As Jews, we carry a long and painful history of antisemitism, persecution, and racism. It’s crucial to use the term “racism” because we understand all too well how rhetoric leads to violence in that context.
During my time working at the Simon Wiesenthal Center, I had the honor of befriending several Rwandan survivors. In just three months, 800,000 Tutsis, moderate Hutus, and members of the Twa tribes were killed in Rwanda during the country’s civil war. These survivors shared with me that the genocide began months earlier when they were compared to cockroaches, their very existence minimized. It’s easy to step on a cockroach, after all. Similarly, in Nazi Germany, Jews were compared to rats – creatures to be exterminated.
Recently, we watched with great disgust as during recent congressional hearings university presidents – such as from Harvard and MIT – defended calls for genocide against Jews by students at their universities.
This is how violence and murder begin – with inflammatory rhetoric that escalates into physical harm. Just this past week, we witnessed two shooting incidents targeting Jewish schools in Canada and a car intentionally driving onto a curb in an attempt to run over Jews. In a separate incident, Jews from Vancouver woke up on Friday to the firebombing of a Vancouver synagogue. Also last week, rioters set fire to the Israel Embassy in Mexico City and hurled stones and bricks during an Action for Rafah event.
Jewish identity is the common denominator
The common denominator in these attacks? The victims were Jews. Their views on Israel were irrelevant; the attackers didn’t know or care whether their targets were pro- or anti-Israel. All that mattered was their Jewish identity. This indiscriminate targeting underscores the horrific nature of the calls for violence emanating from university campuses and other pro-Hamas protests.
These institutions bear responsibility for the violence as surely as if they had pulled the trigger or driven the car themselves. By demeaning Jews and attacking us in such vicious ways, they have sown the seeds of indiscriminate violence against us, regardless of our political leanings or connection to events in Israel.
The Jewish people must realize that this is why we need unity now more than ever. In Israel, a resolution was recently passed by the Knesset to commemorate Jews killed in antisemitic incidents anywhere in the world, regardless of their citizenship. This reflects our deeper connection – we are not just a nation-state, but a family. And family must stick together, through trials and tribulations.
History shows that many have tried to annihilate and attack the Jews. Our survival has always depended on our unity and God’s protection of us as a result. By staying together and standing strong, we will make it through this latest challenge, just as we have throughout our long history.
The path from hateful rhetoric to violence is short and well-trodden. We must stand united to ensure it leads no further.
The writer, CEO of Aish, also serves on the board of governors of the Jewish Agency and as an executive board member of the Rabbinical Council of America. Prior to Aish, he was eastern director of the Simon Wiesenthal Center where he oversaw the Museum of Tolerance in New York City and contributed to the center’s fight against antisemitism.