Tag: antisemitism

Am Yisrael Chai – we need to live not die

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

There isn’t a lot in this world that really shocks me. Maybe it is because I have low expectations of our leaders and of the people in the world. Maybe it is because I expect people to say dumb, uneducated, and ill-informed things. Perhaps it is because I have seen people feed off of hatred and believe anything that fuels their hate. It may even because I have come to believe that most people are dumb. Our education system is broken. They aren’t taught, they don’t learn the basics, and everything is based on headlines, clickbait, and opinions rather than facts.

Since October 7th, I have found myself being consistently shocked by one thing. The number of Jews who put their own self-interests and needs low on their priority list. Maslow’s heirarchy of needs clearly shows how the basics, food, water, shelter, etc. are the base. That is what we need most of all. Second is safety and security. I watch so many Jews place their own safety and security much lower on the list, concerned much more with the things in self-esteem and self-actualization. They are important but not at the risk of one’s own safety.

This has been bothering me a great deal lately. So much so that I had trouble sleeping last night. I dreamt that I was talking to the Jews who were killed in the Holocaust, murdered by Hitler and the Nazis. They were yelling at me about things such as equal rights, women’s rights, freedom of worship, access to health care, marriage equality, etc., telling me that I would have no need for that after they murdered me. These were all things that mattered to people who were alive, not to people who were dead. It shook me and I awoke at 3:30 am, unable to fall back to sleep.

Murdered Jews by the Nazis. Without safety and security we have nothing.

They are right. All the things we put value on in our society only matter to the living. Once we are dead, clean air doesn’t matter to us because we are no longer breathing air. We don’t need drinkable water, because we aren’t drinking fluids. It doesn’t matter who we have the right to marry because we are not getting married, we are dead. The only one with rights to our bodies are the undertakers who are preparing us for burial or cremation. These are truly first world problems and challenges and I am grateful that we have them to fight for. They are important and matter – when we are alive!

Some may say, “What about your children and grandchildren? Doesn’t it matter to them?” Here is the unfortunate news. They are not coming to kill just me. They are going to kill my children and grandchildren too. My brother and sister. My nieces and nephews. None of us are exempt. So once again, when they are alive, it matters a great deal. But when we are all dead, killed because we are Jews, it doesn’t matter at all.

Many people think I am overreacting. They think I am fear mongering. Perhaps. I hope so. The Jews of the 1930s thought so until it was too late. The rise of Jew hatred has been visible for a long time and I have been told I was overreacting for more than a decade. I wish they were right. The monthly drawing of swastikas on buildings in Seattle have grown to daily instances of violence against Jews around the world. Just yesterday, on Shabbat outside a Chabad in NY city, a Jewish man was stabbed by somebody yelling “Free Palestine”. His crime was being Jewish. I remember my African-American friends talking about the problem of “Driving while black” or “Shopping while black”. I empathized and thought I understood. I realize now that I didn’t.

This is an election year which makes things even more sensitive. People support one candidate or party over the other and demonize the one they don’t support. I’m not asking for anybody to comment on this blog about which candidate/party they support, why, or why the other one is evil. What I find shocking in this election cycle is how the survival of the Jewish people isn’t the number one concern for every Jew. In a world that is filled with Jew hatred, where violence against Jews is increasing daily, where the calls for violence against Jews is increasing daily, the fact that our safety and security isn’t the top priority stuns me.

I wonder if the changes in Jewish life over the past 50 years of so is the reason why. My grandparents knew that being Jewish meant a risk to their safety and security. They lived through the Holocaust, albeit in the United States. My Uncle Ralph, who lived through Kristallnacht while hiding upstairs with his grandmother, was 9 years old when his family left Munich to escape the Nazis. After escaping, he and his family had to deal with the Japanese, an ally of Germany, taking over in the Philipines. He understands the risk of our safety and security,

My Uncle Ralph speaking via Zoom to the Orlando community on International Holocaust Memorial Day

Today’s generation does not. They believe they are American’s first. They believe that America will always protect them. While I hope this is true, the Jews of Germany felt the same way until it was too late. I watch as Jewish college students align themselves with Students for Justice in Palestine, Jewish Voice for Peace, Code Pink, and other groups that hate Jews, are funded by Jew haters, and are aimed at eliminating Jews. I shake my head. When I see Jewish LGBTQ+ students holding signs that say “Queers for Palestine” I wonder how much they really know about Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Palestinian Authority. If they understand how they would be treated by those governments.

It reminds me of a story my friend David Abramowitz tells about his father, Rabbi Mayer Abramowitz z”l. Rabbi Abramowitz was the founding Rabbi of Temple Menorah in Miami, a very successful synagogoue. In 1989, at 75 years of age, with a lifetime contract at the syngagogue, he shocked everybody by telling them that he had failed. The youth were not educated and were not staying Jewishly connected. He left his lifetime contract to create a radical program with a radical idea. The Jewish Leadership Institute (JLI) would take students to Israel at a highly subsidized price to teach them leadership and infuse them with a Jewish connection, Jewish knowledge, Jewish values, and how Judaism is relevent in their daily lives. This was a decade before Birthright. Fifteen years before MASA. 31 years before RootOne. I have seen the impact of this program since 1998. It’s more than what Birthright and MASA do because the mission is different. I was on the trip in July and saw the impact during the trip, not just after the trip.

See the impact it made me wonder how much of what we see with Jews not prioritizing our safety first and being stuck on Tikkun Olam, thinking that repairing the world is the greatest thing we can do, even at our own expense, is because of a lack of real knowledge. Over the past few years I have been investing some of my time in learning more Jewishly. High quality and interesting learning. Content based learning. Things I can apply in my daily life type of learning. I think this impacts the way I think, the things I value, and certainly my actions.

One example is the first prayer we say in morning services. I’m not a service goer and would never have known anything about this without being taught. We thank God for the rooster knowing the difference between day and night. It’s a prayer of gratitude. It’s a prayer to remind us to pay attention to the beauty of nature and all that is around us. In a world filled with so much darkness, I now start my day by saying thank you to God and being grateful for all that I have in my life and that is around me. It’s a simple thing to do and I do it in english. It’s my own prayer and awareness. It also helps me stay out of the negativity that is so pervasive in today’s world.

It’s been over 10 months since October 7th and we still have hostages being held in Gaza. The Red Cross has yet to visit them. They are never mentioned by the UN or UNRWA. We cannot forget them. We know the importance of human life in Judaism, Pikuach nefesh. We know that the mishnah tells us that whoever saves a life saves an entire world. In Israel in July, we learned and sung the Acheinu prayer at least once a day. It’s not an ancient prayer and is only 35 years old. It was easy to learn and easy to sing. Every day, I continue to sing the Acheinu prayer to make sure I never forget the hostages. Judaism gives us these reminders all the time about how to behave. This prayer is just one example.

I have also learned that when we praise God for all the amazing things he does for us, it is a reminder that we are made in the image of God and that we are supposed to strive to be that way as well. We are not expected to do things that will harm us however. The exceptions abound where our health, our lives, take precedent over everything else. The Talmud tells us very clearly that, “You shall live by them, but not die by them” and is based on Leviticus 18:5. When I see people doing things that harm the Jewish people or the State of Israel because of their belief in Tikkun Olam or Jewish values, it frustrates me because they harm themselves and the Jewish people with a faulty understanding. It’s always fair to criticize a government and a leader for their decisions, policies, and actions. When they are undermining the Jewish people, the State of Israel, it is not ok. That’s what they do. I have former students of mine who claim they love Israel as they work to rip the country apart. I wonder, “Where did I go wrong?” How was I unable to teach them where the lines are between criticism of governments and criticisms of the Jewish people?

My dream from last night of the victims of the Holocaust scolding me will haunt me for a long time. They are a reminder that life comes first. Without our lives, everything else doesn’t matter. Make no mistake, Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and the Palestinian Authority want us all dead. From the River to the Sea means no Jews – we are all pushed into the sea. They openly say it. They don’t hide their intentions. When they say they are going to kill us, we need to believe them.

We continue to make the same mistakes. It is our history. We try to fit in and think they will leave us alone. We work to be a part of their country and think they will appreciate us as part of their country. We think if we only give them what they want, they will leave us alone. What we forget is that what they want is for there to be no Jews. What they want is to kill us all. This is thousands of years old and we are once again making the same mistake again. As my father would say to me, “If we don’t take care of the Jews, nobody else will.” My friend Fleur Hassan-Nahoum says it so well when she says, “The problem isn’t that there is no Palestinian State. The problem is that there is a Jewish State.“

I hope that I am wrong. Over a decade ago, with the rise of Jew hatred, I openly said that I hoped that I was wrong. This isn’t something I want to be right about. Yet I was right about the rise of Jew hatred. I was right about the far left and their hatred of Jews when everybody said it was just the far right. I don’t want to be right here, but I fear that I am. We need to stop helping them kill us. We need to stop thinking that they will like us, want us, and leave us alone if we just go along. History shows that never happens.

Invest in learning about Jewish values so you can apply them appropriately. Invest in Jewish practice that you find meaningful, whatever that may be. Visit Israel to see the reality, not what the Jew hating media tells you. Be proud to be Jewish and don’t hide. Don’t think it will just pass you by. The thought that keeps playing in my head is what far too many friends in Israel have said to me. “I hope you can move here before it is too late and they won’t let you leave.“

What are you waiting for? Am Yisrael Chai.

The path back from the cliff isn’t easy but it is there. Will you take it?

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

I boarded the flight to Israel today around 11 am.  We took off at noon for the 11 ½ hour flight from Miami to Tel Aviv.  This is my least favorite flight to take as it’s very difficult to sleep during the daytime after a good night’s sleep and when we land, it’s the start of a brand-new day.  It’s great to land and have the full day in front of you, but when you are tired and it feels like midnight, it’s not always so easy.

On the flight, I chose to get the internet package. Knowing it was daytime and I’d be awake for most, if not all, of the flight, I thought it was a good investment.  As I spent the flight checking emails and responding to texts, I realized that when we landed in Israel, not only were we going to start by volunteering to help by picking fruits and vegetables, but we were also going to spend the afternoon at the Kotel, the Western Wall, one of the holiest sites in Judaism.  One of the traditions is to write prayers and put them into the wall so they are close to God.  Since I had such a long flight, I went on social media and offered to put prayers into the Kotel for whoever wanted one.  All they had to do was message me what they wanted the prayer to be.

