We are heartbroken and shaken by the attack on Temple Israel in West Bloomfield today, a community where many of our friends serve as rabbis, leaders, and congregants. This beautiful synagogue is home to America’s largest reform congregation and has a beautiful history and present in social justice organizing and coalition-building.
As we await more information, we know one thing: There is no more literal a translation of “globalizing the intifada” than violently targeting Jewish people in a Jewish place by car ramming and explosives. When this is what “anti-Zionism” looks like––at the same time that our Israeli loved ones are living in bomb shelters––it illustrates with clarity our unbreakable solidarity in the eternal fight for the safety of the eternal Jewish people.
No faith community in America should have to convene or pray behind armed guards and metal detectors. Yet Jewish institutions have long been forced to spend staggering amounts on security simply to gather, worship, and live openly as Jews.
Jews who speak about our fear of exploding antisemitism are dismissed and gaslit. But the danger is real, and not only for Jews. When synagogues are under constant threat, our democracy is under threat. When people cannot safely practice their faith or
We are holding the Temple Israel community and the whole Jewish nation close tonight. We are grateful for the first responders and security professionals who protect us. We are sick of writing these statements so frequently. And we ask our allies for what this moment demands: solidarity across communities, moral clarity about antisemitism, and a shared commitment to protecting the safety and dignity of every American.