CLAYTON — The question from the Jewish man sitting in the Kol Rinah synagogue was based in fear. It was late November, and the synagogue was hosting a panel discussion amid rising antisemitism in the U.S. since the terrorist attacks on Israel by Hamas and the war that followed.
The room was full of Jewish people, but they realized that it’s not just Jews who are dealing with hate speech and violence. Islamophobia and anti-Arab bias is on the rise, too, providing a one-two punch of hate in the underbelly of American discourse.
The man’s question was about the three Palestinian college students just two days before, in an incident being investigated as a hate crime. The students survived. One of them is paralyzed from the chest down. A suspect has been arrested.Â
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“How do we protect ourselves?†the Jewish man asked.
The panelists were U.S. Attorney Sayler Fleming; FBI special agent Jay Greenberg; Scott Biondo, security director for the Jewish Federation of ºüÀêÊÓƵ; and moderator Jordan Kadosh, regional director for the Anti-Defamation League Heartland.
The answers to the man’s question were a sign of the times. Greenberg compared the situation, where a Jewish or Islamic person is targeted in public, to the all-too rampant shootings in schools.
“Be vigilant,†he said. “Have a plan.â€
And when all else fails, he added, “Run, hide, fight.â€
Fleming used the opportunity — a Jewish man showing empathy with the Palestinian students who were shot — to connect the dots of hate in America. A few weeks earlier, as part of the Department of Justice’s program, Fleming took part of a similar event hosted by the Islamic Foundation of Greater ºüÀêÊÓƵ.
“They’re the same questions,†Fleming said about the discussion with Muslim leaders. “They’re the same fears.â€
Indeed, amid all the attempts in politics and social media discussions to divide Americans into camps, Jews and Muslims after Oct. 7 have dealt with a similar rise in hate against their faith traditions.
“We are both vulnerable sometimes to attacks from society,†says Salmon Syed, chairman of the Islamic Foundation.
He was at the discussion with Fleming and he, too, recognized the common themes of worry and safety among people of divergent faiths.
“There have been a few incidents here and there,†he says, “but for the most part, the ºüÀêÊÓƵ community has been great … The inter-faith partnership that we have is playing a key role in making sure we have peace and harmony.â€
Syed was speaking about the Interfaith Partnership of Greater ºüÀêÊÓƵ, an organization that brings together people from more than 30 faith traditions to seek common ground and build understanding.
The organization is asking members to tamp down emotions during the difficult conversations since Oct. 7 and to focus on the people who have lost their lives.
“Peace and safety are fundamental human rights entitled to all, Israelis and Palestinians alike,†. “We declare a commitment that we will not permit the conflict to create divisions within our own community. We recognize that this commitment demands much of us, but it is essential if we are to assure that we remain at peace with one another.â€
Trying to unite, rather than divide, is easier said than done. But it starts, Greenberg suggests, with an individual commitment to not stir the proverbial pot.
Yes, you have a right to jump into a social media conversation, where one side or another is using divisive language that could be seen as a threat. But sometimes, the FBI agent offered, discretion is the better part of valor.
“If you are the one online who pushes somebody over the edge,†Greenberg asked the crowd at Kol Rinah, “how will you feel?â€