Thread: This is a very moving piece from Sam. I share many of the same thoughts, but have some things to add:
My family fled a hell-hole where antisemitism was a daily reality to come to America when I was only 2 years old.
My family fled a hell-hole where antisemitism was a daily reality to come to America when I was only 2 years old.
I knew that I was lucky to have come to America when I heard about what we had escaped in the former Soviet Union, but it was hard to comprehend just how lucky until I spent a few summers in Israel as a kid.
That's when I truly started to recognize the extent of hatred we face.
That's when I truly started to recognize the extent of hatred we face.
Hard for a kid to understand why someone would kill one of his friends simply because they were Jewish and in the wrong place and why so many others would cheer it on and justify it. But that's the reality for many Israeli Jews.
There were incidents here and there in the U.S. (some in college, some at a pro-Israel protest etc), but it's nothing compared to most other places. There are people in major European cities that fear wearing a yamulke outside. The leader of a major UK Party is an antisemite etc.
As you look at history, this isn't new. People have tried to kill Jews for as long as Jews have been around. It goes up and down, but somehow we have survived.
Antisemitism was once also common in America. That changed over time, but there is reason to fear it is growing again.
Antisemitism was once also common in America. That changed over time, but there is reason to fear it is growing again.
During the 2016 election, the alt-right started a concentrated harassment campaign against Jews who were critical of Trump. I was one of those people. I won't get into just how far the harassment went, but it was scary at times.
At the same time, people I know have also faced harassment and violence from the left due to their support for a Jewish state. While the U.S. is safer than most places for Jews, overwhelming majority of religious hate crimes here still target Jews & it has been growing.
So yes, we have good reason to be concerned. People have been trying to kill us for a long time because of who we are, and it is unlikely to stop. The only hope is that good people will continue to speak out and stand up against it with the hope that we can keep prevailing.
