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A Jewish initiative aims to support Asian New Yorkers following Monterey Park shooting
(New York Jewish Week) — After Saturday’s mass shooting that took the lives of mostly older Asian Americans in Monterey Park, California over the weekend, a Jewish organization in New York is seeing renewed interest in an initiative that focuses on solidarity between the Asian and Jewish communities.
That initiative, called Jews For Asians, is gearing up for numerous vigils in New York this week as the Asian American community processes yet another tragedy. Just two days after a gunman opened fire on a Lunar New Year celebration and murdered 11 people, on Monday, yet another gunman killed seven people in two separate incidents in the California coastal town of Half Moon Bay.
Jews For Asians brings volunteers to vigils and solidarity events to help mourners feel safe in a public spaces. “This horrible incident on Lunar New Year drove a bunch of interest in Jews For Asians,” Carlyn Cowen, a co-founder of the group, told the New York Jewish Week. “We’re now plugging people in. We train people to offer solidarity support and then we connect people where that support is needed.”
Cowen started Jews For Asians with Rafael Shimunov after the Atlanta spa shooting spree in March 2021, when a gunman killed eight people, six of whom were of Asian descent. The group is a project of Jews for Racial & Economic Justice, a progressive group.
“People just wanted to help,” Shimunov told the New York Jewish Week. “We wanted to use that energy. We saw hundreds of volunteers sign up.”
Cowen, a Filipnx JFREJ member, said that Jews For Asians also provides security for other communities. In addition, the group offeres trainings on de-escalation, situational awareness, how to interact with the police and more.
Sadly our Asian siblings in New York are marking lunar New Year with vigils after hate and violence in Monterey Park, California.
If you’d like to join the now 500 #JewsForAsians volunteer list ready to secure those events, sign up here. We’ll train u.https://t.co/SO8wwqaQ7S pic.twitter.com/EXTU0hH9Yy
— Rafael Shimunov (@rafaelshimunov) January 22, 2023
Hailie Kim, a Korean American who is holding a vigil this Thursday in Sunnyside, Queens, told the New York Jewish Week that Jews For Asians will send volunteers to the gathering.
“It is really touching to me that Rafael reached out,” Kim said. “We should all be working together in moments like this and beyond. We shouldn’t only be working together when things like this happen. It should be used as a model for how we behave in our daily lives.”
JFREJ also used solidarity support tactics in combatting antisemitism with the Haredi community in 2020, and again in 2021 when a mosque was attacked in Brooklyn.
Kim, who is running for City Council in District 26, which encompasses Sunnyside, also said that she is worried about an increase in police presence at such events, and would prefer Jews For Asians volunteers to provide security at her vigil this week.
“When we ask people what makes them feel unsafe, it’s never that there are not enough police around,” Kim said. “I think having more police presence at events like this isn’t necessarily going to prevent anything.”
Asian New Yorkers are noticing an increase in the number of NYPD officers in lower Manhattan this week after the tragedy that took place last weekend. The NYPD told Gothamist it had shifted counterterrorism and patrol resources at Lunar New Year events across the city, but had not identified any threats in New York.
Shimunov, who is a Bukharian Jew and a member of JFREJ, said Jews For Asians shares a wariness about policing; JFREJ maintains that increased police presence and security can “militarize our community spaces” and make “communal spaces less safe for Jews of color, trans Jews, Jews with disabilities” and others.
“When we say we don’t need policing for things like this, or maybe for everything, how do we not just preach that, but even in a small way, how do we demonstrate to the world what that can look like and why it’s better,” Shimunov said.
He added that people in Los Angeles have reached out to Jews For Asians and asked if there was a similar program in California.
“We are looking to see if there is any group there that wants to take our model and replicate it,” Shimunov said.
We must stand together in love to protect our neighbors and reject the forces that try to divide us. Join us for a community vigil this Thursday, 1/26, 6:30 pm, at 46st St-Bliss St Plaza in Sunnyside. RSVP here: https://t.co/TYll1rm5Dj. pic.twitter.com/LRts6yIvEg
— Hailie Kim (@hailieforqueens) January 23, 2023
Rabbi Mira Rivera, the first Filipina-American rabbi to be ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary, who also provides support through Jews For Asians, told the New York Jewish Week that she will be attending this Thursday’s vigil to provide support.
