Matisyahu’s recent show in Chicago was canceled due to the threat of anti-Israel protests. The Jewish American singer’s music has evolved alongside his Jewish identity. But one thing has always been clear: He believes in Israel's right to exist.
In the aftermath of the Oct. 7 Hamas-led terrorist attack and massacre in Israel, American Jews were engulfed in a maelstrom of grief, anger and alienation. Now, five months into the Israel-Hamas war, Jewish New Yorkers stand at the forefront of an escalating societal crisis.
Antisemitism is not a Jewish problem. It’s a societal problem. And just like we wouldn’t ask the AAPI community, for example, to solve anti-Asian hate on its own, we can’t expect the Jewish community to tackle antisemitism by itself. However, according to AJC, 47% of American Jews feel that antisemitism is taken less seriously than other forms of bigotry.
Like most American Jews, I tense up when I hear calls for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas War currently raging in Gaza. I do not recoil because I crave war – far from it. It is undeniable that the situation in Gaza is dire, with thousands of lives lost and many more displaced. I reject calls for a ceasefire because most of such calls for the last 150 days have been for Israel to lay down its arms and accept a genocidal terrorist organization which promises to deliver death and destruction on every Jew in the world to remain in power on its border.