"We're just 75 years since the gas chambers. So no, a billboard calling out antisemitism is not an overreaction," said co-founder of JewBelong Archie Gottesman, reciting the new slogan. "If Jews stop talking about antisemitism, the haters win – it's that simple."The message will debut on billboards at Times Square in New York and soon expand into other cities such as Philadelphia, Washington, Miami and San Francisco.
Aside from the campaign, JewBelong stands as a resource for those who want to learn about antisemitism, how to combat it and ways to share their own experiences. It is a not-for-profit online resource that attempts to offer "easy explanations and meaningful DIY rituals for Jews, allies and anyone who has felt like a Jewish outsider or feels disengaged from the religion." For now, its focus is centered on antisemitism.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) released a survey conducted after Operation Guardian of the Walls in May. It found that three-quarters of American Jews “are more concerned about antisemitism in the US and abroad, and 60% have personally witnessed antisemitism because of the conflict in May.”
“The poll also found that 40% of American Jews are more concerned about their personal safety than before,” the ADL said. “Likewise, three-quarters of those polled (75%) indicated they were more worried than before about rising antisemitism in other countries spurred by the conflict.”
Among the findings of the survey of American Jews, more than half (53%) said they have witnessed more behavior or conduct deemed antisemitic than before the outbreak of violence, some 18% said one or more of their personal relationships have suffered because of conversations about the recent violence, and an overwhelming majority said they want federal and state leaders to do more to address the recent antisemitism.
“Around the recent conflict in Israel and Gaza, there was a significant surge of antisemitic incidents in the US and abroad,” ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement. “American Jews are understandably now more concerned about the potential for violence overseas spilling over into antisemitic threats close to home. The antisemitic attacks we’ve witnessed in the streets and on social media in the past few weeks are weighing heavily on the American Jewish community.”