Last week marked the four-year anniversary of the Tree of Life Synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, Pa., in which 11 congregation members (including Holocaust survivors) were killed by an antisemite; the same week in which Ye (the former Kanye West), threatened Jewish people on Twitter, encouraging fascist followers in LA in a public display of support; and on Halloween a man entered a Soho bar in New York City dressed in full Nazi regalia. We are not so much shocked as deeply disturbed by the clear increase in hate speech and violence directed at the Jewish population in the United States.
As of this past April there had been 2,717 incidents of antisemitic hate speech or actions in the United States in 2022, including 88 assaults—a number alarming enough to prompt the passage in mid-June of a Senate resolution calling on elected officials, faith leaders and “civil society leaders” to denounce and combat all types of antisemitism.
Antisemitism has no place in our society, which is why we denounce it in all its forms. We at ASA have made it a conscious part of our mission to foster equity and inclusion and call out hate and prejudice. We’re proud of our diverse membership and stand by our many Jewish ASA members, staffers, friends and family that have suffered antisemitism all of their lives.
We all must combat this virulent increase in antisemitic violence and hate as it takes a devastating toll on all of us. Please take a moment today and going forward, as an ASA member, to do what you can in your community to stop this spread of hate.
Photo: Jan. 5, 2020 march from Manhattan to Brooklyn against the rise in antisemism.
