6 | JUNE 15 • 2023
1942 - 2023
Covering and Connecting
Jewish Detroit Every Week
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PURELY COMMENTARY
continued on page 8
O
n April 30 this year,
I learned that Jewish
American Heritage
Month is the month of May.
That’s right — I learned
about Jewish American
Heritage Month
the day before
it began, in the
24th year of my
life.
Three
weeks later, I
was given 15
minutes of my
employer’s monthly all-
office meeting to talk about
Jewish American Heritage
Month, as possibly the only
Jewish — and certainly only
kippah-wearing — person in
the office.
When it was confirmed
that I’d have a chance to
speak, I was less enthusiastic
than one might have
expected. I mulled through
ideas in my head for a few
days, unable to get away
from the question of how
I could possibly synthesize
the importance of Jewish
American Heritage Month,
Jewish American history
and antisemitism, all in 15
minutes or less.
Then, I realized how well-
equipped I already was with
plenty of talking points.
Last year, I had the
opportunity to participate
in the Glass Leadership
Institute (GLI), a leadership
development program that
highlights all facets of the
ADL (Anti-Defamation
League), and empowers
young professionals to
fight antisemitism in
their communities. Over
the course of the year,
GLI participants have the
opportunity to hear from
leaders at the Center on
Extremism, the Education
Department, the Israel
& Middle East Affairs
Department and plenty
more.
After a remarkably
interesting year, I was
offered the chance to
co-chair the GLI cohort
and, in turn, hear each
session again, along with an
opportunity to attend the
National Leadership Summit
in Washington, D.C.
And that’s where I was
on April 30, when I learned
about Jewish American
Heritage Month for the first
time.
UNPACKING IDEAS
FROM ADL’S NATIONAL
LEADERSHIP SUMMIT
From the very first plenary,
the National Leadership
Summit was unlike any other
Jewish conference I had been
to before.
The message was clear
that we were there to listen,
learn and lobby as we fight
the arduous battle against
antisemitism.
We were prepared for
some things, like the
otherwise startling statistics
from the ADL’s 2022 Audit
of Antisemitic Incidents,
Jeremy
Rosenberg
guest column
The Importance of Jewish
American Heritage Month