Our thoughts are with the survivors of the Congregation Beth Israel hostage situation. The Family Values @ Work network hopes for healing and comfort for them and their community. We decry the actions of the individual who carried out the attack and the growing culture of anti-semitism that led him to target the Colleyville synagogue.
The Anti-Defamation League has tallied record numbers of anti-semitic incidents in recent years, including plots to attack other synagogues. This rise in attacks on Jewish people and institutions is fueled by the proliferation of white nationalism in the US. As Eric Ward, a long-time racial justice activist, has noted, white nationalist groups “organize the bigotry that already exists. … White nationalists are tapping into anti-Semitism in order to build political power …” that endangers all of us. In order to end anti-semititic terrorism, we must call out people in powerful positions who openly praise white nationalist groups, provide opportunities for them to organize, and feed them lies and misinformation.
Our network is in alliance with all who recognize the linked dangers of anti-semitism and racism and the need for unity to win genuine safety and justice for all.