I didn’t think much of it and expected a few people would respond.  I was overwhelmed as the requests kept coming in.  Without sharing any specific people or what they requested, I will say that a great deal of them were related to health issues.  It is a reminder that there is a reason the saying is, “healthy, wealthy, and wise.”  Health comes first.  Without health, we have nothing.  There were requests for a better world.  Requests to help loved ones who are struggling.  Nobody was asking for the ‘wealthy and wise’ part of the saying.  All the requests were truly selfless.  A few people thanked me for offering to do this for them.  I often take going to Israel for granted.  This is my 22nd trip and the 23rd is already on the books this year.  Israel is truly a core part of my soul and my personal identity.  Today, on the flight, these requests were a reminder of how lucky I am to go to Israel once, let alone 22 times. 

These requests also got me thinking about the world we live in today and the world it appears most people want to live in.  They are not the same place.  The world we live in is filled with selfishness.  It is filled with ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’.  It is filled with people who desperately want to obtain and keep power.  It is a world filled with ego.  When half of the United States hates the other half, we are not living in the world that most people want. 

These requests made me think about the world we would like to live in.  A world where we cared about other people.  A world in which doing the greatest good really mattered, whether it helped the individual or not.  A world filled with love, not hate.  A world in which we were more concerned with giving than getting, with doing rather than taking.  What would it look like to live in a world where kindness was the most valued commodity? 

Imagine a world where we didn’t hate but rather worked to understand each other.  Our differences were celebrated rather than used to create a reason to hate.  As I watched this video, I couldn’t help smiling when he said, “Babka is my middle name” or when he called rugelach, “roo ga losch”.  He is filled with curiosity.  He wants to explore a different culture. I want to watch him try gefilte fish, kasha varnishkas, shakshuka, cholent, and so much more.  How much fun would it be to watch people of different cultures explore the unique foods of another culture?

On this trip to Israel, we have 12 young adults.  6 males, 6 females.  Twelve very different people, who come from different backgrounds, with one similarity. As I met most of them for the first time, I loved their differences.  I can’t wait to spend two weeks exploring a post October 7th Israel, leadership, and Jewish thought with them.  I can’t wait to hear their thoughts, their impressions, their opinions, and their ideas.  As I write that, I can’t imagine our world leaders saying the same thing about each other.  I can’t imagine our country’s leaders saying that about each other.  It shows me that there is a path back from the cliff we are on, if we want to take it.  It’s not easy.  It’s not comfortable. 

A perfect example of how close to the cliff we are is the text exchange between Deans at Columbia University that was released by the Department of Education.  The texts are bigoted.  They are hateful.  They are unbecoming a leader and an educational institution.  Three of the Deans are currently suspended pending an investigation while one, Joseph Sorett, has falled on his sword and not only won’t be suspended, he is guaranteed to keep his job.  Normally, with evidence this damning, you could count on them getting fired.  Yet in the world we live in, with what we have seen in the past 3 months on college campuses, there remains a good chance they will all return to their positions with merely a slap on the wrist and by making an insincere apology.  As you read the text thread, your blood may boil the way mine did.

Instead of approaching this with empathy, care and concern for Jewish students at Columbia, these four Deans, Susan Chang-Kim, the Vice Dean and Chief Administrative Officer, Matthew Patashnick, the Associate Dean for Student and Family Support, Cristen Kromm, the Dean of Undergraduate Student Life, and Josef Sorett, the Dean of Columbia College, utilize stereotypes, antisemitism, hate, racism, and everything they are supposed to fight against to mock Jewish students, Jewish professional leadership, and antisemitism. Their titles show how powerful the positions they hold are.

The 3 Columbia Deans that have been suspended

We all have a choice. Do we want to be like the Deans of Columbia University or do we want to work to change the world, seek to understand rather than to be understood, strive for the best for humanity, be kind, and treat others with dignity and respect. It seems like a simple choice, however in the world we currently live, it isn’t.

I choose the latter. I choose to do things like meet with my Palestinian friend in East Jerusalem to have meaningful and respectful discussions. I choose to listen and learn both with and from the twelve young adults on this trip. I choose the harder path, one that leads to a better world but isn’t easy. When I go to the Kotel later today with all these notes from other people, detailing their prayers, their hopes, their dreams, I choose to be an instrument of good, placing each one carefully into the wall. With each one I place, I will ask God to grant them their prayer, their wish.

We are not stuck in the world we live in. We have the ability to change the world one step at a time, one day at a time, one action at a time. I hope you will join me.

Racism and hate has always been here even if we didn’t want to see it.

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

I grew up in a very multicultural environment.  My friends were many different religions and came from many different cultures.  They were of many ethnicities.  They came from different socio-economic backgrounds.  Some had intact families, some had parents that were divorced.  Some were straight and while some were not ‘out’ yet, we all knew they were gay. It was a great way to grow up as people were just people.  Friends were friends because of who they were, not any other reason.  Growing up this way shaped me as person.  To this day, my friends are my friends because of who they are, not based on their religion, culture, ethnicity, socio-economic status, sexual orientation or identification. 

I didn’t realize that how I grew up was a bubble in a world that was not like that until much later in my life.  As a Jewish, middle-class kid, I didn’t feel any different than my friends.  I would go to their house; they would come to mine. We all played together, hung out together, dated each other, shared our hopes and dreams with each other.  I wrongly assumed that everybody felt the way I felt.

It wasn’t until I went away to college that I began to notice the difference.  We went to different colleges, and some didn’t go to college.  A number of my friends had children when they were 19, 20 or 21.  Even my friends who went to college with me ended up having different social groups that were more aligned with their personal identity.  I joined a Jewish fraternity.  I had friends that joined the historically black fraternities.  Some joined fraternities that didn’t like Jews or black people.  Others joined no fraternity and had a totally different social circle.

While I faced antisemitism in college, I didn’t see my friends facing prejudice because of their skin color or their ethnicity or their sexual identity.  It wasn’t something that I lived with and so it was easy not to notice.  I was blind to the discrimination they faced.  When my childhood friends came out, it wasn’t a big deal to me because I had already known they were gay since childhood.  While I was happy that they could now publicly be who they were, I didn’t understand what they were now facing as openly gay men.

It wasn’t until I was in my 40s and living in Seattle that I began to notice what my friends faced.  I saw the Jew hatred starting and saw others ignoring it or not standing up for it.  I saw hatred against the LGTBQ+ community and saw people ignore it.  A friend of mine there told me that my leadership reminded her of Harvey Milk, and I’m embarrassed to admit that while I knew the name and that he was a gay man and leader in San Francisco, I didn’t know his story.  I read about him, watched the movie (I highly recommend watching Sean Penn as Harvey Milk in the movie Milk) and was amazed that this incredible leader isn’t taught to children.  I was more stunned when I learned it was his murderer who got off on the ‘Twinkie Defense’ which I had heard of. 

Harvey Milk

When the murders happened at Pulse in Orlando, it was shocking to me.  After Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Philando Castile, Botham Jean, Breanna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery were killed, I remember a friend of mine posting about how her son was driving across country and how worried she was about his safety because he would be driving while black. That was a slap in the face for me.  My children were just a little younger than hers and while I worried about them driving safely, I wasn’t worried about them getting pulled over and ending up dead.  It deeply affected me and made me realize how much I was oblivious to because of how I grew up and my own life experiences.  My heart broke for her.  It broke for my other friends who faced the same thing and were not comfortable saying it publicly.

When my son was recruited to play football by Howard University, a historically black college, I was excited for him.  Howard is an excellent school with a great alumni base, and a childhood friend of mine was one of the coaches.  When they offered him a full scholarship, I really wanted him to choose Howard.  I was surprised by the pushback I got from people.  He decided to attend UCF instead and I was sad about the process.  When he thought about transferring, he was recruited by 4-5 other HBCs and I encouraged him to consider them.  Again, there was pushback by others which saddened me. 

I began paying more attention.  One of my childhood friends posts regularly about black history and important black historical figures.  Most of them I have never heard of and as I read about them, I am sad that I never had.  When The Free Press wrote an article about Bayard Rustin, the architect of the March on Washington in 1963, I was stunned that I had never heard of him.  I learned about the March on Washington, the Reverand Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcom X.  Why had I never learned about Bayard Rustin? 

Bayard Rustin – if you haven’t seen the movie about him and the March on Washington, watch it!

When October 7th happened, it was my turn.  The pain I felt from the murders, rapes, and kidnappings that day was intense.  I was worried about my friends in Israel who lived in the south of Israel and could be murdered just because they were Jewish.  Those murdered and kidnapped from the Nova music festival hit me hard as that could have been my children and could have been me with them.  When my friend’s son was killed by the terrorists, it hit hard.  He was younger than both my sons.  When I learned of family members of my friends who were being held hostage, I was devastated.  As of now, there were 10 hostages that are related to my friends.  6 remain hostages to this date. 

When the violence against Jews increased after October 7th and people were silent, I was outraged.  When the denial of the rapes happened, I was outraged.  When the women’s rights groups are silent about the rape of Jewish women on October 7th, I was outraged.  When the hostages are forgotten or not mentioned by many of our leaders, I am outraged.  When Israel gets vilified for defending her citizens, I get outraged.  When the lies about what is going on become accepted, I get outraged. 

I got it.  While Jews marched with Dr. King and were active in the civil rights movement, that was 50 years ago.  Where have we been as real partners for other communities, building friendships and relationships, since then?  How could we expect them to be there for us when we haven’t been there for them?  Of course there are some people who have been, but as a community, we have not.  I made a commitment to not be that person any longer.  To build relationships with other communities so they know the Jews are there for them before we ask them to be there for us. To have my eyes open for hatred of all types and to stand up against it. 

On Thursday June 20, 2024, the SF Giants played the St. Louis Cardinals at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama.  It was a tribute to the Negro Leagues and to honor Willie Mays (z’l).  The fact that Mays died on June 18, 2024, days before the game, made it more poignant.  That June 19th is the holiday Juneteenth made it more powerful.  During the pregame interviews on television, Alex Rodriguez asked Reggie Jackson what it was like returning to a field that held so many memories of baseball’s past.  Reggie’s response was one of the most powerful things I have ever heard. He describes with bitter passion how horrible it was for him.  He shared the prejudice he faced.  How his manager, teammates, and even the owner, supported him.  How they likely saved his life because without them he would have reacted on his anger.  It made me commit even more to fight against racism and hatred.  Watch the interview – it is powerful.

Reggie Jackson sharing the powerful experiences he had with racism when he played in Birmingham

As I listened to Reggie talk, it hit me that we are back there again.  From violence against the black community, the LGTBQ+ community, the Asian community, the Muslim community, and the current horrific issues against the Jewish community, it is just like what Reggie described.  “No Jews” is now heard.  Being a Zionist means your teachers and other students will discriminate against you.  Being Jewish makes you eligible to be attacked.  Looking Jewish makes you a target for physical violence.  A 12-year-old Jewish girl was gang raped in France on June 19th because she was Jewish.  Jewish schools have been shot at in Canada.  The horrors Reggie faced are now being faced by Jewish students on college campuses, in public schools, synagogues, and other public spaces.  How have we come so far to be right back where we were?

