From Delaware to California Institutions Join ‘Shine A Light’ Campaign to Fight Antisemitism

Local governments and universities across the United States are participating in the “Shine a Light” educational campaign to raise awareness of antisemitism during the Hanukkah holiday at a time when many Jewish leaders say anti-Jewish hatred is spreading unchecked across society.

On Wednesday, Delaware Governor John Carney, a Democrat, signed a proclamation officially recognizing the campaign, calling recent antisemitic incidents involving celebrities and politicians “just unacceptable.”

“We have a responsibility to call out bigotry, and there is no room for antisemitism or hate of any kind in Delaware,” Carney told The Algemeiner on Thursday. “Together, we can overcome this hate. Light will triumph over any darkness.”

Rabbi Michael Beals of Beth Shalom Congregation in Wilmington, Delaware, told The Algemeiner that the initiative is important because of rising antisemitism and racial tension in the state.

“It’s part of a larger commitment to making Delaware a safe home for all minorities,” Rabbi Beals said.

Beals highlighted the fact that Delaware is one of twenty US states to require middle and high school students to learn about the horrors of the Holocaust.

Shine a Light has also found a receptive audience on college campuses throughout the nation, where antisemitic incidents have flared.

At University of Texas, Arlington, Dean Scott Ryan of the School of Social Work (SSW) called on students to participate in the awareness campaign.

Ryan told The Algemeiner that “SSW cares greatly about this issue,” and pointed to the importance of funding security grants that protect synagogues and education which highlights the dangers of antisemitism.

Synagogues in southern New Jersey are also participating in Shine a Light, a local CBS affiliate reported, with events there being organized by the Jewish Community Relations Council of Southern New Jersey. According to CBS-Philadelphia, several antisemitic incidents, including a bomb threat made against the Katz Jewish Community Center in Cherry Hill, have startled South Jersey’s Jewish community.

In Los Angeles, the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles held an event, attended by Mayor Karen Bass, at which a “giant menorah” was put up in Grand Park.

“As we approach the start of Hanukkah on Sunday, which kicks off the whole holiday season this year, I hope all of Los Angeles will join me in seeking to build a city filled with love, acceptance, and belonging and community where neighbors come out for one another and where strangers help each other out,” Mayor Bass said, according to CBS Los Angeles.

Antisemitic incidents in the US are up 61 percent, according to data by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) in April. Averaging three per day, 2,717 were recorded in 2021, the largest total since the ADL began tracking them in 1979.

Follow reporter Dion J. Pierre at @DionJPierre.