Articles by Brian Siegal

The hate that may begin with Jews inevitably spreads to other ethnic groups and faiths. Defending religious freedom for all and rejecting efforts to divide people along lines of identity for political or social gain are not lofty ideals. They are all but essential if our society is to properly function.

For Jews, the Seder is not only an act of remembrance but an exercise in moral imagination. We are commanded to see ourselves as if we personally went out from Egypt. The Passover story has resonated far beyond the Jewish community because it speaks to a universal aspiration: the right of every person to live in dignity and liberty.

Condemning antisemitism cannot be selective or conditional. It cannot depend on whether hate is cloaked in political rhetoric, conspiracy theories or explicit Nazi imagery. It must be immediate, bipartisan and unequivocal.

I’m one of the more than a quarter million Jews living in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. That means I am a proud part of a unique, extremely diverse community that has made innumerable contributions to the intricate and vibrant mosaic that is South Florida. However, it is also a community forced to confront a steadily rising tide of hostility and outright hatred because of who we are and what we believe in.

This Passover is marked by pain and fear. During the Seder, we use saltwater to symbolize our tears and bitter herbs to represent the bitterness of slavery and oppression faced by the Jews in Egypt. We don’t need saltwater this year as our tears have not stopped.

Now is the time for moral clarity. Hamas is a terrorist organization. It is not a defense force. Its overarching goal and its very reason for existence, has always been the annihilation of Israel. Like other Middle East terror groups — Hezbollah in Lebanon and Houthi militants in Yemen — it is funded, trained, armed, and supported by Iran.

Trivializing the Holocaust is so dangerous – those are “lessons” imprinted into young minds and shape their entire world view. It is why I was disappointed when I heard students in a Mountain Brook High School class stood in front of an American flag and raised their right hands, in unison, outstretched with palms facing down — the classic Nazi salute. In an American history lesson no less. A Jewish student in the classroom, along with others, refused to do the salute. But when he publicized the incident, he was reprimanded for making the school “look bad.”

Any attempt to defame, stereotype, or assault Asian Americans, or any minority, is inconsistent with American values, writes AJC Miami Director Brian Siegal in a letter to the editor of the Miami Herald.

This is a defining moment for all who cherish free, democratic societies. We have a real opportunity, indeed an obligation, to defend our values and see the nation’s diversity as a strength, not a weakness. Now is the time to unite to combat hatred in all of its forms and manifestations.

Strong, principled American leadership in global affairs is the best protection for our nation’s interests, the preservation and advancement of democratic values and human dignity, and the security of our closest allies. As we face the coronavirus pandemic and other national security challenges, such as international terrorism and the growing strength of anti-democratic forces, it is critical that the United States stays engaged globally.

Only by defining antisemitism, understanding how it manifests itself in society, confronting hate and bias crimes, and combating all forms of hatred can we uphold our values of democracy, pluralism and mutual respect toward the goal of ensuring the safety and dignity of our societies.

Our society is undergoing a re-examination of our attitudes and actions related to race and discrimination following the brutal killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer on May 25. One event that was a similar turning point in how America approached race and discrimination occurred 57 years ago when the University of Alabama underwent desegregation by two incredibly brave African American students — Vivian Malone and James A. Hood.

One of the key challenges in fighting hate crimes is that they often go unreported because of a lack of knowledge regarding reportage and a mistrust of law enforcement and its willingness to take their claims seriously.

To better understand the importance of the U.S.-Europe alliance, I recently participated in the German Marshall Fund’s Marshall Memorial Fellowship in Europe.

In recent months, the Jewish community and other minorities have been the subject of countless threats and hatred in the United States. Brian Siegal offers words of strength to the Jewish community during this troubling time.