This is why we need to do 3 things immediately.

  1. Get educated.  Learn the facts.  Don’t believe the lies and don’t just speak in generalities.  Know that Zionists so wanted a Jewish homeland that they accepted the partition plan immediately despite the challenges the plan presented.  It was a Jewish homeland, so they took it.  The Arabs rejected it and have continued to reject every opportunity for peace and a 2-state solution since 1948.  Most of the time rejecting with violence.  Learn about the State of Israel and the Arab supreme court Justice, the Arabs in the Knesset.  The Israeli-Arabs, the Ethiopian Jews, the Druze, the Bhai, the Bedouins, and the Christians.  Hasbarah is great but not enough.  Learn the history.  Learn the facts.  Be able to have an intelligent discussion and defend Israel.  Even when you are talking with people who know nothing.  Actually, especially when you are talking with people who know nothing. 
  • Defend Israel and the Jewish people.  The days of hiding or playing defense are over.  We play offense now.  We don’t take the beatings because we get to stay alive.  We fight back so we can live.  Go to Israel and be public about it.  Wear your Jewish pride, as a Star of David, a Chai, a kippah, a t-shirt, or whatever you want.  Stand up.  Speak out. 
  • Build relationships with other communities.  We need to have these relationships.  During Pride month, be visible as a Jew celebrating Pride.  During Black History month, be visible as a Jew.  Stand with the black community as they celebrate their history.  During Ramadan, go to a community Iftar and celebrate with your Muslim brothers and sisters.  Learn the right greeting and wish them a Ramadan Kareem or Ramadan Mubarak.  Know and use the greeting Eid Mubarak on Eid-al-fitr, the last day of Ramadan.  Build relationships with the Christian community, the Sikh community, and every other community you can.  We need them and they need us. 

Here is an example of what getting educated and defending Israel can look like.  Watch as this lie, this falsehood, is completely exposed by the speaker.

This is what we all need to be able to do.

And watch true experts, Douglas Murray and Natasha Hausdorff debate on behalf of Israel here.  Some highlights of the debate are below.

Some highlights of the debate.

Hate is on the rise.  Don’t think it isn’t.  Don’t think it hasn’t always been here.  I’m ashamed to admit that I didn’t see it for a long time while my friends had to deal with it.  I’m embarrassed it took what it took to open my eyes.  Now that they are open, there are only two options. 

  1. Keep my eyes open and take action to fight hate and bigotry.
  2. Put my head back in the sand and pretend that I never saw it. 

History has shown that only keeping our eyes open open and taking action has positive results.  This action includes making the effort to support other communities and show that we are there for them before we need them to be there for us. That’s my choice. What is yours?

What world are we living in??

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

The amount of lies, misstatements, and falsehoods I have seen since October 7th are truly amazing.  I had stopped watching most major media news because of their agendas a while ago.  I now see their ‘highlights’ on social media and it disgusts me even more.  Critical analysis is to be expected.  Factual and fair discussions are to be expected.  Disagreements on policy is to be expected.  None of that is what we are getting.

What we are getting is truly unethical journalism.  It’s agenda based, largely focused on Jew hatred.  What we are getting is completely unanalyzed propaganda being spread as fact.  I remember going through Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust Museum, the first few times and wondering how that type of crazy propaganda actually worked.  We are now seeing it in real life, in real time.

I watch somebody like Piers Morgan go for ratings instead of the facts.  I listen to him say the most ridiculous things to get views and clicks on social media.  When faced with the facts, he chooses to bulldoze over people and shout them down unless they push back powerfully and argue with him.  Which then gets him more views, more clicks, and more ratings.  He is now the news version of Jerry Springer. Watch his interaction with Fleur Hassan-Nahoum. He could have asked, “Why don’t Palestinians have the same rights as Americans?” When caught, he quickly shuts down the conversation.

I listen to what Christiane Amanpour says regularly and it makes me sick.  A once respected journalist is a shill for terrorists and those who hate Jews.  When interviewing people from the UN, UNRWA or UNICEF, she never bothers to ask why Hamas terrorists are being found in their schools and medical clinics.  She doesn’t seem to wonder why the entrance to Hamas tunnels are found near the UNRWA schools and clinics.  She is happy to highlight that the people near the schools and clinics are in danger but leaves out the reason why – the connection to Hamas.  She is happy to report on the Israeli people being unhappy with Netanyahu but neglects to discuss that there is an electoral process that will enable them to choose somebody else.  She fails to discuss how Abbas is now in year 20 of a 5 year term or how Hamas has been in power since 2005 with no opportunity for the people to select another form of government.

The lies I see in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal or told on the nightly national news make my stomach turn.  I’ve been to Israel since October 7th and am going back in a few weeks.  I see the pain and struggle of the Israeli people.  I see the impact of the war and how everybody wants it to end as soon as possible.  The hostages are on the minds of everybody, and their return is felt throughout the country.  Other than far right extremists, nobody is talking about taking Gaza in a land grab.  They are talking about a military grab of the hostages.  They are talking about eliminating Hamas and their leadership as a risk to Israel.

On my last trip I went to both Kibbutz Kfar Aza and the site of the Nova music festival.  It was one of the most powerful experiences of my life.  At Kfar Aza I saw what Hamas did.  I had seen it on the 47-minute Hamas video and other clips.  I saw it in the Sheryl Sandberg documentary, “Screams of Silence”.  Yet standing there, listening to the story of each family at each house, burned my insides.  Seeing the street of young people where EVERY SINGLE PERSON was either killed or taken hostage was brutal and I’m not sure I will ever truly recover from that.  Walking up to the back gate where the Hamas terrorists came through followed by the second and third wave of ‘innocent Gazans’ who came to rob the people they had become friends with and ate lunch and dinner with regularly, was infuriating.  Seeing how close Jabaliyah was (less than a mile from the gate, less than half a mile from the back of the Kibbutz) was a bit shocking.  Knowing I could walk to Jabaliyah in 10 minutes or less from the Kibbutz was a reality check.  These are the things the media doesn’t show to the masses. 

Jabaliya from the back of Kibbutz Kfar Aza. The fence is halfway to the back. It’s less than 1 mile away.
All those killed or taken hostage at the Nova Music Festival on October 7th.

I listen to the cries for a cease fire, and I wonder what these people are thinking.  A cease fire with people who say they will do what they did on October 7th over and over and over again until all the Jews are dead?  How do you have a cease fire with that type of person?  You certainly can’t trust them to keep their word.  You know that it’s only temporary and the end result will be even more people killed.  It seems that the long-standing complaints about our education system are finally showing themselves with so many people unable to do any critical thinking or analysis.  Before September 11, 2001, I understood American’s lack of understanding about the risk of terrorism because we had not experienced it.  After 9/11 I can’t understand the desire to defend terrorists, especially those who merely call Israel, “Little Satan” because the United States is the “Great Satan”.  They openly call for our destruction and American’s still defend them.  Who have we raised?  Where is basic intelligence? 

In the last week, I have begun to see the next wave of this propaganda.  Israel is now going to take over Lebanon in the next land grab.  The bombs Israel is dropping and the attacks they are involved with in Lebanon are somehow not related at all to Hezbollah sending rockets into Israel on a daily basis for the past month.  The fact that Israeli’s who live in that northern area have been evacuated for months due to the bombing by Hezbollah is ignored.  Israel fighting back to keep her citizens safe isn’t reported.  Once again, it is framed as Israeli (Jewish) aggression and a land grab.  They are denying that Arab nations kicked out Jews and that Jews left freely of their own will. They deny their own Judenfrei stated goals. The lies continue.

France has banned Israeli citizens and companies from attending a defense technology trade show. 

The Maldives banned everybody with an Israeli passport from entering, now creating an issue for the Christians, Muslims, Druze, and Baha’i Israelis.  That’s because the Maldives really only intended to ban Jews and is now trying to find a way to backtrack. 

The tent cities are popping back up on college campuses, now not covered by the media because interest in that story has passed.  Gabby Deutch highlighted in her X posting that, “The New Republic, a historic institution in American journalism, has a writer covering antisemitism who spent the morning of Oct. 7, after the crimes of Hamas were clear, calling the actions a “rebellion” & writing “good morning” above a picture of the attack.” 

Just today, the Department of Education brought the first cases brought since October 7th to a close, finding that The University of Michigan and CUNY didn’t adequately investigate campus antisemitism and Islamophobia There are still more than 100 cases open.  Think about that.  100 open cases on college campuses in the United States where they have not protected Jewish students from antisemitism. 

This is the world we live in today. I know most people who read this know most of this already. The key is for those of us who know, to keep learning. For those of us who don’t know to learn. And for everybody to educate those who don’t know. There are plenty of people who hate Jews and do this intentionally. There are far more who simply know nothing and believe what they see or read because they don’t have a way to get information. This weekend, I spent time with some friends in Central Illinois. I had a long conversation with one of them who told me he really didn’t know. He didn’t believe what he was reading and seeing because it made no sense, but he didn’t know the history. He didn’t know what was going on. He didn’t know the basic facts. That’s our job. To educate. To challenge the lies. To show proof. When they claim there were no rapes, we need to shout them down and show the facts. When they claim Israel murdered the Israelis on October 7th, we need to shout them down and show the facts, the Hamas self taken videos.

As my friend said today, it’s time to play offense. As Jews, we have hidden or played defense for thousands of years. Playing defense is no longer acceptable. We need to play offense. We need to be educating those who don’t know. We need to be speaking out loudly about what is going on. We need to challenge the lies. We know from our many thousands of years of history that it never just goes away. We can’t hide and escape. Just as Israel is fighting back from the pogrom of October 7th, so must we, in the diaspora, fight back against the lies and hatred since October 7th. Never again is now. How will you answer your grandchildren when they ask what you did to protect the Jewish people after October 7th? This is your chance to choose your answer.

Nes Gadol Hayah Sham, a great miracle happened there.

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

There hasn’t been a lot of joy since October 7th.  Sure, there have been family simchas.  There have been birthdays and anniversaries.  Life continues which means meaningful events occur, but there hasn’t been much sheer joy.  Briefly when the hostages were released in December after 50 days of captivity.  There has been a lot of stress, a lot of grieving, a lot of worry about friends and family members serving in the IDF.  Concern with the rise of antisemitism on campus and in our cities and towns. 

This morning was joy.  It was announced that four (4) of the hostages were rescued from the market in Nuseirat.  They were being held captive in private homes by ‘civilians’.  The same ‘civilians’ that participated on October 7th.  The same ones that held hostages after October 7th.  The same ones that hide guns and rockets in their children’s bedrooms, a baby’s crib, in the schools and in the hospitals. 

