Ann Arbor Delegation to DC: Support Jewish Communal Security

As antisemitic violence has risen to a generations-high peak, 400 Jewish leaders from 82 different communities across the country gathered in Washington, DC at the end of May under the umbrella of Jewish Federations of North America, calling on Congress to protect Jewish communities. From Ann Arbor, Rabbi Asher Lopatin of the Ann Arbor Jewish Federation joined Marie Pattipati of the JCC and Melissa Westlake of Jewish Family Services to meet directly with Michigan’s lawmakers in Washington.

In over 200 meetings with key Congressional leaders on Capitol Hill, Jewish Federation leaders championed a new landmark bill, the bipartisan Jewish American Security Act, which would boost Nonprofit Security Grant Program funding to $1 billion that can be used by Jewish communities, create a new grant that can be used for places of worship, require the Department of Education to designate an antisemitism coordinator, and lay out new regulations to combat antisemitism at colleges that receive DOE funding. The measure would also require new disclosures about how online platforms moderate and respond to antisemitic content.

Over the last twelve months, Jews have been deliberately targeted with violent attacks threatening Jewish religious expression. In just the week leading up to the fly-in, Members of Congress received antisemitic death calls and a commander of an Iranian-backed militia was charged with plotting to attack Jewish sites in the United States. This rising need for security funding extends beyond American Jewish communities, as well. The night the gathering in Washington began, three people were killed in a shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego, including a security guard.

And of course in March, a terrorist crashed a car filled with weapons into Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, where over 120 preschoolers hid in fear. If not for critical security training and personnel, this near massacre could have become one of the worst attacks on American soil since 9/11. This incident is one of many that underscores the tragic need for increased security to ensure Jewish Americans can gather safely and openly practice their faith.

Jewish communities, including Ann Arbor’s, are being forced to choose between programs like schools, camps, food banks, and social services to meet increased security needs while demand outpaces the federal program Congress built to help. “Proper funding ensures that all communities of faith will have access to critical security dollars, allowing all religious groups to practice freely,” says Rabbi Asher Lopatin of the Jewish Federation.

“Americans of all faiths deserve the right to gather safely with their communities,” Lopatin continues. This is why our Jewish Federation is working to advance this legislation. We are advocating to our representatives in Congress to ensure we have the tools we need to keep our communities safe.”

To learn more about community security efforts in the Ann Arbor area, visit JewishAnnArbor.org/our-community/community-security.