Rabbi Wendy Pein's Blog

As antisemitic acts are increasing both in the United States and globally, it is imperative that we  recognize that  antisemitism is not just a part of our history but a very grim reality of our present.¹ During the last week in October 2022, while Wednesday CJL classes were in session, Kanye West continued his antisemitic tirade on social media and during interviews, which included age-old stereotypes of Jews². During class, our students and CJL Faculty discussed the events and reactions to  Kanye and  his antisemitic tirade. One of our students  had been following Kanye’s antisemitic actions for years and was upset that people are just now paying attention to what Kanye has been saying. Others said that their peers did not truly understand how serious Kanye’s actions were.  In our seventh grade class, our instructors led a  conversation which contrasted the situation today--companies being willing to withdraw support from these controversial celebrities--with Henry Ford's notorious antisemitism and his ability to influence how people thought through his newspaper in the 1920s, and nobody really daring to protest against him.  We also recently marked four years since America’s deadliest antisemitic attack at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, which left 11 dead and wounded six others. The appalling antisemitic conspiracy theories and threats from rapper Kanye West and the murders of innocents at the Tree of Life synagogue attack are alarming examples of the rise of antisemitism in America and how hate can be translated into violence.

Elie Wiesel, z”l³, Holocaust survivor, human rights activist, and renowned author of 57 books including Night, wrote regarding his Holocaust experience that  “.. the story had to be told.  It needed to be told for the sake of our children. So they will know where they came from, and what their heritage is …”⁴   For writing about and bearing witness to the Holocaust and his work as a human rights activist, Wiesel was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986.  In his acceptance speech, Wiesel articulated that his tragic Holocaust experience caused him to speak out against persecution everywhere,  for “When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Wherever men or women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must – at that moment – become the center of the universe.”⁵

 Today, Elie Wiesel’s son, Elisha Wiesel, a former Wall Street executive and current philanthropist is carrying on his father’s legacy of urging us to honor and remember our past and to continue to protest against global injustice. On Monday, December 5th at 6:30 PM at TINW, please join us for a conversation with Elisha Wiesel about his journey to fulfill his father’s legacy of learning from our past to combat injustice, his perspective on antisemitism today, and his current philanthropic efforts.

 As Pirke Avot teaches, “ It is not your duty to finish the work, but neither are you at liberty to neglect it” (2:21). In our second event focused on antisemitism, we will discuss how to combat antisemitism on Wednesday, November 30th, 6:30 PM, with a presentation by Professor Ed Ginsberg. Prof Ginsberg’s presentation will focus on how to empower ourselves to combat antisemitism in our schools, colleges, community and workplaces.

 The Jewish people value memory and learning from our past. Our challenging times call upon us to recall the darkest period of our history, learn from it, and acknowledge and respond to our present.  I hope you will join us for these two compelling speakers, Professor Ed Ginsberg on Wednesday, November 30th at 6:30PM and Elisha Wiesel on Monday, December 5th at 6:30PM.

B’Kavod (With respect),

Wendy

Rabbi Wendy Pein

Director of Congregational Learning

¹https://www.adl.org/news/press-releases/adl-audit-finds-antisemitic-incidents-in-united-states-reached-all-time-high-in

²https://www.adl.org/news/press-releases/adl-audit-finds-antisemitic-incidents-in-united-states-reached-all-time-high-in

³ zichrono l'vrachah, May his memory be for a blessing

⁴ Wiesel, Elie.  One Generation After. Schocken Books: New York, 1982, p. 11.

⁵https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1986/wiesel/acceptance-speech/