — not to brag, but to build. To show that our strength is not theoretical, but proven — and that being Jewish is not about surviving the storm; it’s about being the lighthouse.
We’ve produced scientists who changed medicine. Filmmakers who shaped global culture. Economists, engineers, scholars, and soldiers. The IDF doesn’t just defend Israel — it’s a school of leadership, innovation, and moral clarity. The same values pulse through the veins of Jewish entrepreneurs, philanthropists, and changemakers everywhere.
This is the Judaism that inspires. Not one built on fear, but one built on fire.
Let’s Not Scare Them Into Silence
There’s another danger to our obsession with antisemitism. We’re not just exhausting our youth; we’re intimidating them.
If every interaction with Jewish life feels like a moral war zone, many will choose to remain on the sidelines. Not because they don’t care, but because they’re overwhelmed. We’ve created an emotional toll booth at the entrance to Jewish identity. Pay in trauma, or move along.
It doesn’t have to be this way.
Do you know what’s actually countercultural? Joy. Confidence. Pride.
Instead of telling young Jews how bad it is to be hated, let’s tell them how good it is to be chosen. Not “chosen” in the arrogant, exclusivist sense that critics distort — but chosen to bring light, to pursue justice, to elevate the mundane.
Being Jewish isn’t about what others think of us. It’s about what we think of ourselves.
You want to energize a generation? Tell them the truth: Judaism is not the losing team. It’s the longest-running success story in human history. We are a tiny people with a massive legacy. We don’t need pity. We need purpose.
From Complaint to Campaign
Let’s be clear: fighting antisemitism is essential. But it cannot be our identity. It must be a chapter, not the cover.
The future of Judaism won’t be written in the language of grievance. It will be written by those who build, create, and lead with confidence –who wear their Jewish identity not as armor, but as a beacon.
The next generation doesn’t want to join a protest. They want to join a movement. Not just against something. But for something. For beauty. For wisdom. For joy. For life.
Let’s give them that movement. Let’s give them that story. Let’s give them back their pride.
Steve Rosenberg is the Principal of the Team GSD, the Regional Director for NAVI in Philadelphia and the author of the book: Make Bold Things Happen: Inspirational Stories from Sports, Business And Life.
The post We Must Give Our Jewish Youth Hope, Not Despair first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Surge of Antisemitic Incidents Rocks France Amid Growing Security Concerns
The Paris Holocaust Memorial, three synagogues, and a Jewish restaurant were all vandalized with green paint last weekend. Photo: Screenshot
France has been hit by a wave of antisemitic incidents in recent days, despite increased security at Jewish sites nationwide following last month’s antisemitic shooting in Washington, DC — prompting urgent calls from the country’s Jewish community for stronger government action amid growing fears of escalating violence.
On Friday, a French rabbi was violently assaulted by three drunken individuals in the town of Deauville, located in the Normandy region of northwestern France.
According to local police, Rabbi Eli Lemel — a prominent figure in French Jewry — was attacked around 3:30 pm by three men who approached him, repeatedly punched him in the stomach, and shouted antisemitic slurs.
French authorities have launched an investigation into the assault, but no arrests have been made so far.
After the incident, Lemel called on the Jewish community to draw spiritual strength amid the increasing hostility that Jews are facing across France.
“I’m deeply moved by the outpouring of support following the attack. Thank God, I’m okay,” the Jewish leader wrote in a post on X. “I was struck and verbally abused in a language I didn’t understand.”
In a separate incident, a 21-year-old man was arrested on Saturday after climbing a synagogue in the town of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine in north-central France, removing an Israeli flag from its façade, and attempting to set it on fire.
According to local media, the suspect — who was already known to authorities for prior offenses — confessed to committing the attack and admitted to being intoxicated at the time.
French police confirmed that the man is being charged with trespassing in a place of worship, theft by climbing, and causing damage to property on religious grounds.
The local Jewish community has voiced deep concern following this incident, viewing it as part of a broader surge in hostility targeting Jewish institutions across France.
Sandrine Dos Santos, the city’s mayor, expressed “[her] solidarity, as well as that of the city, toward the Jewish community directly targeted by these unacceptable antisemitic acts.”
“Faced with the increase in violence, our commitment against discrimination remains unwavering and will not waver. We repeat it loud and clear: no form of racism or rejection of others has a place in Poissy,” the French leader said.
In a separate incident on Saturday, three Serbs were arrested near Antibes in southeastern France, suspected of painting several Jewish community buildings green in Paris — an act currently under investigation as possible foreign interference.
Last weekend, the Paris Holocaust Memorial, three synagogues, and a Jewish restaurant were all vandalized with green paint in an incident denounced by the French government.
On Monday, an elementary school in Lyon, east-central France, was set on fire and defaced with antisemitic and pro-Palestinian slogans, as well as swastikas, marking one of the latest antisemitic incidents to impact France in recent days.
As the school had no direct connections to the Jewish community, local police have launched an investigation to determine the motive behind the attack.
French authorities reported that the fire was limited to the outdoor bathrooms, causing no significant damage to the school. They also found antisemitic graffiti and swastikas in three classrooms.
Yonathan Arfi, president of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France (CRIF), denounced the attack, saying that “the Palestinian cause is used as justification for burning down a school” and that the “Nazification of Israel serves as fuel for crass antisemitism.”