Noa Argamani (25), Almog Meir Jan (21), Andrey Kozlov (27) and Shalom Ziv (40) are free today. The IDF had a very detailed and daring rescue planned and got them out. They were being held in “civilian homes’.

Almog Jan spoke after being released and said that they were moved from house to house during the 8 months of captivity. When the media and other groups talk about the innocent people being killed, remember that the innocent people helped with October 7th. They were involved with the second and third waves of the attack. They turn their homes into military bases, even their children’s rooms and baby’s cribs. They hide hostages in their homes. The definition of ‘innocent’ seems to not fit very well.

The rescue of the hostages has reverberated throughout the Jewish world. Friends in Israel reached out with a joy I haven’t heard in a long time. Friends in the US shared their excitement and gratitude. It has been the topic of the day. These two videos are what it is all about. It’s the importance of Jewish community. They are why we want and need Israel. When I read that Noa Argamani said, ‘There was a knock on the door. A voice said, “It’s the IDF. We’ve come to take you home.’” I got chills.

Noa Argamani reuniting with her father. I cried watching this.

Shlomi Ziv talking to his wife for the first time in 8 months.  I am not embarrassed to admit that I cried watching it too.

As wonderful as the news of the rescue of the hostages was, there was sad news as well. Arnon Zamora (z’l), an IDF soldier who was a part of the force that broke into the apartment where the hostages were being held, was severely injured during a battle, and later died in the hospital. This brave IDF soldier risked, and lost, his life for Israel, for the Jewish people, and for the hostages. Arnon left behind a wife and two children. On October 7th, he led the battle at the Yad Mordechai Junction, eliminating dozens of terrorists and preventing the terrorists from infiltrating northwards. He then went on to fight in the battle at Kibbutz Nahal Oz and Kibbutz Be’eri. Unlike America, who still does nothing to rescue the American hostages in Gaza, Israel takes action. Arnon knew the risks. He also understood that rescuing the hostages was far more than saving these four people. It was saving a nation. It was saving the Jewish people. What a hero. What a huge loss. What a lesson. What an inspiration.

Arnon Zamora (z’l), killed in the rescue of the four hostages. May the memory of this hero always be for a blessing.

Almog Meir, shown above with his grandfather, learned today that his father died today. When they went to notify Yossi Meir about his son, they found his body. Yossi died before learning his son was alive and had been rescued. I can’t think of much worse for a parent, not knowing if your child is alive or what type of abuse they are undergoing as a hostage. Almog celebrates his freedom by preparing for the funeral of his father a day later. I can’t imagine what he is going through. Hamas stole his time with his father and may even be the reason his father died, so worried about the fate of his son.

Those who hate Israel and Jews have already come out strong with criticism. They focus on the approximately 200 dead and 400 injured in Gaza during the rescue. They like to overlook the fact that the hostages were kept in personal homes. They like to forget that the market and the UNRWA camp had become Hamas military installations. They don’t like to admit that Hamas firing at the IDF killed many of the people. They call them ‘innocent civilians’ despite the fact that they participated in the keeping of the hostages, they allowed Hamas to have military bases inside their community, and were actively involved with Hamas.

They also use the pictures of Noa Argamani and claim that she wasn’t raped (we don’t know if she was or wasn’t on October 7th or since then) so there was no sexual violence or rape by Hamas and that she gained weight so was treated great and somehow got food when there is none available and Gazans are starving. In their rapid Jew hatred, they actually are proving that UNRWA is giving the food to Hamas and not the people. They are showing their Jew hatred because Noa isn’t pregnant which automatically means there was no rape or sexual violence by Hamas. The rabid antisemitism is unbearable to watch especially with the lies they spread.

They criticize the tactical approach Israel used which involved pretending to be humanitarian vehicles to get into the area. They neglect all the times Hamas has used ambulances, hospitals, schools, and mosques to attack Israel and Jews. It’s a very self-indulgent approach to attack Israel and the Jews. It is their pattern. We cannot allow it to continue. We must call out the lies every time we hear or read them. We must call out the Jew hatred and antisemitism when we see it.

The IDF showed us today the importance of fighting back. We each have that responsibility. We cannot allow the lies and half-truths to stand unchallenged. We cannot allow the facts to be manipulated and twisted. At my age, I can’t join the IDF to fight back but I can fight back with advocacy, with knowledge, and with relationships. I can stand up and speak out. I wear my Magen David everywhere. I wear my dogtags for ‘We will dance again’ and for ‘Bring then home now’. I wear my lapel pins, one for the hostages and one with the US and Israeli flag on it. I wear short sleeves to show off my ‘We will dance again’ and ‘Nova’ tattoos.

The world we live in is one filled with Jew hatred. We have a choice. We can fight back or we can try to hide. Throughout history, our attempts to fit in and hide have not worked. Fighting back has been the only way to ensure our safety. I choose to fight back. Just like the IDF rescuing the 4 hostages today by fighting back, so will I fight back. I refuse to run and hide. I refuse to pretend I am not Jewish and try to fit in, hoping that they will leave me alone. Those who side with evil because they hope they will be spared should look at history. It never works out that way.

Israel and the IDF showed us how we fight back today. They showed us how every Jew matters. They inspired us. Now it’s our turn to show them how we fight back. How every Jew matters to us. We need to inspire them. We fight back by speaking up. We fight back by writing to our legislators and holding them accountable. We fight back by voting and making sure the incumbants and challengers know that Israel matters to us. We insire our Israeli brothers and sisters by our actions. We visit Israel to show them we care and they matter. We visit the Kibbuzim that were devastated on October 7th, the Nova festival site, the displaced Israelis from the North and the South, and soldiers on bases to give them a hug and remind them that they matter to us. After my trip to Israel in May, it became clear how important just showing up was to Israelis. I’ll be back in July in part to do the same thing all over again.

Today was a great day as 4 hostages were rescued. There are 120 more to get home. The leadership of Hamas must be stopped. There is a lot left to do. One of the famous sayings in Pirke Avot, the Ethics of our Fathers, is, “You are not required to finish your work, yet neither are you permitted to desist from it.” This holds true with the war in Gaza. We must engage. We must fight back. The world thinks they can bully us and as the IDF showed today, they are wrong. Let’s make sure they see it from all of us.

My head hurts as the world spins out of control

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

 Every day, I find myself getting more and more frustrated at the lack of leadership in our Jewish communities, in our country, and around the world.  The rise of Jew hatred is not just what we see on college campuses.  It’s not just the ICC and the charges from South Africa that other countries are now joining.  It’s not just the shooting at Jewish schools in Toronto and Montreal or a synagogue in Vancouver.  There is a systemic effort going on to make us think we are safe while the walls close around us.  We are once again putting our heads in the sand and failing to see what is actually happening.  This scares me.

As things in the north of Israel are now literally on fire, we have reached a new point in both the war and the Jew hatred around the world.  Israel has been attacked from the south and many people are no longer living there while the war in Gaza continues.  Evacuations from the north are well known but not appreciated.  Kiryat Shemona, where I have visited numerous times, now has only 8 houses left standing because of the bombing.  Iran has said any offensive by Israel against Hezbollah in Lebanon will result in a full war with Iran.  And yet the United States continues to kowtow to Iran and its role as the number one sponsor of state terror in the world.  Israel is literally being squeezed from three sides (the third is the Mediterranean Sea).  How much longer before the terrorists get an uprising in the West Bank/Judea and Samaria to squeeze Israel on all four sides while the United States plays games with Iran and our upcoming election?  This chalkboard image describes a scary future.

My great-grandfather told us that once, we could go traveling in Syria.

My grandma told that once, we used to be able to travel in Lebanon.

Mom tells me that once we could travel in the Galilee.

And yet, as Jews in the diaspora we continue to fight with each other.  We continue to ignore the existential threat to ourselves and work to defend those who openly declare their hatred and desire to murder us.  The Jewish apologists in the diaspora, specifically in America make me physically ill. Their efforts not only undermine Israel, they put every Jew in America at risk. They encourage the hatred of Jews by legitimizing it. The encourage attacks on Jews by legitimizing it.

Former Staff member of the US Department of the Interior, Lily Greenberg Call, was quoted as saying,

Instead of fighting for peace and the end of Hamas, true evil, her ‘Jewish values’ requires her to sacrifice the lives of Jews.  Instead of being a Queen Esther, a Hannah Senesh, a Golda Meir, she gives up the ability to save Jewish lives.  This is the same thinking in Spain prior to 1492 and in Germany in the 1920s and 1930s.  It is what led to the destruction of the 2nd Temple by the Romans in 70 and our 2,000-year exile.  We refuse to learn.  We refuse to stand up for ourselves and fight back.  Thankfully we have Israel now who fights back.  Israel inspires many of us in the diaspora to also fight back and not put our heads in the sand. Lily Greenberg Call represents a generation that would have Jews eliminated because of their sense of fairness. They, like generations before them, believe that if they stand with those who hate Jews, they will treated as if they aren’t Jews. That never works out. History has shown us that a Jew is a Jew is a Jew.

Somebody I follow on Twitter posted this.

I would add to the bottom, “Don’t defend their actions.” the Lily Greenberg Calls of the world excuse this behavior and blame the victim. The wouldn’t do this for any other group, just for Jews. It is amazing how quickly the world has forgotten the horrors of October 7th. Of the videos made by Hamas of what they were doing that day. I’ll never forget the joy in the voice of the Hamas man who was telling his parents that he personally murdered 10 ‘Yehuds’ (Jews). The joy in his father’s voice. How proud his mother was of him. I’ll never forget watching a terrorist behead a Jewish man on October 7th. Of the father jumping on a grenade to save his children who, traumatized, are taken to their kitchen by the terrorist while he gets a drink. The pain in their voices will never leave my mind. I’ll never forget walking through Kibbutz Kfar Aza and seeing the destruction from not just Hamas, but the second and third wave of Gazan civilians who came in and did more damage, robbed and mutilated Jewish bodies. These were people who the day before had sat together, talking peace, sharing a meal, hoping for a better future. A day later, these Gazans had no problem mutilating them. My friend from the trip, Mikey, posted this on Instagram that captures the feeling of being in Kfar Aza better than I have.


I haven’t given up on the many Palestinian people I have met who do want peace. Who want to live next door to Israel. Unfortunately I am giving up on the world who would rather support terrorists that want them dead than those who want peace. Iran and their proxies Hamas and Hezbollah have been clear that they want a Caliphate. They want the world to be their type of muslim and sharia law to be the law of the world. No more England, France, or Spain. No United States, Canada, or Mexico. No China or Russia. Everywhere must follow their version of Islam and live under sharia law. It won’t take too much longer for the first of these countries to experience this impact. Some are struggling with it again. It continues to be a self-inflicted wound.