“We come together for celebrations, but now we have to come together for mourning again,” Rivera said. “The sense of duty is huge. It’s somehow deep within our interwoven cultures: Jews, Asians and Americans.”
She referred to a Talmud teaching that talks about how it is “our duty in Judaism to mourn with people from other nations.”
“Meaning the people of other cultures, in the same [way] that we mourn for our own people,” Rivera explained. “It is our duty to bury the dead of other nations in the same way as to bury the dead of our own. That’s the moment right now. It’s not just that they’re Asian. It’s all of us.”
“We have different traditions, but not necessarily that different,” said Cowen, who described their father as a “Chicago Jew” and their mom as from the Philippines. “As a Jewish Asian, I’ve been watching both of my communities experience an increase in hate violence over the last few years. It is very much rooted in white supremacy and white nationalism.”
“It’s awesome that Jews For Asians is getting more attention,” Cowen added, “but I also don’t want to distract from the fact that it’s my Asian American community that needs support.”
Shimunov said that Jews For Asians is part of a “bigger picture” of building a multi-ethnic, multi-faith coalition that is used to combat against what he calls “the opposition,” which he views as government power, police presence with guns and white supremacy.
“If we can maintain this coalition, we can win anything,” Shimunov said. “We have all the numbers. It’s such a precarious thing that is always being tested. This is just one of the ways to keep that coalition together.”
Hate crimes against Asian Americans rose by 339% between 2020 and 2021, according to a report by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism.
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Israeli Artist Forced to Close Mexico City Exhibit for ‘Safety Reasons’ After Antisemitic Harassment, Vandalism
Pro-Palestinian protesters and vandals hold a flag during a demonstration against Amir Fattal, an openly Zionist Israeli graphic artist. They later spray-painted the facade of the private KÖNIG GALERIE gallery, where he was exhibiting some of his AI-generated works. Photo: Gerardo Vieyra / SOPA Images via Reuters Connect
An Israeli artist based in Berlin was forced to close his solo exhibition at a Mexico City gallery a week earlier than planned following continued antisemitic harassment, a protest at his exhibit, and vandalism of the gallery.
Artist and curator Amir Fattal shared the news on Instagram about the closing of his exhibit, “I’m Just Here For The Pool,” at the König contemporary art gallery. The show opened on Feb. 3 and was expected to close on April 1, according to the gallery.
On March 26, pro-Palestinian activists spray-painted antisemitic and anti-Israel messages and symbols across the outer walls of the König gallery. Swastikas, Star of Davids, the word “Nazi,” and more offensive messages were spray-painted along with the number “666.” The number is used by the Aryan Brotherhood, a white supremacist group, and it signifies the “number of the beast,” according to the Anti-Defamation League. On the door of the gallery, a vandal carved a swastika and the phrase “acqui hay terroristas,” which translates in English to “here there are terrorists.” The same phrase was written in chalk on the street in front of the gallery, according to photos shared by Reuters.
On March 21, during a guided tour of the gallery, roughly 15 demonstrators gathered outside, chanted against Fattal, and called him “a murderer” and “a Mossad agent,” according to Artnet.
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Israeli Forces to Expand Control in Southern Lebanon as Defense Chief Outlines Long-Term Security Plans
Smoke rises after an Israeli strike, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, as the US-Israeli conflict with Iran continues, in southern Lebanon, March 28, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Stringer
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced on Tuesday that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will maintain security control over territory in southern Lebanon up to the Litani River even after active ground operations against Hezbollah conclude, signaling plans for a sustained Israeli security presence along the northern front.
During a press briefing, Katz pointed to a shift beyond limited cross-border raids, outlining plans for a long-term security presence and the creation of a buffer zone as part of a broader effort to reshape the security landscape in Lebanon.
Under this new plan, the IDF will move to dismantle terrorist infrastructure in border villages using operational methods similar to those employed in the Gaza Strip against Hamas, aiming to permanently eliminate the threat of cross-border raids and anti-tank fire targeting Israeli frontline communities.
“The return of more than 600,000 southern Lebanese residents who fled north of the Litani River will remain completely prohibited until the security of Israel’s northern residents is guaranteed,” the Israeli defense chief said.
Katz also announced the IDF plans to establish a new defensive line inside Lebanese territory once the ground campaign concludes.
“The IDF will maintain security control over the entire area up to the Litani River, including all bridges, while fully neutralizing Radwan’s forces and destroying their weapons,” he said, referring to Hezbollah’s elite units.
