There were two letters printed in The Jewish Link on June 27, one by Rabbi Dr. Bernhard Rosenberg (“We Must Act Like Israelis” June 27, 2024) and one by L. Charm Tenenbaum (“Chants: Show of Force” June 27, 2024), on somewhat different subjects but they contained a common thread. Rabbi Rosenberg advocated for Jews to reach out to Christians for support against antisemitism, and Mr. Tenenbaum advocated reaching out to African-Americans. These represent two aspects of what should be a more general objective, that of reaching out for support to other groups besides Jews themselves.
The blatant explosion of antisemitism after October 7 has shocked most Jews. It is being led by global and national organizations conspiring with a very hostile media that is feeding the public more biased reports than factual news. Large segments of the general public have an inbred hatred for the Jews, and are joined by many, especially students, who follow along because of the primal social need for herd association. There is also the more recent phenomenon of intersectionality, where disparate groups support each other’s agendas.
The major focus of Jewish efforts to date have been to react reflexively to try to counter these hostile groups. There have been occasional rallies and expressions of outrage, but little real opposition and little headway made against these very determined adversaries.
However, large segments of the public are basically uninterested, and mistakenly believe they are not involved. I think this is where we should be more proactive, and it is to these apparently apathetic people to whom our efforts should be directed. They are the ones who have to be made aware of the fact that the dangers posed by hatred against the Jews is only a first step because often they will be next in line for radical domination. The following poem by Martin Niemoller, which is enshrined in the Holocaust Museum, is particularly pertinent and may resonate with many of them:
“First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out
—because I was not a socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out
—because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out
—because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me
—and there was no one left to speak for me.”
