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Analysis

October 7 brought Western Jews’ holiday from history to a hard stop

The past year has forced many American Jews to re-evaluate institutions and friends they thought they knew

October 1, 2024 09:33
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Students walk out from the George Washington University commencement ceremony on the National Mall on May 19 in Washington, DC (Getty Images)
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In the wake of the Holocaust, Western Jews enjoyed a holiday from Jewish history. And while that era was already winding down, it found its hard stop on October 7.

The savage attacks in Israel unleashed open celebrations of terrorism and genocidal antisemitism at levels previously unknown in the United States. This forced many American Jews to re-evaluate institutions and friends they thought they knew. As we approach the year mark, I asked four American Zionists how life has changed and what they’ve learned since that Black Sabbath.

Dr. Logan Levkoff, a pro-Israel activist and speaker, reflected: “Jews in the Diaspora have woken up to the painful historical reminder that despite how assimilated you may feel, you are still the ‘other.’ But with that wake up call comes a great sense of pride and the other historical reminder that against all odds, we are still here.”

Meanwhile, visibly Orthodox Jews have had a different experience, according to Rabbi Yaakov Menken, managing director of the Coalition for Jewish Values: “Every person who is visibly Jewish is directly impacted by the environment of hate that is now normal across the country. Last week, I was at the Capitol for a meeting. As I’m walking in, a guy comes in and says, ‘Let me offer you an alternate perspective,’ and he’s wearing a t-shirt that says something like ‘Heroic Hamas.’ How did he know that’s an alternate perspective, that I disagree with him? The answer is that I’m a visibly Orthodox Jew.”