Nearly 400 Jewish leaders representing more than 100 Jewish communities across the nation gathered in Washington, DC on Wednesday, June 25 for the United for Security Emergency Leadership Mission to advocate for policies that enhance security for the Jewish community.
Jewish Federations of North America and the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations came together with 50 national organizations to lead the mission, in which advocates held more than 200 meetings on Capitol hill and reiterated a consistent message: Jewish security cannot wait.
Betty Ann Levin, executive vice president/CEO, United Jewish Federation of Tidewater; Robin Mancoll, UJFT’s chief program officer and senior director, Jewish Community Relations Council; and Mike Goldsmith, regional security advisor, Tidewater Secure Community Network, participated in the Mission and meetings with Tidewater’s elected officials.
“We are appreciative of the time our elected officials dedicated to meet with us,” says Levin. “We were able to discuss the threats to our community and Jewish communities around the country, the urgent need to increase the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, the need for additional federal support, and other opportunities to advance the full six-point policy plan endorsed by both Jewish Federations around the country and numerous other Jewish organizations.”
“We are here to speak with one voice. We know there are many things on the nation’s agenda, but we must insist that the safety and security of the Jewish community and the battle against domestic terror be at the very top,” Eric D. Fingerhut, Jewish Federations CEO and president told the crowd before heading to lobby members of Congress. “Whatever other issues the Jewish community may care about, whatever in the United States is on the rise with Jewish Americans as the target. The broad representation from across the country and across the organizational spectrum of the mission reflects the universal nature of this crisis and the urgent need for the government to take strong and aggressive action to stop the antisemitic murders, attacks, violence, and harassment.
In meetings with Congress, leaders advanced a six-point security policy plan to secure the Jewish community:
- Increase the Nonprofit Security Grant Program to $1 billion annually.
- Provide federal support for security personnel costs that Jewish communities are forced to bear.
- Expand FBI resources to fight the domestic and global war on terror.
- Provide federal assistance to local law enforcement to protect Jewish institutions.
- Regulate social media hate speech and incitement of violence.
- Enforce and prosecute existing hate crime legislation.
“Our message is simple and united: Support for Israel is not negotiable, Jewish safety in America is not optional, and the silence in the face of antisemitic incitement–whether it comes from Iran’s Ayatollahs or American campuses–is unacceptable,” said William Daroff, president and CEO of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. “Support for Israel’s security is not a partisan issue. It is a moral imperative, a strategic interest and a Jewish responsibility.”
Israel’s Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter delivered a strong message to the group, as the United States prepares to meet with Iran: “The basis of any agreement pursued with Iran has to be: there is no more attempt to annihilate the Jewish state, the Jewish people.
“The Middle East has the potential to change, and we’re going to continue to move towards an Abraham Accords 2.0. There’s no reason why we can’t have a Middle East, which is calm, quiet, cooperative, normalized and peaceful.”
The day’s mission, however, focused on security. With that in mind, UJFT’s Levin says, “We were and are unified in our message that our security is non-negotiable.”