Federation meeting addresses the growing antisemitism

On June 14, at 7 p.m., an in-person and zoom meeting was hosted by Keith Dvorchik, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Orlando, and Aaron Weill, CEO of Central Florida Hillel, for a community discussion on "Israel and Antisemitism."

In front of a live audience of 10 people and over the Internet, via Zoom and a Facebook link, with 84 viewers, they held a discussion driven by the concern in the tremendous growth of antisemitism over the past two years. "Anti-Semitism world-wide has been increasing dramatically, and in the United States the rise is has been quite frankly, scary," Dvorchik said. "That's what were faced with now, it's real, it's here ... and the question arises ... what are we going to do about it?"

Weill brought a unique perspective on the rise of antisemitism on college campus today. Weil was in Israel during the recent rocket attack by Hamas and he told the audience what he saw and felt while he was in Jerusalem. "I actually felt safer in Israel than I do now in the United States," he said. "Jews in New York and the larger cities are questioning whether to take off wearing anything that will identify them as Jews." Dvorchik added, "I've heard from people in Central Florida who are afraid to be identified in public as Jews for fear of violence."

Weil stated, "We're in a time of terrific antisemitism with no signs of it abating. One statistic shows that antisemitic incidents were up 80 percent in the month of May throughout the United States. In the 1930s, it didn't matter if Jews were communist, or capitalist. Either side felt the wrath of antisemitism. Today, whether you're a Republican or a Democrat, if you're a Jew they will still hate you. Antisemitism is alive in both parties."

Weill continued, "The common denominator is they hate us because we're Jews. This was demonstrated after WWII when in Poland there were no Jews left, but antisemitism still resounds throughout the country."

Discussion was held concerning the recent rocket onslaught by Hamas in Gaza. The conflict occurred because of internal Palestinian Issues. The Palestinian Authority cancelled the elections, the first scheduled since 2006. The PA lost the last election 15 years ago and they are still in power. As a result of the PA cancelling the election, by firing missiles on Jerusalem Hamas showed the Palestinian people that they are the true champions of the Palestinian people.

When the media outlets around the world took the side of the Palestinians and showed the Israelis as the aggressor, Hamas saw a window of opportunity. They fired 800 missiles in the first day the largest amount ever fired on Israel. Hamas has about 15,000 missiles. Hezbollah has between 150,000 to 300,000 missiles. Ninety percent will be shot down by the Iron Dome, but with a deluge the Iron Dome has its limitations.

The New York Times promoted the Palestinian side. They used costly color photographs on their front page, showing the Palestinian destruction with no context. Most mainstream media outlets around the world did not report the Israeli side. There was no mention that the Palestinians fired the missiles first nor that Hamas used human shields in Gaza.

College students today get most of their news from social media. Fashion model Bella Hadid, with more than 43 million followers and her sister, Gigi, with more than 66 million followers, have more views on their sites than most traditional media outlets. More than 100-million people get information from these two sisters. Their anti-Israel positions are followed by millions around the world. This puts the Jewish college student in a difficult situation. They are asked to defend Israel and this is something that most 18-year-old college students didn't ask for nor do they have the tools to do.

Over the years, Jews have been social advocates for social issues supporting such things as women's rights, equal rights for African-Americans, LGBTQ+ rights, and more. There is a new term called PEPs. It means Progressive Except for Palestine. Progressive liberal Jews have been disinvited from left-wing organizations for the sole reason that they support Israel and are branded as PEPs. "Liberalism is not enough. If your liberal and support Israel, you're not welcome. If you believe Israel has a right to exist, you are viewed as oppressors," Weill said.

Dvorchik noted that not only are college students feeling the brunt of anti-Semitism, but it's actually getting into the middle schools and high schools. There have been instances where sixth graders have been asked to defend Israel by their friends and classmates.

Weill said, "Our world has changed. We have to be seriously concerned about security in everything that we do. Having armed guards wearing security vest is part of the planning when the conversation used to be what type of plates, silver wear and food will be served at an event."

What can be done? Dvorchik shared that the Federation has already held some events to help children and teens understand what's going on and to get better educated, and they are planning other events to help educate everyone in how to deal with antisemitism.

Additionally, the Federation just adopted the IRHA definition of antisemitism, which states: Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.

After taking several questions, the meeting concluded with agreement that we all need to be on guard. We are in a period that our ancestors experienced, but post-WWII generations haven't had to deal with antisemitism to any great degree. This generation is now forced to deal with it.