Rabbi Sara Perman: Learn, speak out against antisemitism

On Jan. 15, we were shocked to learn that once again a house of worship, the synagogue Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas, was attacked during the Sabbath service. A man held the rabbi and three members hostage for over 10 hours.

This was unquestionably an act of antisemitism. As one person noted, why was the synagogue singled out in an attempt to free a woman serving 86 years for attacking U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan? Why weren’t customers at a McDonald’s held hostage?

And, as the Rev. Peter Pettit, a Lutheran minister, put it, “Obviously, this was specifically directed at the Jewish community. It was a Jewish house of worship, on the day of the major Jewish weekly worship service, when the rabbi and Jewish congregants were gathered in Jewish worship. It doesn’t get much clearer than that; this was no random act of violence.”

The Anti-Defamation League has noted that acts of antisemitism have increased in the United States 12%, with over a third of Jewish college students experiencing some kind of antisemitism, and one out of four Jews overall experiencing antisemitism. In some cases, it has been words; in some cases, it has been actual physical attacks.

The attack on Congregation Beth Israel was not just an attack on that synagogue and those Jews, but on Jews everywhere. For Jews around the world, it reopened the trauma that was experienced when the Tree of Life synagogue was attacked Oct. 27, 2018.

The Westmoreland Diversity Coalition condemns not only what happened on Jan. 15 in Texas, but any and all forms of antisemitism. We recognize that antisemitism and hate hurt all of us. We know that our community, and our country, are weaker without acknowledging and supporting the wide diversity that is part of our nation.

There is a wonderful article in The Atlantic, “Why So Many People Still Don’t Understand Anti-Semitism,” that explains why antisemitism is a danger not just to the 2% of the U.S. population who are Jews, but to democracy itself.

So what can society as a whole do? What can individuals do? Educate yourself about antisemitism. Deborah Lipstadt’s book “Antisemitism: Here and Now” is a good place to start.

Whenever and wherever you can, speak out against antisemitism. Reach out to your Jewish friends and neighbors. Ask them how they are doing, let them know you care about them and the safety of the Jewish community everywhere.

With the attack happening on the Sabbath before Martin Luther King Jr. Day, remember King’s words: Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.