Views
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
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