In a statement issued Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 9, and posted on social media, the Baltimore Jewish Council called on community leaders to fight rising antisemitism and all forms of hate and discrimination.
The BJC is the political and community relations arm of The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore and its agencies.
The statement comes in the wake of a federal civil rights complaint issued by the Anti-Defamation League of a “pervasive hostile environment” in Baltimore City Public Schools toward Jewish students.
“As students return to classrooms and campuses this fall and we continue to see an unrelenting escalation in antisemitism across our region, the Baltimore Jewish Council calls on our faith partners, our neighbors, and our elected leaders to join us in standing up to all acts of hatred against Jews,” the statement read.
“Too many of our children — whether they’re in elementary school lunchrooms or college dorms — are enduring acts of antisemitism, big and small. Too many of our synagogues, our schools, our businesses, and our homes have been targeted with graffiti and other destructive acts.
“And while we deeply respect the free speech guarantees of the First Amendment, too many public demonstrations, rallies, classroom lectures and social media posts have crossed the line from protected language to hate speech against Jews.”
The statement cited such recent incidents as the fatal shootings of two Israel embassy workers in May outside a Jewish museum in Washington, D.C., and the firebombing attack at a Jewish gathering in Colorado last June.
“Despite making up roughly 2% of the U.S. population, Jews were targets in roughly 16% of all reported hate crimes last year, according to the FBI. Nearly 70% of all religion-based hate crimes targeted Jews, both here in Maryland and across the United States.”
The statement continued, “We are not so naïve as to think that acts of antisemitism will never occur in our communities. The challenge for everyone — our institutional leaders, our partners in different faith communities, our neighbors, our educators, our elected officials at the local, state and federal levels –- is how we as a society respond to these acts.”
The BJC said it will continue to fight antisemitism with The Associated and its recently launched Center for Countering Antisemitism and Hate.
“We will educate. We will advocate. And we will help ensure that our Jewish community remains safe and secure, in partnership with our allies in law enforcement and elected office. … This unprecedented outpouring in hatred against Jews — a surge that began in 2017 with the march in Charlottesville and accelerated following the terrorist attack against Israel on October 7, 2023 — must be reversed. It will take all of us, Jews and non-Jews alike, to stand up together.
To read the full statement, visit baltjc.org/news/statements.
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