6 | JANUARY 16 • 2020

essay
A Message from Federation:
Invitation to Forum on Anti-Semitism

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W

e’
ve said goodbye to
the festive lights of
Chanukah and move
forward into the first days of our
secular calendar. Before we close
the books on 2019, however, we
want to offer a sincere thank you
to every one of our supporters,
volunteers and participants who
continue to make the work of
the Jewish Federation possible.
We are grateful to report that
2019 was a year of exceptional
generosity and commitment.
Thanks to more than10,000
donors, we were once again
able to raise and distribute the
resources necessary to take care
of those in need and support
Jewish life throughout Metro
Detroit, as well as in Israel and
around the world.
We continue to change and
evolve with the times, but
— because of you — Detroit
remains one of the most vibrant

and cohesive centers for Jewish
life to be found anywhere.
We must also acknowledge
the challenges that emerged
over the past year. In partic-
ular, anti-Semitism has risen
throughout the world and we
have seen, for the first time in
history, continuous acts of vio-
lence perpetrated against Jewish
people living in the United
States. The Tree of Life syna-
gogue in Pittsburgh, Chabad of
Poway in San Diego and now the
heinous series of assaults in New
York, culminating in the attack
on a rabbi’
s residence in Monsey:
These murderous acts of anti-Se-
mitic violence signal a terrible
new paradigm in our society and
demand a sustained response to
protect our Jewish homes, busi-
nesses and houses of worship.
Security for our community is
a central priority for the Jewish
Federation. Our expanded com-
munity-wide security team col-
laborates closely with local orga-
nizations as well as with local
and national law-enforcement
entities — including the Secure
Community Network, a national
homeland security organization
working on behalf the American

Jewish community.
Beyond security measures,
education and ongoing com-
munication are essential in this
effort.
For this reason, we invite our
entire community to a forum
on anti-Semitism and our local
response, to be held at Adat
Shalom Synagogue on Thursday,
Jan. 23, at 7 p.m., in partner-
ship with ADL Michigan and
JCRC/AJC. There, we will hear
from local leaders, clergy and
law enforcement professionals
on their efforts to confront
anti-Semitism and security con-
cerns.
We wish to offer our deepest
sympathy and support to all
those affected by these crimes,
and we look forward to a time
when hatred and bigotry are
finally eradicated. Until then,
one thing is certain: Standing
together as a strong and proud
community, we will not be
deterred from living active and
joyous Jewish lives.

Beverly B. Liss is president of the
Jewish Federation of Metropolitan
Detroit and Alan Jay Kaufman is pres-
ident, United Jewish Foundation of
Metropolitan Detroit.

Beverly Liss
Alan Jay
Kaufman

ANTI-SEMITISM
& SECURITY FORUM
The forum will include a panel discus-
sion with local rabbis, school adminis-
trators and community leaders discuss-
ing how the recent rise in anti-Semitism
— including lethal attacks on Jewish
institutions in other communities —
has affected our synagogues, Jewish
schools and community. A second panel
will feature security professionals and
local law enforcement, along with the
directors of ADL Michigan and JCRC/
AJC to discuss security, as well as
actions community members can take.
David Kurzmann, senior director of
community and donor relations for the
Jewish Federation, will moderate.
Professor Howard Lupovitch of
Wayne State University will open the
event with remarks about the new
wave of anti-Semitism, its historical
context and the impact of recent events
on Jewish life in the United States. An
audience Q&A with the members of
both panels will follow the discussions.
Panelists include:
• Rabbi Azaryah Cohen, Frankel
Jewish Academy
• Rabbi Jen Lader, Temple Israel
• Rabbi Asher Lopatin, JCRC/AJC
• Special Agent Joseph P. Lupinacci,
FBI Detroit Division
• Carolyn Normandin, ADL Michigan
• Rabbi Yisrael Pinson, Chabad in
the D
• Gary Sikorski, director, JFMD com-
munity-wide security
The event takes place Jan. 23, at 7
p.m., at Adat Shalom Synagogue. The
event is free, but seating is limited.
Attendees should register in advance at
jewishdetroit.org/forum.

Why the Jews?
Thank you for publishing Rabbi
Aaron Starr’
s column “Why the
Jews?” (Jan. 2, page 6) on the
causes of anti-Semitism and
what Jews should do about it.
Rabbi Starr says it all except as
pointed out in David Schraub’
s
separate column on current
right-wing anti-Semitism in the

Jan. 2 JN. We need to stop point-
ing fingers and follow Rabbi
Starr’
s direction.

— Harvey Bronstein

Southfield

Volunteers for Israel

Volunteers for Israel (VFI)
has several new programs that
combine volunteering on an
IDF Base in Israel with touring

on the weekends. I was on the
Volunteers for Israel Advanced
Program from Dec. 6-22.
We worked on an Air Force
base the first week and a para-
trooper base the second week.
The soldiers and commanders
expressed appreciation that we
had come from America to help
them.
For me, it was a gratifying
experience.
The tours on the weekends

were wonderful as well. We went
to the Machane Yehuda Market
in Jerusalem for a food-tasting
experience, visited a Herodian
Fortress in the Judean Desert and
went stargazing in the Negev.
I enjoyed the combination of
volunteering and sightseeing. For
me, it was a one-of-a-kind expe-
rience.
Volunteers for Israel is asso-
ciated with Sar-El, a nonprofit
that administers the program in
Israel. Volunteers typically spend

letters

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