I can only hope that our American leaders wake up to the threat. That they decide it is more important to lead than it is to plan for the next election. That being a leader means you do what is needed for the benefit of the country, not what is needed for you to be re-elected. That the threat of Iran, almost a nuclear Iran, is so great that action must be taken. That the corruption of the UN, UNRWA, and the Palestinian Authority is so great than none deserve to survive. That the Abraham Accords, bringing never before seen peace in the region, are a good things and worth investing in. Saudia Arabia and Indonesia were ready to normalize relations with Israel prior to October 7th. The world was changing.

Today we have UNRWA turning their schools in Gaza into military institutions. Tunnels with openings inside or next to the schools. Weapons stored and fired from the schools. These are UNRWA schools, funded by the UN and by the world.

We have Hamas using homes as militiary bases and the world cries when these homes/bases are destroyed. The picture below was from a child’s bedroom in Gaza.

The world wants to be social justice warriors and ignore the realities. I am fearful for the future of not just the United States but the world as a whole. What happens when Europe falls? When mass casualty events are occuring in the United States, Canada, South America, Europe, and around the world? Are we really that far away from the post-apocalyptic world of the Mad Max movies? I’ve been watching the new TV show Fallout on Prime with my kids. Is that our near future?

I am also amazed at the power of the protesters who know nothing. They attend Ivy League universities. The attend top academic institutions and yet show their indoctrination and lack of knowledge every time they open their mouths. We all saw the Columbia woman who wanted food delivered to their illegally occupied building at Columbia. We have seen many interviews of people who don’t know what river it is nor do they know what sea it is. This woman might be the worst of them all, self proclaiming she spent a semester in Israel/Palestine yet not knowing anything when asked. She even thinks Israel is a muslim country!

I returned from Israel two weeks ago. I go back to Israel in four weeks. Just as I wasn’t sure what Israel I was going to in May, I’m not sure what Israel I will be returning to in July. Will the hostages, or at least some of them, be freed? Will there be a ceasefire? Will Hamas leadership still be in place? Will there be a full war in the north? Can we go further north than Tel Aviv and Jerusalem? What will my second visit to Kibbutz Kfar Aza and the Nova site feel like? How will the world have changed in just the 6 weeks between visits?

Since my return from Israel, I have dug deeper into what is going on and it makes me sick the more I dig. The systemic hate. The lies that are told. Some of our ‘leaders’ who are filled with hatred and misinformation. I am usually a very optimistic person. I usually can find the good in any situation. I’m known for finding a pathway through challenges to a better place. As I sit here today, I am at a loss. As a world traveler, there are few places other than Israel that I would visit today. As an American, I don’t want to visit many of our states. Part of me thinks the only solution is what some of my Israeli friends have told me – to make Aliyah, to move to Israel where I will be safe. Yet I also know that running from the fight for security isn’t the answer either. The fight is here. There is no escaping it. Leaving it to people like the woman in the video who knows nothing isn’t acceptable. Abandoning people like Mikey who are fighting the fight here isn’t acceptable. Leaving it to apologists like Lily Greenberg Call is doing self harm and not acceptable. So I will stay and fight. I will urge you to join me. The future of the Jewish people is at stake. The future of the United States is at stake. The future of the world is at stake. Don’t sit by idly. Don’t stay uninformed or be quiet because you are afraid of the consequences of speaking out. I promise you, the price of your silences is far worse than the price of using your voice.

The words of Elie Weisel are more important now than ever.

We are the ones suffering and being humiliated. The people of Gaza are suffering and being humiliated because of Hamas, Iran, and those who would sacrifice them on the idol of Jew hatred. We cannot be silent. We cannot be neutral. We are the tormented. And we refuse to the victim once again.

Fight, Flight or Die – you get to choose

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

Columbia University has been in the news for the past few weeks due to their anti-Israel and anti-Jewish encampment.  UCLA has been for the same reason.  Portland State.  Northwestern.  Harvard.  Yale.  Penn.  University of Michigan. George Washington.  Cal Poly Humboldt.  Brown. Cornell.  Princeton.  University of Southern California.  Arizona State.  CCNY.  CUNY.  Plenty of Universities where students went beyond free speech and protests, violated University policies, intimidated Jewish students, blocked access to campus, and in the case of UCLA, violently attacked and beat a Jewish woman, Yale where a Jewish woman was stabbed in the eye, and Columbia where two Jewish men were attacked.

Then there are Universities like the University of Florida, University of Texas, Florida State University, University of South Florida, University of North Carolina.  University of Utah, University of Illinois, Mary Washington, Northeastern, Indiana, Wash U in St Louis, University of Pittsburgh, UConn, University of Utah. VCU, University of Georgia, Tulane, and Virginia Tech.  At each of these Universities, the University Presidents and leadership allowed free speech and protests but enforced their campus rules and regulations.  As such, when the protests went beyond free speech, they were broken up and people arrested.

For the most part, it’s the first group of schools that have been in the media.  That’s because of the old news adage, ‘If it bleeds, it leads.’  We saw an incredible lack of leadership by the University Presidents at those schools.  Columbia President Minouche Shafik, fresh off her testimony to Congress, enabled the protesters, didn’t enforce the campus regulations, finally called in the NYPD, and then promptly apologized for doing it.  Jewish students were encouraged to finish the semester away from campus, being denied the equal protection of the law and equal access to the education they are paying for.  Chants of “go back to Poland”, ‘We are Hamas’ and ‘Globalize the intifada’ occurred on campus.  US Representatives Ilhan Omar and AOC showed up to support the active hatred of Jews on campus.  Omar even said, “We should not have to tolerate antisemitism or bigotry for all Jewish students, whether they are pro-genocide or anti-genocide.” 

Khymani James, a student at Columbia and one of the leaders of Columbia University’s anti-Israel encampment threatened to kill Jews in a live stream meeting with the school.  Nothing happened until it became public when he was barred from campus.  He was then let back on campus until they were exposed again and he was suspended.  Columbia chose to be complicit with threats of violence against Jews.

These are threats to Jewish students.  The encampment grew and got more violent and more active.  Finally, they took over a campus building, barricading themselves inside and doing damage to the building.  After a ridiculous press conference with a student leader who demanded ‘humanitarian aid’ for those who chose to occupy the building and could leave at any time, did President Shafik relent and call in the NYPD to break up the protest.  She wasn’t interested in protecting the Jewish students, only protecting her campus buildings.

Northwestern President Michael Schill chose to give in to the student terrorists holding his campus hostage.  Brown University did the same thing.  Their leadership caved to the students’ bad behavior, breaking of the campus rules and regulations and criminal activities.

These Presidents and their administration have failed their test of leadership.  They have abandoned their Jewish students.  There are calls for their resignations as a result.  I can’t imagine any other group facing what Jewish students have faced in which the actions and behaviors of these Presidents and administrations would be acceptable.  At UCLA, their failure, along with the assault on a Jewish woman, resulted in Jewish students believing they had been abandoned and taking matters into their own hands, working to break up the antisemitic, illegal encampment resulting in a riot. 

We have a serious leadership problem on our campuses.  By not holding students and faculty accountable to the rules when it comes to Jewish students, they are guilty of endangering Jewish students’ safety.  They are committing Title VI violations and there may be civil rights lawsuits against them.  They have become a national joke, and the Universities are viewed unfavorably by most.  There is a reason you don’t negotiate with terrorists.  Reinforcing their bad behavior only ensures more bad behavior in the future. 

Compare that to the University of Florida, who’s President, Ben Sasse, provided the campus rules and regulations in advance along with the consequences for violating them.  When the protesters went beyond free speech and violated the campus rules, the consequences were enforced. 

Other universities took action after letting the protesters know they were violating the campus rules and would be arrested if they didn’t disperse.  When they didn’t, the police came in and arrested them. Actions have consequences. Failing to obey the rules and the law is illegal.

I want to be clear.  Free speech is important.  Being able to protest is important.  However, when people decide to break the rules or break the laws, there are consequences for their actions.  That’s what they were arrested for, their actions.  Protests matter and there is a line that cannot be crossed.  When the line is crossed, leadership has an obligation to act.

When I see some of our country’s leaders in an uproar because the protesters are held accountable, I get angry.  They know better and they know it is only happening because it is against the Jews.  When I see our country’s leaders and our Jewish communal leaders be silent about what is happening to Jewish students on campus, I get angry.  We cannot put our heads in the sand and hope it goes away.  We know better.  We know what comes next.  I’m grateful to our country’s leaders and our Jewish communal leaders who have spoken up and taken public positions.  There are far too few of them. 

Sen. John Fetterman, Rep. Elise Stefanik, Rep. Ritchie Torres, and Speaker Mike Johnson have been leading public advocates to protect Jewish students on campus.  Others have joined them.  Yet far too many have been silent or supporting these encampments designed to terrorize, intimidate, and block Jewish students and faculty from entering campus.  In many cases they assaulted Jewish students. This has nothing to do with the war in Gaza.  It has nothing to do with humanitarian aid.  It has everything to do with antisemitism, Jew hatred. 

Chris Cuomo, a TV talking head, spoke out eloquently against the rise of Jew hatred on these college campuses.  His comment on Twitter when he posted it was shocking.  “I never thought in America I would have Jewish people thanking me for arguing that they have a right to exist.”  It is worth watching.

UNRWA came out with an announcement that there is plenty of food available in Gaza but there isn’t money to buy it.  This is humanitarian aid, provided for free, that UNRWA is either allowing Hamas to steal or selling to Hamas who is selling it on the black market.  The more facts that come out, the worse people like AOC, Ilhan Omar, Cori Bush, Jamaal Bowman, Nancy Pelosi, Rashida Talib, and these protesters look. 

May 1 starts Jewish Heritage Month.  President Biden issued a proclamation in which he references protecting the Jewish community in the United States but fails to mention anything happening on campus.  He talks about the hostages but has failed to pressure Qatar, who houses the leaders of Hamas, and continues to provide Iran, the funder of Hamas, with more money.  His words don’t match up with his actions.  We need to demand more of President Biden and of Congress.  We need to make our voices heard loudly.

As antisemitism, Jew hatred, increases in the United States, I see and hear more and more Jewish people speaking up and being outraged.  I am part of a group of parents who are concerned about what is happening on college campuses and I see the change as Jewish parents and students no long look to the Ivy League schools and look for safer campuses.  I have received calls and emails from parents who want to take advantage of Governor DeSantis’s decree that he will waive many of the transfer requirements for Jewish students to transfer to Florida Universities.  Yeshiva University extended their transfer deadline.  The Technion in Haifa has openly offered sanctuary for Jewish students, graduate students, and faculty who don’t feel safe at their University. 

