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We wrongly assumed that in the wake of the horrors of the Holocaust, antisemitism stopped. We now know that it merely took a hiatus, awaiting the right moment to reappear. The Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville in August 2017 officially opened the doors, and 10.27 blew the doors off the hinges. It has become acceptable to be an antisemite in public. Scholars, psychologists and social scientists might debate and offer varying views on the reasons for its reappearance in such a virulent and blatant form, and they should, but more importantly, how do we respond?

Not a day doesn’t go by that 10.27 is referred to in some media format. Most recently, a man in Connecticut was charged with making antisemitic threats against a Jewish state senator. He posted on social media the senator’s home address and wrote the following: “…perfect example of why the Tree of Life Synagogue deserved to be fumigated…”. This evil is not only unexplainable and unwelcome anywhere, but also symptomatic of the corrosion of America. Equally troubling is the continued concentration upon Israel, despite a cease-fire, to the exclusion of a great humanitarian crisis that the world continues to ignore.

A civil war erupted in Sudan in April 2023, and while there are varied estimates regarding casualties, many sources suggest that as many as 150,000 people have died from violence. There are estimates that the number of children who have died from preventable diseases and starvation are as high as 500,000. There are an estimated 14.3 million refugees, both internal and those who have fled. Where is the world’s outrage? Where is the world’s involvement? Empathy?

The United Nations, to the best of my knowledge, has done little if anything. For those who might not know the map of Africa, the Sudan is directly south of Egypt. Greta Thunberg and her flotilla have not sailed across the Mediterranean, through the Suez Canal, and arrived at Port Sudan to deliver their humanitarian supplies. No actors have signed a petition regarding Sudan. There have been no marches or rallies in defense of the innocents. When we add to this tragedy the 2 million Uyghur being forcefully converted by the Chinese, the continued elimination of the Rohingya by Myanmar and the global silence as 600,000 Syrians died in a civil war, there is much to worry about on our planet. The continuous concentration on Israel, to the exclusion of the Sudan and the others, merits only be one conclusion – antisemitism – and it is unacceptable.

We must continue to speak out, grow our allies and collaborate with them, and educate all children about the evils of antisemitism, for we know too well that it never ends with the Jews. Antisemitism is the beginning, not the end.