JNF NSW family back together again
This week’s JNF’s Gala event hosted over 600 supporters in the first in-person major event since 2019.
Jonathan Greenblatt
The theatre-style event held in The Venue in Alexandria was addressed by keynote speaker Jonathan Greenblatt, National Director and CEO of the Anti-Defamation League in the USA.
Greenblatt served in the White House as Special Assistant to Barack Obama and was the Director of the Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation.
Following stirring renditions of Somewhere Over the Rainbow and Shlosha by the Moriah College Choir. JNF NSW President Pam Krail and JNF CEO Dan Springer spoke on the main theme of this year’s campaign, bettering the lives of those Israelis who live in the Negev close to the border with Gaza by finding green space in which the children could play and providing more kindergartens.
Before Jonathan Greenblatt, the audience was entertained by the amazing voice of former Sydneysider Alexis Fishman, who now thrills audiences in the United States.
As the National Director and CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, Jonathan Greenblatt is more than qualified to speak extensively on the subject which is troubling Jewish communities around the globe…antisemitism.
Having a brief background of the history of the ADL, Greenblatt said: “For generations, ADL has been an ardent defender of the Jewish people, as well as a principled voice for civil rights for black Americans and for legal equality for the LGBTQ community.”
He spoke about the three pillars on which the ADF operates. Protection. He said: “We monitor hate crimes and antisemitic incidents.”
Last year, ADL investigated nearly 10,000 bias incidents across the country, providing over 1300 tips to law enforcement, many of which helped to avert potential crimes. There were 2770 antisemitic incidents.
He summed up the current situation by saying, ‘the situation is grim’. He told the audience:” This was the highest number we have ever seen in the almost 42 years of doing this work. It was a 34% increase. Over 2020 nearly tripled the number of incidents that we saw just in 2015.”
Last year the ADC educated 20,000 police and every member of the FBI.
Greenblatt said it used to be that ardent anti-Zionists would meet in remote locations hiding from public view. Now you find them with a swipe up on your phone or the click of a mouse, and they instantly reach millions of people. In a world where people get the news not from television but from tick-tock or Twitter.
He spoke about the work of the far-right and the far-left, which leaves the majority of Jews trapped in between their ideologies.
On pillar number two, Greenblatt said: Number two, we have to approach the fight against antisemitism differently. We have to respond with this passion and facts, not with hysterical rhetoric.
We have a duty to educate and we need to focus on the truth. We all have a role to play when we see antisemitism in our own communities, to call it out and to expose it, but also to try to set our neighbours on a better plan that requires us to learn. That means our kids need to be better prepared to understand the issues in all their complexity.
So Number One, we need to speak up. Number Two, we need to share facts. And Number Three, whether you’re in America or Australia, remember that democracy is not a spectator sport.
You can’t watch it from the cheap seats, assuming you know how it ends. I’m afraid this is real life. And there are no guarantees. So every single one of you has got to get on the field and grab a ball, whether you choose to volunteer to write a cheque or to run for office. Democracy is a contact sport. All of us have a role to play.”
He ended up saying: “Now we’re here tonight to support children in the Negev to make sure that they have a safe place to play. For that, it will take four to five structures and reinforce shelters. But for us, what will protect us is continuing to defend liberal democracy and the notion that all people in that must be treated equally and fairly. Without fear, hatred or bigotry.”
Following Jason Greenblat, Elite Paz is a mother living in the Negev close to the border. She said: “When we are in a bomb shelter, the windows are very narrow, and it’s darker because the light is limited. And so there’s great importance of the outdoors. I was so happy to learn that JNF Australia wants to find 14 new green kindergartens.”
Rivka Carmi, a former president of the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Beersheva, spoke about the unfulfilled visions of Ben-Gurion, which was the catalyst in making her life in the Negev, which takes up about 23% of the State of Israel but is only home to 10% of Israelis.
A paediatrician, Rivka worked with Bedouin mothers in the Negev.
Also speaking was Moriah executive Elyse Chiert.
The 600 guests went home with the knowledge that JNF is making green outdoor spaces for the children in the Negev and what steps they could take to combat antisemitism in their home city.
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