Anti-Israel supporters get cold shoulder

(JNS) — As some 10,000 people braved the summer heat and rain in line to enter Temple University’s Liacouras Center in North Philadelphia on Tuesday afternoon for Vice President Kamala Harris’s first event with her newly-announced running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, half a dozen protesters chanted “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” and “Kamala, Kamala, you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide.”

The protesters, some of whom were clad in keffiyehs and masked, used bullhorns and yelled for hours in front of an essentially captive audience. The people waiting in line largely ignored the antisemitic protesters, and JNS—which had its press credentials confirmed before the event but was not allowed to enter—only observed one attendee clap for the anti-Israel provocateurs as he entered the arena.

JNS did observe large cheers from those assembled outside the arena as Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), who has emerged as one of Israel’s strongest supporters in Congress, left the building. Some 10 minutes later, the crowd expressed further approval for Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who had been in the running as vice president for the 2024 Democratic presidential ticket and was the target of an antisemitic smear campaign, as he exited and walked to his awaiting convoy.

It wasn’t clear if the crowd’s love for Fetterman and Shapiro had anything to do with their Zionism, or what, if anything, it meant that attendees of the event ignored the anti-Israel protesters. 

Brett Goldman, founder of Democratic Jewish Outreach Pennsylvania, told JNS that he thinks that Fetterman, who “has become a hero to pro-Israel folks,” is popular among Pennsylvania Democrats because of his views on Zionism. Meanwhile, Shapiro is “loved by everyone,” although he and Fetterman “both are hated by the Hamasniks,” Goldman said.

Meet people on their level

Marc Daniels drove some 850 miles to the rally from Springfield, Ill., and waited for hours for the chance to go inside. He wore a white apron that stated “100% glatt kosher swag,” decorated with Jewish-themed political buttons. He was hawking a self-published book on the Talmud and progressive candidates and told JNS that he has been creating personalized political kippahs for years.

He told JNS that his advice for Jews who are disappointed that Shapiro didn’t make the ticket is to focus instead on Walz’s potential.

“It has to do more than anything with the vice president’s ability to reach down and grab people by their hearts, and lift them up,” he said. “Whether you’re Jewish or not, it doesn’t really make any difference. You have to be able to meet people, even Republicans, on their level and inspire them to rise above the chaos.”

Inside the event, talk of Israel didn’t come up, though Shapiro declared to the audience, “I am proud of my faith,” and “I lean on my family and I lean on my faith, which calls me to serve.” He also shared a rabbinic saying from the Mishnah that “no one is required to complete the task, but neither are we free to refrain from it.”

“That means that each of us has a responsibility to get off the sidelines, to get in the game and to do our part,” he said.