Combat Antisemitism Locally & Secure Our Community
Combat Antisemitism
Antisemitism is on the rise locally, across the United States and around the world.
We lead efforts to combat antisemitism in Greater Mercer and Bucks Counties and foster Jewish pride amongst Jews across our community.
This includes providing Jewish youth education and tools to fight antisemitism when encountered in schools or college campuses and openly celebrate pride in their Jewish heritage.
The Jewish Federation held an enlightening virtual speaker event featuring founder of Jewbelong.com - Archie Gottesman. Archie and JewBelong are bringing attention and initiating a dialogue on Jew hate and antisemitism with witty, modern and thought-provoking messaging across major US cities including NYC, San Francisco, and Miami.
The Jewish Federation proudly hosted a public rally in Hinds Plaza, Downtown Princeton to Stand Up Against hate and celebrate pride in our Jewish identity.
We build bridges with our non-Jewish neighbors to create strong bonds and work together to stomp out hate in our community.
The Jewish Federation supports resettlement of Afghan refugees in Mercer County.
The Jewish Federation sponsored a multi-day community-wide Sukkah Village event that brought together community religious leaders of all faiths to draw attention to important topics such as homelessness, poverty, affordable housing, and resettlement of the refugees.
Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC)
JCRC was formed in 2019 and is our community’s greatest resource to combat hate, bias, anti-Israel sentiment, and discrimination in our communities, schools and universities, and workplaces.
JCRC task force develops and maintains relationships with our community leaders such as school superintendents, police chiefs, and mayors so they have a connection and liaison to the Jewish community at all times.
Antisemitic acts have been consistently on the rise. It is our communal responsibility to be alert and report any misconduct. If you and someone you know has or is experiencing any form of bias, hate, verbal or physical violence, or if you witnessed hate-biased crimes like vandalism - please contact us. We will investigate and work closely with local law enforcement, leaders, schools, and universities to make sure every Jew feels safe in our community.
Helpful Resources:
Anti-Defamation League (https://www.adl.org/)
Simon Wiesenthal Center (https://www.wiesenthal.com/)
Shine a Light on Antisemitism (https://shinealighton.com/)
Secure our Community:
Our Jewish Federation’s Community Security Initiative (CSI) partners with Secure Community Network (SCN) to provide timely, credible threat and incident information to both law enforcement and community partners, serves as the community’s formal liaison with federal law enforcement, and coordinates closely with state and local law enforcement partners.
The Jewish Federation works closely with the local synagogues and Jewish institutions on security initiatives including situational awareness and active-shooter trainings, provide resources, and help our partner agencies assess their needs.
The Federation remains resolute in its commitment to the safety and security of our Jewish community, locally and globally. We must continue to combat and condemn antisemitism, speak out against all forms of hatred in America, and stay vigilant and alert.
If you see something, please say something without delay. In an emergency, call 911. When safe or in a non-emergency situation, please contact Mark Merkovitz at (609) 524-9910 or mmerkovitz@jewishpmb.org.
The SCN is the official homeland security and safety organization of the Jewish community in North America, working on behalf of The Jewish Federations of North America and the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.
Resources:
Secure Community Network (https://www.securecommunitynetwork.org/)
Coordinating several community-wide programs on emergency plans and active-shooter training for local agencies, synagogues, and Jewish institutions with experts from SCN and state and local law enforcement.
The Federation received timely and credible information on the hostage situation in Beth Israel synagogue in Colleyville, Texas and consulted with our local Jewish partners and agencies providing resources and support.