This is America in 2024.  We need to face reality and act.  Raise our voices and speak out and speak up.  We need to thank our allies in other communities.  We need to thank our politicians who are supportive and make sure our voices are heard by those who hate Jews and fight for there to be more antisemitism, more Jew hatred.  If you haven’t been an activist, it’s time to become one.  Our collective silence has brought us to this point.  It is our collective action that will defeat Jew hatred.  It’s your choice, fight, flight, or die.

Is making Aliyah the answer?

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

I’ve been captivated by watching what is happening on the various college campuses in the United States over the last week.  I admit that when I was in college, I was not an activist.  It was the mid to late 1980s and while there were some protests on campus, it was largely calm and quiet and a wonderful place to be.  I had way too much fun and not enough studying and almost no activism.  When I began working at the University of Florida Hillel in 1998 that began to change and by the time my tenure at UF Hillel ended in 2013, I was a full-fledged campus activist.  My focus was on understanding, partnership, friendship, communication, and inclusion.  Focusing on our similarities rather than our differences became a passion of mine during those 15 years and remains one today.  So as I watch these ‘activists’ on college campuses and how the ‘leadership’ at each University chooses to handle their behavior I am fascinated by what is happening.

I grew up in an era where we had a lot of freedoms.  My mother was famous for teaching us, and our friends, that you do whatever you want as long as you were willing to pay the consequences.  It was a lesson I learned early in life and have continued to use today.  Actions have consequences.  Take the risk, accept the consequences.  This lesson is part of what I find so challenging as I watch what is happening now.

These ‘campus activists’ (I use quotes because many of them are not from the campus nor are they activists, they are imported to agitate and inflame the situation) fully expect that there will be no consequences to them for their actions.  They expect others to have consequences.  Delays in getting places.  Inability to access campus.  Having to take classes remotely.  They don’t get the permits they need or if they get them, they don’t follow the rules that are affiliated with the permit.  Their entitlement is amazing to witness. 

You see it being taught by their professors.  As the videos of professors being arrested because they thought they were above the law are shown, I find it humorous.  These entitled individuals are shocked that anybody would actually hold them accountable.  The students and the professors have grown up in a world in which nobody taught them that actions have consequences.  That if they take the risk, they have to be willing to accept the consequences.  We see it with the University Presidents who choose to allow these encampments to remain and who won’t discipline or remove the discipline from those who violate the rules.  They aren’t doing these students or professors a favor. 

Emory Professor being arrested because she isn’t follow police directions and is breaking the law

And then there are those who do hold people accountable for their actions.  President Ben Sasse at The University of Florida ensured there would be no encampment by reminding everybody in advance what the rules are and what the consequences are for violating them.  Nobody questioned whether he would enforce the consequences of their actions and as a result, free speech was maintained as was the safety of Jewish students.  At places like The University of Minnesota, The University of Texas and Emory University, those violating the rules and/or breaking laws were arrested.  When they chose not to listen to the police officers, they were forcibly removed.  That’s the real world.  Actions have consequences. 

Growing up in the 70s and 80s, I admit my generation was different.  It’s something that we need to look back upon and see how far we have gone off the rails in the name of ‘protecting’ our children.  This video, while intended as humor, also shows the difference.

@graeson.mcgaha.comedy

Gen x and the generational hate war #genx #80s #80sbaby #genxcrew #genxtiktokers #genxcrazytrain #fyp #fypシ #80smusic #80sthrowback #genxmom #genxmom

♬ original sound – Graeson Mcgaha Comedy

The rise of hate speech isn’t new, and it doesn’t begin in 2016 with Donald Trump like many want to believe.  For proof, I offer this 2010 letter to the Editor that I wrote in the University of Florida campus newspaper, The Alligator, calling out hate speech

It was more civil in 2010

In July 2014, the Pacific Northwest head of the National Rifle Association (NRA) came out and said that The Holocaust wouldn’t have happened if Jews had guns in Nazi Germany.  At the time, I called the statement, “Idiotic, simplistic, and simply wrong.”  I stand by those words today.   More Nazis would have been killed but likely more Jews as well.  It was a statement based on the belief that Jews are weak and won’t fight back and need guns in order to be allowed to exist.  I’m not anti-gun at all.  You can ask those who know me.  I am anti-hate and anti-stupidity.  As a child, my mom would often complain that I had no tolerance for stupid people, and it caused me problems then as it does today.   Smart people can act stupidly at times.  We see that today.  My fight with the NRA in 2016 over this person’s comment and antisemitism got national attention and you can read about it in the Seattle Times.  Or just google me and the NRA and it comes up. 

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/jewish-group-says-gun-remarks-lsquoidiotic-simplistic-and-wrongrsquo

And since 2014 it has gotten much less civil.  On June 26, 2016, this op-Ed I co-wrote was published in the Seattle Times. 

https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/recognize-and-speak-out-against-anti-semitism

A few weeks later, on July 10, 2016, the following response denying and minimizing the rise in antisemitism was published.

https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/dont-believe-that-washington-state-is-awash-in-anti-semitism

Over the last 8 years it pretty clear that I was right and the author of the second piece, who likely approves of the antisemitic, hate filled, violence driven campus actions, was wrong.  Some people won’t learn even when they are the target.

Seven (7) years ago we got this warning from the UAE’s Foreign Minister and failed to heed it.  It helps explain why were are where we are today.

Today we see elected officials like US Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) join the antisemitic and violent gathering at Columbia and publicly make the following statement while facing no serious consequences.

“I think it is really unfortunate that people don’t care about the fact that all Jewish kids should be kept safe and that we should not have to tolerate antisemitism or bigotry for all Jewish students, whether they are pro-genocide or anti-genocide.”

While she is trying to say that Israel is committing genocide, a factual lie.  In reality it was Hamas who did commit a genocide on October 7th.  And intended to kill more Jews.  And has openly stated that they will continue to kill Jews until they are all eliminated.  That is the definition of genocide.  Yet Rep. Ilhan Omar faces no backlash.

We see Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Ortiz (AOC) (D-NY) also visit the Columbia cesspool of hate and then posting on X (Twitter)

“Calling in police enforcement on nonviolent demonstrations of young students on campus is an escalatory, reckless, and dangerous act. It represents a heinous failure of leadership that puts people’s lives at risk. I condemn it in the strongest possible terms.”

They are peaceful to her as a woman of color who isn’t Jewish.  In this case, she is the one with the privilege she often rails against.  Calling the police on people breaking the law is what we do in the United States, unless you live in New York.  Enforcing our laws is what happens in countries ruled by laws unless you live in New York.  I do agree with her that we have a ‘heinous failure of leadership that puts people’s lives at risk’ but I assign that failure of leadership to Columbia University President Manouche Shafik who chooses daily not to enforce the rules of Columbia.  I assign it to the leadership of Columbia University who continue to allow President Shafik to remain in her role when she is showing daily that she isn’t able to do her job and protect ALL students, which includes Jewish students. 

Representative Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) was also at Columbia University, not protecting the Jewish students from his district but to encourage those breaking the law and violating Columbia’s policies to continue doing it.  To continue to chant things like ‘Death to America’ and ‘We are all Hamas’.  To harass and threaten Jewish students.  As one Jewish student recounted,

“They were pushing and shoving me. . . They threw rocks at my face. At that moment, my life was totally threatened. And there was no safety authority on campus.”

At least Representative Bowman is losing his primary race and will hopefully not be in office in just a few months.

I grew up in a Zionist home with parents and grandparents who were Zionists.  We all support the existence of a Jewish homeland, the State of Israel.  The fact that there was a country that we could be a citizen of just by showing up sounded really amazing and empowering.  The thought of actually making Aliyah, moving to Israel and claiming citizenship, was a fantasy throughout my youth.  My cousin actually did it in 1980 and was the outlier we all used as our token Israeli relative.  During and after college I had a few friends who made Aliyah and I thought it was cool for them.  During my 15 years at UF Hillel I had many students who chose to make Aliyah, become lone soldiers and serve in the Israeli Defense Force (IDF).  It wasn’t until the 2000s that I thought maybe some day it would actually be something that I would want to do.  The more I went to Israel, the more time I spent there, the more the fantasy became a dream and maybe even a goal and objective. 

Just a couple of years ago, in my mid-50s, I realized that I didn’t really want to make Aliyah.  It was a fantasy.  I wanted to live as an American in Israel.  Expensive apartment.  Eating dinner out at fancy restaurants.  Not have a real job to go to every day.  I changed my fantasy to spending a month in Israel every year at some point.  That seemed more realistic.  It became something to being to save and plan for.  I knew my wife would never really want to make Aliyah and be that far from our kids and her parents and siblings but a month a year was something I could discuss with her. 

Since October 7th, I have been questioning everything.  As America becomes more and more unsafe for Jews, my fantasy of being an American spending a month in Israel every year has gone back to considering if maybe we did need to move there in order to be safe.  A country under attack from at least 4 fronts (Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis in Yemen, and Iran), in an active war zone, was safer than America.  What a scary thought.   Yet I also know I am not the only one who struggles with that concept and that thought.  I talk about it with friends.  We look back at those who saw the signs in Germany and Europe and left when it was possible compared to those who were stubborn and stayed until they went to the death camps and want to learn from their sacrifice.  From their murder. 

And then I find Arabs speaking out against Hamas and trying to speak sense to these radicalized students and professors.  People like my friend Ali Abu-Awaad.  People like Loay Alshareef, who I have reached out to, who is traveling to campuses all over America and posting on social media. Watch a few of his posts and you may have hope that there is a future with peace.

So maybe I need to stay and fight.  Maybe there is a third option that our ancestors in Germany and Europe didn’t have.  Instead of running to safety or sticking our heads in the sand, maybe we can stand up together and fight back.  We can be the nonviolent version of Mordechai Anielewicz, who at 20 years old was trying to get Jews to return and fight against the Nazis.  Who just before he turned 20 began to fight back in the Warsaw Ghetto.  And who at 23 led the actual uprising against the Nazis.  Their valiant effort didn’t defeat the Nazis but it showed that Jews could and would fight back.  It inspired the future leaders of the new State of Israel to fight and defend themselves.  He and those who fought with him inspire me not give up hope and to keep fighting. 

Mordechai Anielewicz didn’t do it along.  There were other leaders who joined him.  Icchak Cukierman, Tosia Altman, Marek Edelman, Cywia Lubetkin

One of the great things about being Jewish is we have thousands of years of role models. Not just the biblical ones we learn about but recent ones like Mordechai Aneilewicz. Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Natan Sharansky. David Ben Gurion. Moshe Dayan. Golda Meir. Elie Wiesel. Betty Freidan. Harvey Milk. Louis Brandeis. Judy Blume. Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel. There are many more. And that’s just recent role models.

I choose to follow the role models I mentioned and fight. I choose to not give up and not be quiet. I choose the third option. What will you choose?

