- Michael Balaban
President & CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia
As we prepare to celebrate the second night of Chanukah, we are also aware that today marks 62 days since the brutal massacre in Israel.
And while the festivities may feel at odds with our grief, we must remember that Chanukah, at its very core, is about Jewish survival. Despite all odds, the Jewish people have continued to persevere and in spite of our unimaginable trauma, we boldly and defiantly uphold the Jewish value of simcha – joy.
People might wonder what the secret is. It’s unity. It is the conscious effort amongst a collective minority to stand together.
But right now, the hate we face wants us to feel alone and scared. Through disinformation and the promulgation of false narratives, we are made to feel isolated and fragmented both from our fellow Jewish people and with our fellow Americans. But this could not be further from the truth. Despite the images and videos we see on social media, the Jewish people and the American people are united against terrorism.
We saw this unity at the National March for Israel in Washington D.C., where nearly 300,000 people joined together as the largest Jewish gathering in the United State’s history. And we know this unity through data. According to Jewish Federations of North America’s recent surveys, 87% of American Jews support U.S. military aid to Israel and 86% of Americans believe that the attack of Oct. 7 was an unjustified act of terror.
That is why combating disinformation is so integral right now. This week, the Jewish Federations, AJC, AIPAC, ADL, and the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations launched The 10/7 Project to counter misinformation regarding the attacks of Oct. 7 and Israel's response by providing factual clarity through influential figures in the media and government.
We must continue to uphold fact over fiction and hold others accountable to moral clarity to combat disinformation - no greater examples than what we are seeing on college and university campuses or the dangers of a BDS boycott. Two examples that have impacted our community just this week.
On Dec. 4, we heard this fact as testimony was shared with the UN about the rape and sexually-based violent war crimes that occurred on Oct. 7 by Hamas in Israel. As a proud member of the Jewish Women’s Funding Network, our Women of Vision group was represented at the UN. You can watch the recording here.
And it is in this same vein of unity that I invite you to join me and people of all faiths this Sunday from 12:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. at Congregation Rodeph Shalom for the Israeli American Council’s Rally Against Antisemitism of which we are a proud sponsor. Come and see you are not alone.
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