“When a populist pro-Palestinian narrative is allowed to take hold, it is French Jews who ultimately pay the price,” Arfi wrote in a post on X. “The twisted use of the Palestinian cause is turning into a rallying cry of hatred against both Jews and the Republic itself.”
Voilà où nous en sommes !
La cause palestinienne sert de justification pour incendier une école
Quand on laisse gagner un discours populiste propalestinien, ce sont les Français juifs qui en paient le prix.… https://t.co/dMaQBnbfqi
— Yonathan Arfi (@Yonathan_Arfi) June 1, 2025
Beyond France, other European countries have also experienced a surge in antisemitic incidents in recent weeks.
On Monday, several headstones were vandalized at a Jewish cemetery in a suburb of Belgrade, located in north-central Serbia, marking the second such incident in the country in recent weeks.
The post Surge of Antisemitic Incidents Rocks France Amid Growing Security Concerns first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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US Vetoes UN Security Council Demand for Gaza Ceasefire
Smoke rises from Gaza after an explosion, as seen from Israel, June 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen
The United States vetoed a UN Security Council demand on Wednesday for an “immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire” between Israel and Palestinian terrorist group Hamas in Gaza and unhindered aid access across the enclave.
“The United States has been clear we would not support any measure that fails to condemn Hamas and does not call for Hamas to disarm and leave Gaza,” Acting US Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Shea told the council before the vote.
“This resolution would undermine diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire that reflects the realities on the ground, and embolden Hamas,” she said of the text that was put forward by 10 countries on the 15-member council.
The remaining 14 council members voted in favor of the draft resolution.
Israel has rejected calls for an unconditional or permanent ceasefire, saying Hamas cannot stay in Gaza. It has renewed its military offensive in Gaza – also seeking to free hostages held by Hamas – since ending a two-month ceasefire in March.
The war in Gaza has raged since 2023 after Hamas terrorists killed 1,200 people in Israel in an Oct. 7 attack and took some 250 hostages back to the enclave.
The post US Vetoes UN Security Council Demand for Gaza Ceasefire first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Trump Picks Lawyer Who Called Oct. 7 Attack a ‘Psyop’ to Lead Federal Watchdog Agency
Paul Ingrassia. Photo: Screenshot
Paul Ingrassia, a 29-year-old lawyer who was recently nominated by US President Donald Trump to lead a federal agency dedicated to combating corruption and protecting whistleblowers, seemingly dismissed the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2o23, invasion of and massacre across southern Israel as a “psyop,” or “psychological operation, in resurfaced social media posts.
“This ‘war’ is yet another psyop to distract Americans from celebrating Columbus Day,” Ingrassia wrote on X/Twitter on Oct. 8, 2023.
“I think we could all admit at this stage that Israel/Palestine, much like Ukraine before it, and BLM before that, and covid/vaccine before that, was another psyop,” he posted a week later. “But sadly, people fell for it. And they’ll fall for the next one too.”
On the actual day of the Oct. 7 massacre, Ingrassia compared illegal immigration into the US to the Hamas-led onslaught.
“The amount of energy everyone has put into condemning Hamas (and prior to that, the Ukraine conflict) over the past 24 hours should be the same amount of energy we put into condemning our wide open border, which is a war comparable to the attack on Israel in terms of bloodshed — but made worse by the fact that it’s occurring in our very own backyard,” he posted. “We shouldn’t be beating the war drum, however tragic the events may be overseas, until we resolve our domestic problems first.”
Trump announced last week that he picked Ingrassia to serve as head of the US Office of Special Counsel, a position that requires confirmation by the Senate.
The Office of Special Counsel is an independent federal ethics agency that works to ensure fairness and accountability within the government. Ingrassia’s role, if he is confirmed, would involve investigating claims of wrongdoing, such as retaliation against whistleblowers or improper political activity in the workplace. The official can recommend disciplinary action and reports serious findings to Congress, helping to protect federal employees and uphold the integrity of the civil service system.
Ingrassia also maintains a relationship with and defends alleged sex trafficker Andrew Tate, who has promoted antisemitic conspiracy theories on social media. Tate wrote on X/Twitter that he refuses to “listen to women, Mexicans, or Jews” and that Jewish people are “subverting Western populations into mass genetic suicide” by advancing what he described as misguided immigration policy. Tate has also accused Israel of committing a “genocide” in Gaza against Palestinians and engaged in Holocaust denialism.
The furor surrounding Ingrassia is the latest dustup the Trump administration has had regarding controversial personnel and antisemitism.
The Trump administration’s appointment of Kingsley Wilson as deputy press secretary at the Department of Defense also sparked widespread criticism due to her history of promoting antisemitic conspiracy theories and extremist views. Wilson, formerly associated with the Center for Renewing America, has a documented history of social media posts endorsing white supremacist ideologies, including claims about the 1915 lynching of Leo Frank — a Jewish man whose wrongful conviction and subsequent murder galvanized the founding of the Anti-Defamation League. In 2023, she tweeted that Frank “raped & murdered a 13-year-old girl,” a statement aligning with neo-Nazi narratives.
Late last month, the Pentagon announced that Wilson will be promoted and serve as the department’s new press secretary.
The post Trump Picks Lawyer Who Called Oct. 7 Attack a ‘Psyop’ to Lead Federal Watchdog Agency first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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