As I write my column today, Senator Cory Booker is well into his marathon floor speech. What fascinates me about this moment in time, whatever side of the aisle you align yourself with, is the conviction and passion he is expressing. Even more so, how he made the decision to take a stand and use the platform he has to draw attention to a situation he feels needs to be addressed.

 

I highlight this idea because another aspect of this comes to mind. But first, I wanted to share a piece of information you may not have been aware of. Did you know that yesterday, March 31, was the 533rd anniversary of the expulsion of Jews from Spain, formalized by the Alhambra Decree signed by King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castille? When I saw that in the newspaper yesterday, I was taken aback by it as it related to a new podcast that I just learned about and started listening to.

 

In the last year or so, I have started listening to several podcasts while walking our family dog or driving around our community. While most of them are comedy-centric (I use them to take my mind off my work), I stumbled on one I am very excited about last week.

 

Back in the fall of 2024, Jonah Platt, the son of movie producer Marc Platt and Jewish Federation of North America's Board Chair Julie Platt (and brother of Ben Platt), started doing a weekly podcast about the importance of showing one's pride in Being Jewish (It is the title of the podcast). I could not recommend it more!

 

The premise of his podcast is that during this climate of anti-Jewish hatred Jews are facing today, it is imperative for all of us to be as outward about our Judaism and use whatever platform we have to better educate people and to stand up. In each episode, he interviews people to discuss what Judaism means to them and how they are currently confronting the current climate of anti-Jew hatred that is permeating throughout society, especially following the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel.

 

As someone who has always been very outspoken and prideful about being Jewish my entire life, I was excited to start listening to this podcast, especially Platt's opening commentaries that begin each episode of his podcast.

 

I feel very lucky to be in the position that I am, representing the Jewish community and being able to express my Jewish pride professionally. I do not take it for granted and look forward each day to being able to stand up and proudly say, "Yes I am Jewish and the anti-Jew hatred that we are witnessing, along with the rise of hate that we are seeing, and many in society are experiencing, is not only a problem, but that is directly impacting the lives of people we know."

 

When we feel powerless or feel that our actions cannot affect change, it is at that exact moment that we should be motivated to try. It is important to remember that while we will not be able to eradicate or address an issue individually, we CAN affect a change… even if it is one other person.

 

Now is the moment for us to wear our Judaism and our Jewish pride on our sleeve and remember that if we don't, who will? I highly encourage you to listen to Jonah Platt's podcast and take pride in knowing that expressing our Jewish pride is essential, and we need more and more people to stand up and proudly say, "I am proud to be a Jew and the rise of anti-Jew hatred needs to stop!"