Doug Emhoff celebrated his family’s Jewish traditions, and emphasised fighting antisemitism, in a speech at the Democratic National Convention last night, topping a lineup of the Democratic Party’s biggest Jewish stars.
“Kamala has connected me more deeply to my faith,” Emhoff said, “even though it’s not the same as hers”. Celebrating his “blended family,” the first Jewish Second Gentleman said the Vice President makes a “mean brisket for Passover”.
“She comes to synagogue with me for High Holidays and I go to church with her for Easter,” Emhoff said.
— Doug Emhoff (@DouglasEmhoff)
August 21, 2024
Emhoff’s speech stayed mostly positive last night – he did not mention the war in Gaza – but the Second Gentleman did discuss his work to fight antisemitism. “Kamala has fought against antisemitism all forms of hate her whole career,” he said, “and she encouraged me, as Second Gentleman, to take up that fight, which is so personal to me”.
With antisemitism on the rise across the US, Doug-mania is an antidote for many American Jews. The grandson of Polish refugees, Emhoff grew up in Brooklyn with two Jewish parents. He was raised in the faith, attending a reform synagogue in New Jersey.
Emhoff has already brought Jewish traditions to the vice president’s residence, and Jewish Americans hope he might bring those same traditions to the White House, if Kamala Harris wins the presidency in November. He might even transfer the mezuzahs across.
Emhoff was introduced last night by his son, Cole, who narrated a video which told the story of his father’s life. Cole’s video included the story of how he and his sister gave Kamala her Yiddish-sounding nickname, Momala, and featured photos of Emhoff at his bar mitzvah and on Jewish summer camp. “There is an epidemic of hate, including a crisis of antisemitism in our country and around the world,” Emhoff said over the video.
The Second Gentleman wasn’t the only Jewish speaker at the conference last night. Senator Bernie Sanders called for an end to the “horrific war” in Gaza, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer spoke while wearing a blue square pin “to stand up to antisemitism, to stand up to hate”.
“As the highest ranking Jewish elected official in American history,I want my grandkids — and all grandkids — to never face discrimination for who they are,” said Schumer. “Our grandkids deserve better than Donald Trump’s American carnage.”
Emhoff’s speech was celebrated by the Jewish delegation in Chicago – where the Convention was held – and across the country. “We all know that Doug Emhoff is a mensch, but for him to be the First Mensch, that is going to be a tremendous honor for the Jewish community,” a 21-year-old Jewish delegate told the Forward. “It’s been far too long, and to just have that visibility, to have that representation, is going to be fantastic.”
Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, shared: “This is — truly — a remarkable moment for Jews in America”.