We don’t live in interesting times, we live in dark times.

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

Many things feel differently this year.  October 7th changed everything.  As a Jew, it was a personal Kristallnacht, Pearl Harbor Day, 9/11.  In my life I’ve had a number of days that I thought were like this.  Three Mile Island and the possible meltdown (I lived 10 miles away in Harrisburg, PA at the time).  The day that Ronald Reagan was shot (I watched the news on a small black and white TV at the Harrisburg JCC outside the locker rooms).  September 11th.  None of them were close.

As we approached Passover this year, the term freedom meant something entirely different.  Hostages remain in Gaza.  How many are alive, we do not know.  I have 3 friends that each have a relative that remain a hostage and 3 other friends that have relatives that were hostages that have been released.  For the families where the hostages were released, there is freedom.  For those still kept as hostages and their families, there is no freedom.  For those of us who are a part of the global Jewish community, we have no freedom as long as the hostages remain in Gaza, kept by Hamas.  As we told the story of exodus from Mitzrayim, the dark place often translated as Egypt, I wondered what the story of the exodus of the hostages will be.  When will we be able to tell it? 

I thought of the 1972 Olympics in Munich when the 11 Israeli athletes were murdered.  Israel responded against Black September with Operation Wrath of God to hold those involved accountable.  When the Air France plane was hijacked and taken to Entebbe Airport in Uganda, those passengers not deemed to be Jewish or Israeli were released and those who were thought to be Jewish or Israeli kept, Israel responded with a classic and mythical raid to free them.  The hostages were safe and only one IDF solider, Yoni Netanyahu (Bibi’s older brother) was killed.  Bold action to keep Israelis and Jews safe.

Success – the raid on Entebbe

The world understood vicious terrorism and how to counteract it.  When terrorism began to hit Europe and then the United States on 9/11, I mistakenly thought that both Europe and the US would really understand the impact and how important it is to eliminate evil.  I was hopeful that this would lead to a worldwide effort to eliminate terrorists and make the world a safer place for all.  Boy was I naïve.  The conspiracy theorists began blaming Israel for the attacks on 9/11.  Still, it was a fringe group, and I maintained my hope.  Boy, was I mistaken.

Charlottesville and George Floyd had to show America and the world the danger of hate.  How to get off the path we somehow got on that encouraged hate.  The mainstream middle of the road people had to rise up against the extremism on the right and the left to demand common sense return.  I wanted to believe that the desire to live in a world without extremism existed and there was a large mass of people who would be willing to stand up and speak out.  People would join together because they agreed on far more than they disagreed.  Friendship would win out and people would talk with their friends because relationships matter.  Instead, friendships ended.  People separated even more. 

Covid happened.  Open states vs. closed states.  Vaccines vs. no-vaccines.  At a time when I wondered if we could be divided any more, I learned that yes, we can.  Once again, the antisemites began the ‘Covid was created by the Jews’ campaign.  I saw it firsthand when they protested at the JCC.  When they protested at a local Chabad.  When they wore Nazi uniforms at Disney and by the entrance to the University of Central Florida.  When they hung banners from the overpasses on I-4.  This division enabled the antisemites to be more vocal, bolder, and more visible.

The attack by Hamas on October 7th was traumatizing to most Jews.  In the words of Ambassador Michael Oren, the covenant created between the State of Israel and the Jewish people in 1948 was violated.  Both “Never Again” and “The IDF will always be there” were not true.  Hamas video recorded their atrocities and posted them online.  Surely the world would see terrorism for what it was.  Surely the world would see evil and respond. 

Respond they did.  But not as I expected nor as I hoped.  The blaming of Israel began immediately.  The lies and untruths began almost immediately.  “It was because of the occupation.”  Except Gaza hasn’t been occupied since 2005.  “It was because of the blockade.”  The blockade, by Israel AND EGYPT is to attempt to stop the flow of rockets and explosives and terrorists into Gaza.  Food and medical supplies were plentiful.  When Israel responded with targeted attacks, it became “genocide” even though the number of civilians killed AS REPORTED BY HAMAS was well below the UN and Red Cross’s 9-1 ratio.  Lies, repeated over and over again, become accepted as truth and we began to fight against them. 

Hamas has reduced the number to 22,000. Another 4,000 statistically died of natural causes. The ratio is below 1:1 now.

Recently we have seen horrific actions on the campus of Columbia University.  The University President, Minouche Shafik, had just testified in front of Congress.  While she was better than the prior University Presidents who testified before Congress, she wasn’t good.  When the protests began on campus, she showed no leadership.  She eventually called in the NYPD to enforce their rules but then wouldn’t let them back on campus.  An Israeli professor had his access to campus revoked.  Jewish students were advised by a campus Rabbi to go home.  Jewish students are now virtual while the antisemites get to go to class in person.  It is a hot mess of antisemitism.  Luckily some of our Representatives and Senators are calling it out and calling for the removal of their Federal funding.  We are at a tenuous time.  If campuses are not held accountable for their failure to protect Jewish students, we will continue to mirror 1930’s Germany.  At the University of Minnesota, they took down the antisemitic protests within 5 hours!  It can be done.   Our voices must be amplified.  We must speak up loudly against those who claim this is free speech.  Even free speech has limitations and advocating and calling for the murder of Jewish students and Jews in general is not allowed nor should it be acceptable.  It certainly would not be acceptable for any other group.  Alumni are pulling donations.  It’s not enough.  We need to call our Representatives and Senators and demand that Federal funding be withheld as long as they won’t ensure the safety of Jewish students and faculty.  You can’t bar a Jewish professor while inviting a Hamas terrorist onto campus the same day.  Columbia did that.  They need to be held accountable.  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued this statement today – that’s how bad it has gotten.  The Israeli Prime Minister, in the middle of a war on multiple fronts, is taking time to address the Jew hatred in the US and on our college campuses.  Civilized people should be embarrassed. 

Today, Hamas released a video of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, an American taken hostage by Hamas over 200 days ago.  An American who is being left to languish by our government.  He isn’t the only American hostage.   Edan Alexander, Itai Chen, Sagui Dekel-Chen, Omer Neutra,  and Keith Siegel are the others.  We cannot forget their names.  We cannot forget that they are kept in deplorable conditions by terrorists along with the other hostages kidnapped by Hamas.  I hope this video is actually recent.  His reference to ‘the holiday’ concerns me as he doesn’t say Pesach, indicating it could have been filmed anytime.  He says 200 days, but they could have told him that a long time ago.  Being kept underground in awful conditions means it is easy to lose track of time.  My heart breaks for his family.  For the families of all the hostages.    Watch if you want – it’s not easy – and pray for his safety and the safe return of all the hostages.

Hersh Goldberg-Polin before being taken hostage and in the video released today.

Passover is a holiday about freedom.  But more than just freedom.  It’s about action.  Moses didn’t have to kill the Egyptian overseer that was beating a Jew.  He didn’t have to return to Egypt to free the Jews.  Nachshon didn’t have to be the one to unwaveringly walk into the Red Sea, believing in God, showing the faith in God that resulted in the splitting of the sea.  At Mount Sinai, the Jews didn’t have to create the Golden Calf, but they did, and suffered the consequences.  Each year, we tell the story of redemption from slavery, of our exodus from Egypt, or as Mitzrayim mean, from darkness.  We are in a time of darkness now.  We have hostages being held brutally by Hamas in tunnels, receiving no medical care, minimal food, no sunlight.  Who knows what brutality the women hostages are facing – it’s almost too much to even imagine.  The antisemitism Jewish students are facing on many campuses is horrific.  The lack of leadership is atrocious. 

In the Passover Seder we talk about the lessons some of the great Rabbis taught us.  It’s important to think of the lessons we are learning now that our Rabbis will record and will be shared hundreds of years in the future.  We included empty seats at our Seder table for the hostages.  We put up pictures of the Bibas family.  They are a family of 4 with 2 boys.  We are a family of 4 with 2 boys.  My children are about the same age difference as the Bibas boys (3 years apart).  They couldn’t have a Seder in the tunnels so symbolically had them at our Seder.  We talked about the BIbas family.  The age of the children.  How they were all taken together.  How we hoped they were still alive but were afraid they were not.  We are not the timid Jews of the past.  We are not willing to go to the gas chambers willingly.  We will not allow ourselves to be attacked – in Israel by Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, or Iran or in the United States on college campuses or in Europe.  We will not stay quiet and hope it goes away.  These are lessons we learned over the past 75 years that won’t go away.  We finish the Seder by saying “L’shana Haba’ah B’Yerushalayim – Next year in Jerusalem.”  For me it’s next month in Jerusalem.  I’ve need to be in Israel since October 7th and next month will be able to return.  Visiting Israel often is also a lesson we have learned in the past 75 years and if you haven’t been, I urge you to go.  And if you have been but haven’t been back recently, I urge you to return. 

Yarden and Ariel Bibas – we put them on one chair because Ariel would sit on Yarden’s lap for comfort
Shiri and Kfir Bibas – they had one chair as well as I can’t imagine Shiri would not hold him.

I used to say that these were ‘interesting times’ and we were dealing with the ancient Chinese curse, “May you live in interesting times.”.  I no longer think that.  We live in dark times.  We live in Mitzrayim.  We have members of the US House of Representatives spreading lies about Israel and the IDF.  We have college campuses not safe for Jews and University Presidents who won’t keep them safe.  A Jewish woman was raped in France this week to ‘Free Palestine’ – how raping a Jewish woman frees Palestine is beyond me.  Jews are being assaulted in Europe and the United States just for being Jewish.  A Jewish man in the UK was threatened with arrest because he looked Jewish and that might incite those supporting Hamas. 

In this dark time, we need to fight for the light.  We need to be Warriors of Light (watch for more about this in the future).  We need to fight for what is good and righteous.  We need to fight evil no matter the cost.  I’m not saying it is easy because it isn’t.  And I am not saying there is no price to be paid for it because there is.  The alternative is death.  The alternative is a return to the gas chambers, to the final solution.  The alternative is unacceptable.  So in these dark times, let me leave you with a little light.  At the University of Florida, where I was the Hillel Director for 15 years, there were more than 1,000 students who attended a Passover Seder held by Chabad in the O’Connell Center (the basketball arena).  The University President, Ben Sasse, was in attendance.  Look at these pictures and smile because campuses don’t have to be the way Columbia is.  University Presidents can lead and protect Jewish students.  We have the proof it can be done, so now let’s go do it. (Pictures from the Gainesville Sun).

