This year, as I had the privilege of attending services at three of our community's congregations for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, several people came up to me to express their appreciation for what our Jewish Federation does. It meant a lot that they wanted to say thank you for all we do.

I realize that often, our community can't see or feel the work our Jewish Federation does on behalf of our community. And yet, for the people who do see it, I know that it means the world to them, knowing that we are there to stand up and defend our local jewish community in a wide array of ways. Whether it is our response to an antisemitic incident at a local school and our ongoing work with that school and district, how we advocate on behalf of the Jewish community with state and local elected officials, or how we create experiences for people to celebrate Jewish joy, our Jewish Federation makes it all happen.

As an illustration of this work, I wanted to highlight some of what our Jewish Federation has been doing over the last week or so...

About a week and a half ago, I was notified by a local parent about a planned student walkout being coordinated throughout Southern California on October 7 to support the heroic resistance of those fighting in Gaza and against Israel’s actions towards the Palestinians. So not only did I immediately begin working directly with the school this parent’s child attends and whose students are being encouraged to participate by other students, but I also reached out to our community’s 50+ school district superintendents to make them aware of the situation and ask that they develop a plan to ensure Jewish students and those who do not support this action are protected and supported, especially since the walkout is scheduled on October 7. I also made sure both Community Security Initiative (CSI) and the ADL knew about it so they could reach out to their contacts as well.

And so you are aware, I have already heard directly from many districts who expressed appreciation for us making them aware of this.

In addition, with the ongoing antisemitism epidemic taking place across the country, one of our local school districts was brought up on Title VI charges due to their lack of action in response to an antisemitic incident that took place in Spring 2024. As soon as I learned of this, I began working directly with the district superintendent and her staff to provide resources and perspectives to help them address and change the climate in their district that allowed this kind of incident to happen.

And this past Friday, I was invited to facilitate the anti-hate workshop I developed a few years ago and have presented around our community. The workshop focuses on four main areas: 1) what hate looks like and defines it; 2) provides current statistics, including those in the LA County Commission on Human Relations 2024 Hate Crime Report; 3) the impact hate has on individuals, their families, and the community; 4) and most specifically, it provides examples of what each of us can do to push back and support those who are the target of hate.

On a somewhat related topic…. I am excited to share that on Friday, Governor Newsom signed AB 2664, a bill our Jewish Federation helped lobby our local elected officials on, and as a member of Jewish California. AB 2664 establishes 100-foot zones around the entrances to houses of worship. Within the zones, no one will be allowed to come within eight feet of a congregant without consent to distribute leaflets, hold a sign, or engage in oral protests that aim “to harass, obstruct, threaten or intimidate the person.”

This is the kind of work I am proud our Jewish Federation does, and I thank our donors who make it possible for us to do it for our community.