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editor’
s note

Introducing the Anti-Semitism Project 
T

his week we 
observed Yom 
HaShoah, Holocaust 
Remembrance Day. An odd 
time to mark this solemn 
anniversary. But in other ways, 
it’
s eerily fitting. 
We’
ve seen news 
stories in recent 
weeks about 
how Holocaust 
survivors around 
the world are 
responding to 
the COVID-19 
outbreak: for many, it has 
meant the resurfacing of old 
traumas, as direct orders 
to stay inside or risk death 
are reminiscent of similar 
orders that kept them hid-
den from those who wished 
to destroy them. It’
s strange, 
how Americans in 2020 share 
anxieties and restrictions with 
Jews from Nazi Europe.
At the Jewish News, we had 
been planning an ambitious, 
multi-part editorial project 
on anti-Semitism to address 
the ways this evil has survived 
and mutated into the modern 
day: longform features, com-

munity forums and arts cover-
age to help parse the ways our 
community, and other mar-
ginalized groups, understand 
(and do not understand) 
hate and bigotry in 2020. We 
originally planned to launch 
this project last month, but 
the virus reached Michigan 
that very week, and there 
were suddenly more imme-
diate concerns for the Metro 
Detroit Jewish community. 
But as is often the case, a 
new tragedy has begat ancient 
prejudices. This month the 
Simon Wiesenthal Center, a 
Jewish human rights organiza-
tion researching hate groups, 
released a report showing how 
the virus has resurfaced famil-
iar forms of anti-Semitism, 
including allegations that the 
Jews either originated this 
deadly plague or at the least 
deserve to catch it.

So we felt it was appropriate 
to relaunch our anti-Semitism 
project now, as a reminder 
that these problems are still 
with us. We are calling it, 
simply, The Anti-Semitism 
Project. The relevancy of this 
work has not faded; it has 
only grown stronger. And the 
JN’
s unique ability to tell this 
story, while balancing our 
other pressing duties to the 
Jewish community during the 
pandemic, is, in my mind, 
exactly why we continue sol-
dering on as a publication. 
We begin with an in-depth 
cover story by reporter Maya 
Goldman with photography 
by Alex Sherman, on a new 
lawsuit concerning a longtime 
group of synagogue protest-
ers in Ann Arbor. This case 
has a lot to tell us about the 
line between constitutionally 
protected free speech and 
outright racial targeting, and 
the line between criticism of 
Israel and outright anti-Sem-
itism — both central themes 
to understanding anti-Jewish 
bigotry in 2020. 
We hope to continue this 

momentum throughout the 
remainder of the calendar 
year, regardless of whatever 
else might be in store for JN. 
Our goal is one or two sub-
stantive stories per month 
centered around this theme, 
with social media pushes to 
accompany them. We have a 
podcast in the works, assum-
ing I can catch my breath 
enough from the torrent of 
daily news to finish it. And if/
when we can go outside again, 
we also hope to host the occa-
sional live event.
I think this project will pro-
vide us with valuable opportu-
nities for dialogue and under-
standing, across not only the 
Jewish community, but other 
groups as well. If you wish to 
help support our project’
s edi-
torial mission financially or in 
other ways, please contact our 
publisher, Arthur Horwitz: 
ahorwitz@renmedia.us. 
And thank you as always for 
your continued support of JN, 
as we continue the work that 
must happen for us to reach a 
world free of hate. We couldn’
t 
do any of this without you. 

Andrew Lapin

To make a donation to the 
DETROIT JEWISH NEWS FOUNDATION
go to the website
www.djnfoundation.org

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Detroit Jewish News, 29200 Northwestern Hwy., #110, Southfield, MI 48034.

6 | APRIL 23 • 2020 

1942 - 2020

Covering and Connecting 
Jewish Detroit Every Week
jn

Arthur M. Horwitz
Publisher
ahorwitz@renmedia.us

F. Kevin Browett
Chief Operating Officer
kbrowett@renmedia.us

| Editorial
Editor: Andrew Lapin
alapin@thejewishnews.com
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jheadapohl@renmedia.us
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Editorial Assistant: Sy Manello
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Contributing Writers:
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Burstyn, Suzanne Chessler, Shari 
S. Cohen, Stacy Gittleman, Maya 
Goldman, Esther Allweiss Ingber, Jen 
Lovy, Robin Schwartz, Mike Smith 

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