“We are determined to separate Lebanon from Iran’s influence, to uproot the snake’s teeth, and eliminate Hezbollah’s threat capability,” Katz continued. “The situation in Lebanon will change once and for all — we will enforce security just as we do in Syria and Gaza.”
During a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu outlined a tougher operational approach to the campaign in Lebanon, emphasizing shifts in battlefield tactics following the heavy toll the fighting has taken.
“I have ordered our soldiers to avoid entering buildings whenever possible, using mechanical engineering equipment and heavy weapons instead,” Netanyahu said, explaining that the goal is to “minimize casualties” and to safeguard soldiers on the ground.
With prospects of potential ceasefire negotiations with Iran to end the ongoing war still uncertain, Netanyahu said Israel is shaping a new security reality along its northern border and will act independently of any agreement possibly reached with Tehran.
“Even if an agreement is reached with Iran, a ceasefire in Lebanon cannot be imposed on us — that must be Israel’s own independent decision,” the Israeli leader said.
The Iranian regime backs and ultimately commands Hezbollah, having formed the Lebanese terrorist group in the 1980s and, since then, providing significant amounts of weapons, funding, and training.
Last week, Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem warned that negotiating with Israel while under fire would amount to forced surrender, adding that his fighters are prepared to continue operations “without limits.”
With a ground maneuver underway to expand a defensive zone in southern Lebanon, the IDF says it has eliminated over 850 Hezbollah terrorists since fighting began earlier this month, while continuing to dismantle the group’s command and weapons infrastructure.
Israel has intensified strikes targeting Hezbollah, particularly south of the Litani River, where the group’s operatives have historically been most active against the Jewish state. Hezbollah opened fire on Israel earlier this month, just a few days after the US and Israel launched their joint military campaign against Iran.
Israel has long demanded that Hezbollah be barred from carrying out activities south of the Litani, located roughly 15 miles from the Israeli border.
Although the overall number of attacks has decreased, Hezbollah continues to launch significant strikes against civilian areas while maintaining sustained operations targeting IDF forces in southern Lebanon.
In just the first month of the conflict, Israeli officials report that Hezbollah has carried out more than 900 coordinated attacks, marking a sharp increase in cross-border activity and a broader expansion of its operations across the region.
On Sunday, Israeli forces intercepted a Hezbollah a terrorist cell disguised as paramedics who tried to transport weapons in an ambulance.
For years, Hezbollah has embedded command posts, weapons depots, snipers, and troops within Shiite villages, situating them in the heart of civilian centers near schools, hospitals, mosques, and main roads to turn entire communities into battlefields.
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Newest Members of the IDF’s Ultra-Orthodox Hasmonean Brigade Get Their Berets
Illustrative: Members of the Hasmonean Brigade during their beret ceremony at the Western Wall on Aug. 6, 2024. Photo: Screenshot
The third set of soldiers in the Hasmonean Brigade, the Israel Defense Force’s first ultra-Orthodox brigade, completed eight months of training earlier this month and received their dark blue berets at the end of a beret march of approximately 40 kilometers, according to the Israeli news outlet Walla.
The troops will join the regular forces of the Hasmonean Brigade, which was established in 2024 and has participated in military operations in Syria, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and southern Lebanon. Members of the brigade live an ultra-Orthodox lifestyle, and their blue berets reportedly symbolize the sky. The brigade is named after the Hasmonean Jewish dynasty that ruled Judea, and liberated Jerusalem and the Temple from oppressive Greek rule.
In February, members of the Hasmonean Brigade’s Yonatan Battalion completed its first-ever battalion-level exercise in the Golan Heights area, “marking the conclusion of the battalion’s operational certification process and its preparation for operational activity,” according to the military. During the exercise, the soldiers were trained in combat in open terrain, targeted operations, and urban warfare scenarios. It took place mere weeks after the start of the Israel-Iran war, also known as Operation Roaring Lion.
“You can be ultra-Orthodox and be a combat soldier – you are making history,” Commander of the Ground Forces, Major General Nadav Lotan, said at the time. “The Hasmonean Brigade continues to establish itself as a combat brigade within the ground forces. This exercise, along with the establishment of the battalions, marks another significant step forward. I am proud of you – the brigade’s troops and commanders. You operate at a high operational standard while preserving your unique identity.”