American Jewish Committee seeks more synagogue security, Holocaust education
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, left, listens while Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone asks a question at an event sponsored by the American Jewish Committee at Temple Beth Torah in Melville on Thursday. Credit: Rick Kopstein
State and local elected officials on Long Island can help combat antisemitism in their communities by investing in the security of synagogues and Jewish cultural centers, strengthening Holocaust education in schools and encouraging the reporting of hate crimes, the leadership of the American Jewish Committee said Thursday during a conference in Melville.
The recommendations come weeks after AJC released its annual State of Antisemitism in America report which found that 41% of American Jews feel less secure than they did a year earlier — up from 31% in 2021.
On Thursday, the group launched Municipal Leaders Against Antisemitism, a bipartisan group of Long Island lawmakers, including the county executives from Nassau and Suffolk, who strategized new ways to clamp down on bias and hatred against Jewish Long Islanders.
They include issuing unequivocal condemnations of incidents of antisemitism, including among their own political party, increasing funding for the protection of Jewish faith centers, including Jews in ethnic studies curricula, and strengthening education about the Holocaust.
"The more people know about the Holocaust, generally the less antisemitism they harbor," said AJC Long Island director Eric Post during the conference at Temple Beth Torah in Melville. "So if we can increase Holocaust education in schools, if we can increase what people know about antisemitism, we can certainly help mitigate the problem."
Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone announced the formation of a subcommittee as part of the county's Jewish American Advisory Board with a special focus of raising awareness and responding to antisemitism. The group will include members of both political parties, board members and law enforcement officials.
"There is unfortunately too much hate in this world and it is an ongoing struggle and battle," Bellone said. "And one that will never be ultimately won but must always be fought. But it is important that when we see antisemitism, that we speak about it directly and that we call it out for what it is."
Nassau last year created a task force to combat antisemitism comprised of lawmakers, faith leaders, law enforcement and community officials.
"Our county has about 18% of its people who identify as being Jewish," Blakeman said, adding that the county also has dozens of potential targets for hate crimes. "Think about that. That is one of the largest Jewish communities in the world right here in Nassau County."
The AJC's report, released on Feb. 13, found broad recognition that antisemitism is not just a problem for Jews, with 91% of the public agreeing that it affects American society as a whole.
At the same time, however, 48% of Jews, and 34% of the general population, believe antisemitism is taken less seriously than other forms of hate and bigotry.
"The numbers don't lie," said AJC contemporary Jewish life director Laura Shaw Frank. "Antisemitism in America is really affecting an extremely large portion of our community."
Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.
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