To the Editor:
I was saddened to see that six of the seven incidents reported in the October 1 Police Blotter involved behavior that I would characterize as antisemitic that occurred on September 22 and 23 when Jews in Princeton and throughout the world were celebrating Rosh Hashanah. I have never been one to see antisemitism everywhere, but coupled with the news that Jews were murdered at a synagogue in Manchester, England on Yom Kippur, I admit I was wary on my walk to the Jewish Center for Yom Kippur services there. I worry that attacks against Jews have been normalized and lost in the politicization of antisemitism — debating whether the left or the right is more antisemitic, or haggling over whether the action or the perpetrator is “really” antisemitic — is that these are actions against people that are traumatic and all too often dangerous. I also have a nagging fear that antisemitism has become acceptable in Princeton — if six incidents over two days were directed at any other group, I am fairly certain there would be an outcry in our town.
I served on Princeton’s Civil Rights Commission from 2021-2024 until we were consolidated out of existence by the Council in 2024. I was active in drafting our Commission’s resolutions condemning antisemitism and Islamophobia that were subsequently passed by the Council. Both resolutions called for the Municipality to encourage educational programming related to these issues. I would like to hear our leaders loudly condemn this type of behavior and follow it up with efforts at education.