Last Wednesday, the Jewish Community Relations Bureau | American Jewish Committee team gathered at the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum to host a program for nearly 20 elected officials representing various levels of government. Our goal was to illustrate for them, through a tour of the museum, an overview of history, and a panel discussion, the historic and enduring connection of the Jewish people to the land of Israel.
During the panel discussion, we spoke about the United States’ recognition of Israel only 11 minutes after independence was declared. We spoke about the alarming rates of antisemitism in the last 600 days, so much of it relating to our community’s connection to the Jewish state. We spoke about how important it is for leaders to understand our community and the support we need in what has been a moment unlike any in recent memory for the Jews.
In the early hours of the following morning, my husband nudged me awake and said something about my needing to rearrange my schedule for the day. I immediately knew, with just that small comment, that the Jewish community had been the target of violence once again. Moments later, I discovered that this act of violence occurred outside of AJC’s Young Diplomats Reception at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C.; then, that one of those murdered was Sarah Milgrim of Prairie Village, in an attack that appears to have been motivated by hate against the Jewish people and the Jewish state. Sarah not only grew up here and attended our area schools, she also interned, worked and was deeply involved in our community.
These past several days have been indescribable for our community. And then on May 24, the white supremacist group Patriot Front marched near the National World War I Museum and Memorial, compounding our local community’s fear and anguish. Operating as a conspiracy theory, we know all too well that antisemitism forms the core of white nationalism and is deeply intertwined with anti-Black racism, xenophobia, misogyny, homophobia and other forms of hate. We are grateful to have seen so many condemn the group and unequivocally state that the hate they promote does not represent the sentiments of the people of this region.
I want to share a word of true gratitude for the many elected and community members who have reached out to JCRB|AJC to express their horror over the past week, and to ask what they can do to help. As we often say, combating antisemitism is not something the Jewish community can do on our own. It takes a whole-of-society approach to fight back this escalation in antisemitic violence, this vitriolic environment of antisemitic sentiment. I’m grateful to everyone who has already committed to join us in this effort, and I ask each of you, reading this, to stand with us. As I struggle for the words to describe the pain we have felt over the last 600 days, a pain which took on a new and profound layer last Wednesday night, I know we are not alone. We will always continue in our urgent mission to combat antisemitism and pursue justice for all, and we are stronger when we do this together.