I had much to write about this week, but, sadly, I have two difficult and important items to share with you.

Yesterday, there was quite a disturbance at the University of Washington Board of Regents meeting. Pro-Palestinian students were there to discuss a resolution for the university to divest from companies that do work in Israel (part of the boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement). Jewish leaders were there to speak out against the resolution, as well share concerns about antisemitism and Jewish student safety on campus.

This is an abbreviated version of an email sent to the Jewish community in Seattle from my colleague, Solly Kane, CEO of their Jewish Federation, about what transpired:

Dear Friends,

Today, I had the opportunity to speak at the University of Washington’s Board of Regents to call on the UW leadership to stand up against antisemitism and protect the Jewish community on campus. 

From the moment we arrived, it was clear we faced a hostile environment. A room full of loud demonstrators, many masked, greeted us. When it was time for Jewish voices to be heard, the demonstrators became disruptive. The Jewish community speakers were met with repeated heckles, boos, and constant interruption. Though the Board of Regents warned the crowd multiple times that they would clear the room if the disruption did not end, no action was taken. This failure to enforce basic civility only emboldened the disruptors.

During the final Jewish speakers’ remarks, the aggression became so deafening that the Board abruptly adjourned the meeting. Regents, university leadership, and Jewish community members were forced to be escorted out of the room by police as the demonstrators continued. The failure to stop the demonstrators was a clear message that Jewish voices are not welcomed or protected on campus.

Sadly, my experience today is reflective of the experience of many Jewish students on campus. We were there calling on the UW leadership to do better in the school year ahead, and yet they were not even able to ensure civility in a regularly scheduled board meeting. 

We Cannot Stay Silent!

The safety of the Jewish community is non-negotiable. The University of Washington's inaction is setting a dangerous precedent, not only for us but for the broader community. What happens on this campus ripples into our schools, workplaces, and neighborhoods.

Immediately after I received his email, I texted him to see if he was okay. This is what he shared:

“Thank you. I have never been at a meeting like that before. The irony is we were being shouted down and required a police escort out of a meeting where we were asking the Board of Regents to protect Jewish students on campus.”

You can read the news story here and the following statement from the UW Board of Regents about what occurred.

You can make your voice heard at the University of Washington by clicking here.

With our public universities (UO, OSU, PSU) starting in two weeks, we are very concerned about similar actions on these campuses. We are monitoring each campus and will keep you updated.

Secondly, allow me to make a special request. In mid-2022, Michael Bivins was arrested for arson at the Muslim Community Center of Portland and vandalism of Congregation Shir Tikvah and Congregation Beth Israel, as well as the Black-owned business, Everybody Eats PDX. Bivins is due to plead guilty to charges later this month, and our community is invited to contribute to a Community Impact Statement prepared by victim organizations. The goal is to show the court that bias crimes affect all members of a community, not just the directly affected organizations.

Victim statements help the court understand the impact of bias crimes on a community and may influence the judge in his assessment of how Bivins should be sentenced. Please consider anonymously joining this effort in support of all the victim organizations and advocating for a just outcome by clicking here. 

Let’s talk about happier things…

Wednesday night was the official launch of the Jewish Federation’s 2025 Annual Campaign for Community Needs. We held our Cornerstone Event with lead donors and Eric Fingerhut, President and CEO of the Jewish Federations of North America, as our guest speaker. The event was an enormous success with an 18% increase in pledges over last year.

Eric was passionate in his talk about the work of Jewish Federations across North America. The challenges in Portland (rising antisemitism, anti-Israel protests on college campuses, security needs, etc.) are the same challenges everywhere. People often say, “All politics is local.” Sadly, Jewish community issues are global. So, instead of looking at our efforts here in a silo, let’s focus on what we do as a North American Jewish Federation system. Just in the past two years, annual campaigns totaled over $2 billion. Israel emergency campaigns raised over $850 million. Support for Jews in Ukraine was in excess of $100 million. Security funding with more than $100 million. And we are leading the fight against antisemitism in our schools and in our communities. Our Jewish community should be proud to be a part of this collective effort.

As Eric said during his remarks, “You do not build a fire department during a fire.” The Jewish Federation has been a mainstay in our community for over 104 years – ready and prepared to lead our community and respond during the good times and difficult times.

We hope you will join our annual campaign efforts by donating here.

For young adults in our community, NextGen programming is kicking off strong this fall with its Level Up event on Tuesday, September 24 at 5:30 pm at Ground Kontrol. Young adults are welcome to join for a wonderful evening introducing the Ben Gurion Society (young donors of $1,000 or more to the annual campaign), a new season of young adult programming, networking, leadership, connecting and being Jewish together. Register here.

The High Holy Days are about three weeks away. The Jewish Federation has compiled the following calendar of High Holy Day activities in our community. We hope that you find your place in our community to celebrate the New Year.

Finally, 370 years ago this week, a group of 23 Sephardic Jews arrived on the shores of New York — then called New Amsterdam — and created the first organized Jewish community. Yesterday, the New York City Council passed a resolution to honor "Landing Day" as an official date on the city’s calendar.

Enjoy the Ducks-Beavers rivalry game and Shabbat shalom.