UF President Ben Sasse, right, takes a selfie with a student during the annual Passover Seder at The O’Connell Center on Monday night in Gainesville. The event was organized and sponsored by the Chabad UF Jewish Student Center. The Passover Seder was the largest in North America.
UF President Ben Sasse wasn’t there for a photo op. He stayed for the Seder at The O’Connell Center on Monday night in Gainesville.
The crowd at Passover Seder at UF – more than 1,000 students gathering together.
Students call their families and take pictures during the annual Seder at The O’Connell Center in Gainesville.
My friend, Rabbi Berl Goldman speaking during the Seder.
My friend, Chabad Rabbi Berl Goldman and UF President Ben Sasse speaking to the more than 1,000 students at Seder this year.
Rabbi Berl Goldman chants “Its great to be a Jewish Florida Gator” during the Seder. If only other Universities could say the same thing about being Jewish there.
Jewish students at UF lighting candles for Pesach – openly being Jewish is ok at University of Florida.
Students drinking one of the 4 cups of wine at Seder.
Breaking the mazoh for the Afikomen
Seder plate at UF Seder

Bayard Rustin, the March on Washington, October 7th and antisemitism. How do they connect?

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

I’ve written about Bayard Rustin a few times since I learned about him. He was an incredible friend to the Jewish people and an avid Zionist, even visiting Israel and meeting with then Prime Minister Golda Meir.  I decided to watch the new movie about his life, focusing on how he made the March on Washington occur.  It’s available on Netflix.

Watch the trailer

I was stunned as I watched the opening scenes of the movie which depict the end of segregation and the first time African Americans were attending the same schools at white students.  Not because of how awful and vile what happened at that time was.  Not because of the suffering those students went through to bravely fight for their right to equal opportunity.  I was stunned because it looked exactly like what Jewish students are facing on college campuses today.  People yelling in their face.  Calling them names.  Treating them like second class citizens.  It was horrible and unacceptable then.  It is horrible and unacceptable now.  Yet it’s happening every single day on college campuses across the country and in Canada. 

Jewish students forced to hide and barricade themselves in the library at Cooper Union in NY.

Bayard Rustin was the brains and genius behind the march of Washington, DC where Dr. King gave his “I have a dream speech”.  He talked about having the largest peaceful protest in history – 100,000 people on the National Mall (the actual number was 250,000).  After October 7th, I was part of 300,000 people who gathered together peacefully in Washington, DC., in support of Israel and the Jewish people.  When it was announced, I knew I had to be there.  I knew that I wanted to be able to tell my future grandchildren that I was there.  I wanted to be a role model for my children, nephews, and nieces, that I went and was part of it.  It felt like a big hug, being there with signs supporting Israel and demanding the release of the hostages.  Singing Hatikvah with 300,000 people was something I will never forget.  History repeats itself – in 1963 it was the March on Washington for civil rights.  In 2023 it was the rally for Israel with 300,000 people gathering to not just support Israel and the Jewish people but support each other. 

There is a scene in the movie where Bayard tries to get the NAACP on board with the march.  The head of the NAACP, Roy Wilkins, was afraid of what might happen if they had 100,000 ‘Negroes’ coming to Washington to protest.  In the scene, they talk about other marches with far fewer people and highlight one, from 1932, done by WWI veterans.  President Hoover unleashed the military to break up the march.  Using tear gas and bayonets, the military chased away the veterans and those supporting them, burning their shanty towns in the process.  Wilkins asks in the movie, “what was their race?”   The answer, “they were white.”  His fear of what might happen led the NAACP to say no to the march.  We face the same thing today in the Jewish community.  We have many communal leaders, many Jewish stars in sports, entertainment, and politics, who are afraid to take a bold position after October 7th, with the rise of antisemitism everywhere, out of fear of what might happen to them.  This fear paralyzes us and results in more damage occurring to Israel and the Jewish people everywhere.  It’s ok to be afraid, it’s not ok to let that fear paralyze us into inaction.  As Jews, we have thousands of years of history that shows us what happens when we live in fear, when we don’t act, when we just try to be a part of some other society and don’t stand up and fight for ourselves when threatened.  I made the decision after October 7th to not be paralyzed by fear.  I made the decision to speak out against the evil of Hamas and of the Iranian leaders.  I made the decision to call out antisemitism whenever and wherever I see it.  It’s an ongoing conversation in my family as they are concerned about what some crazy, hate filled person might do.  How I may be targeted.  How my family may be targeted.  One thing I know from our Jewish history is that if we stay silent, we will all end up being targeted, we will all end up being harmed.  I’m not willing to repeat the mistakes of the past.  Bayard Rustin wasn’t willing to accept being paralyzed by the fear of what might happen at the march.  He knew that doing nothing would result in a far worse outcome.  I hope we, as Jews, can learn from his leadership and not be afraid to stand up for ourselves, to speak out, to call out those who hate us and wish to harm us. 

As they talk about what date to hold the march, the first suggestion is a Monday.  Bayard replies, “Mondays are hard for our Pastors.”  He then adds, “and Fridays are bad for our Jewish friends.”  It’s a great reminder that as Jews, we were active in the civil rights movement.  We played an important role and built a strong relationship with the African American community.  In the years since then, for whatever reason, that relationship has deteriorated.  We, as the Jewish community, don’t have the relationships we need with many other groups.  We do with the Evangelical Christian community because THEY have been active supporters of Israel.   We have neglected our relationships with other groups.  As a large community, we are absent on MLK Day and the celebrations.  As a group, we are not there during Pride month.  As a group, we are not joining our Muslim brothers for their community Iftars during Ramadan.  Because we have neglected these relationships, we see many of these groups not being there for us when we need them.  It’s our responsibility to be there for them before we need them to be there for us.  Bayard Rustin showed that when he was considerate of Shabbat and that if the march was on a Friday, the Jewish community couldn’t be there.  He knew we’d be there for them if he was thoughtful first.  I hope that we can learn to invest in these relationships outside the Jewish community.  We are so hyper-focused on what’s going on inside the Jewish community that we are not ensuring the relationships we need outside the Jewish community are strong. 

Bayard Rustin with Prime Minister Golda Meir during his visit to Israel in 1969

The movie has 2 scenes in which Senator Strom Thurmond plays a key role.  In the first, he makes allegations against Dr. King about being a communist because Bayard Rustin, one of his close friends, was involved with the communist party earlier in his life.  This false allegation was designed to stop the march and to create problems for Dr. King.  The second is when he goes on the radio to ‘out’ Bayard Rustin as a ‘pervert’ due to his conviction for engaging in homosexual sex to attempt to stop the march from happening.  It’s very similar to the false allegations against Israel being made by Representatives Rashida Talib, Ilhan Omar, Cori Bush, Jamal Bowman, Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, and many others today.  Senator Thurmond was a known racist.  The Representatives I mentioned above are known antisemites.  Bayard fought against Senator Thurmond and wouldn’t allow him to win.  Today, we must do the same against these antisemites in our own government.  We can’t allow them to win.  We can’t excuse their statements or their behavior. 

There are two very powerful lines in the movie that apply to our Jewish community today.  The first is when Bayard Rustin says to Dr. King, “when we tell ourselves such lies, start to live and believe such lies, we do the work of our oppressor by oppressing ourselves.”  We have far too many people in our Jewish community who tell themselves lies about Israel and Zionism, who live and believe these lies, and not only do the work of antisemites but do it better than they do.  It is our obligation to confront these lies in our own community.  It is responsibility to make sure that members of our Jewish community are educated with the facts, not with the lies that Jew haters tell.  Bayard Rustin knew that about his community.  I hope we learn that lesson for ours.

The second line I am referring to also comes from Bayard Rustin speaking to Dr. King in the scene when he says, “on the day I was born black, I was also born homosexual.  They either believe in freedom and justice for all, or they do not.”  The same holds true today.  Countries either have a right to defend themselves or they do not.  Countries either have a right to make peace with their enemies through direct negotiations or they do not.  Countries either get to have their democratic election processes or they do not.  Israel cannot be held to a different standard than every other country in the world.  When they do that, just like Bayard Rustin knew about freedom for all people, they are being antisemitic and going against the values they say they believe in.  We cannot let them get away with it.  Bayard stood up and spoke out and got the support from those he needed to speak out as well.  We need to do the same.  We cannot allow the double standard to continue to exist.  We must demand our leaders, both political and those with large followings, do the same and speak out.  We must condemn those who use the double standard to hide their antisemitism.  It is not up to others to do this.  It is up to us. 

Near the end of the movie, the 10 heads of the committee for the March on Washington are invited to the White House to meet with President Kennedy.  Somebody says that Bayard should be with him.  Bayard already won – the March happened and was a huge success.  He declines and says he is going to pick up trash.   The rest leave to meet the President and he takes a bag and begins to pick up trash.  The young people who follow him are shown with admiration in their eyes.  They get it.  It is about the work.  It is about making things happen and driving change.  Who gets the credit isn’t important to those who really want change.  The same holds true for the Jewish community.  You see this more in Israel than in the United States.  In Israel they are all heroes because they do what is necessary.  Civilians volunteering in the fields to pick produce.  IDF soldiers risking everything for their country and the Jewish people.  People moving all over the country to help those displaced with educational needs, healthcare needs, mental health needs, and whatever needs they have.  In the United States we tend to focus more on who gets the credit.  Who is the public face.  We need to learn this lesson from Bayard Rustin.  It’s the same lesson Ronald Reagan spoke about.  In the words of President Harry S. Truman, “It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.”  We have a lot of work ahead of us to fight antisemitism, to advocate for Israel, to educate both the Jewish and non-Jewish community, and for our survival.  We can’t worry about who gets the credit, we have to be willing to pick up a bag and collect trash. 

The saying on Ronald Reagan’s desk from the Harry Truman quote. We can all learn from this

The song at the end of the movie, Road to Freedom, is by Lenny Kravitz.  Lenny is African American and Jewish.  How fitting for the blog post.  The lessons of Bayard Rustin applied to 2024 antisemitism through the song written and sung by an African American Jew.

I watched the movie Rustin to learn more about a man I recently learned about and have been fascinated with.  How did such an important figure in the civil rights movement get basically erased from our history?  How many others like him are there?   I seem to learn about more of them all the time.  Yet while watching the movie to learn about him, there were so many lessons that apply to our lives today.  To the world we live in today.  The fight for civil rights is not over.  So many communities are still fighting it today.  In the Jewish community, we fooled ourselves into thinking we were not one of them.  October 7th and the aftermath showed us we are.  While we still have many who don’t think this is true, who ‘do the work of the oppressor by oppressing ourselves,’ the rise in antisemitism in the United States and around the world shows us that that it is true.  We have much to learn from the life of Bayard Rustin, an avid Zionist and friend to the Jewish people.  I could write an entire post just about his connection to the Jewish people and the State of Israel.  Let’s take a moment to thank him and honor his memory by learning the lessons he taught us and apply them today.  From what I have learned about him, I think he’d really like that.

Bayard Rustin standing behind Dr. King during the I have a Dream speech