Synagogues are becoming recurring targets in America. Just days ago, Kabbalat Shabbat services at Central Synagogue in the heart of New York City were disrupted when a man violently assaulted a congregant and a security guard.
Last November, at Park East Synagogue in Manhattan, congregants were greeted by roughly 200 protesters chanting “Globalize the intifada,” “Death to the IDF” and “We need to make them scared,” forcing synagogue attendees to face a torrent of antisemitic slurs and threats. Then, in May, the harassment returned. This time, demonstrators waved a Hezbollah flag and screamed “rapist” and “pedophile” at Jewish people simply trying to enter the synagogue.
The fact that American houses of worship require police protection just to let its congregation through the door should alarm every American.
The pattern goes beyond New York: in Los Angeles, a group of masked antisemitic protesters gathered outside Wilshire Boulevard Temple, shouting “baby killers” and “Zionist pigs” at those seeking to enter. Two protesters eventually were arrested, for battery and destruction of property, after forcing their way inside of the synagogue.
These are not isolated incidents. They represent a dangerous escalation threatening the fundamental right to worship freely and safely.
In 2025 alone, ADL documented dozens of protest-related antisemitic incidents and nearly 530 incidents of harassment at synagogues in the United States. While overall antisemitic incidents declined since the year prior, physical assaults reached record levels.
And the crisis extends beyond the Jewish community. An LDS church was besieged and burned to the ground last fall in Michigan, and in May, three people were killed protecting students and worshipers at San Diego’s largest mosque. Houses of worship across the U.S. increasingly are being turned into flashpoints for confrontation rather than havens for reflection and community.
Read the rest here.
No comments:
Post a Comment