Jews of America Wake Up!!

I always wondered why more Jews in Europe didn’t heed warnings in the 1930s as antisemitism was taking root in Germany and across Europe. There were clear signs that life for Jews was getting harder economically, socially, and religiously, to the point where Germans were desensitized to hatred. This consistent Jew-hatred ultimately culminated in Kristallnacht.

I see so many similarities today in America, especially after yesterday’s election. Over the years, we’ve witnessed a steady rise in antisemitism, where politicians and their boosters demonize not just Israel, but Jews everywhere. Every Jew is painted as a baby killer, and politicians shield vile antisemites while making excuses for their hatred. The hatred starts at home with the parents and is reinforced at school and colleges, where the impressionable children think that it’s normal to hate Jews; after all, my parents and teachers are blaming them for all their problems it has to be true. 

What I don’t understand is the apathy of so many American Jews—much like the Jews in Germany who couldn’t see the writing on the wall. To think the U.S. Senate and Congress will now be even more populated by people who view Israel as the problem rather than Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran—regimes that openly declare their desire to destroy Israel and every Jew—is staggering.

What will it take for more Americans to make Aliyah, to return to their homeland, and to join the safe haven of Israel, which remains the safest place for Jews to live on every level? How many signs do Jews need to wake up and realize that America is no longer the place for our families? America is undoubtedly an amazing country, and I am a proud American living in Israel, but America today—and what it will become in the coming years—is not the America I grew up in, nor the America we all know and love. Aliyah is the realization that there is only one home for Jews, and that is Israel.

I am not delusional enough to think all Jews will leave America, but the lack of a mass Aliyah is frightening.

Israel cannot protect Jews in America, Australia, France, or the UK. For those of us living in Israel, it hurts to see the pain unfolding because we know the story all too well. History repeats itself, and we all know what happens and who gets blamed. This disease of Jew-hatred will eventually end, but not before it terrorizes Jewish communities in America and beyond.

So the question remains: why can’t American Jews see the writing on the wall? What is stopping an Aliyah of 20,000 to 30,000 Jews in the coming year? What keeps you attached to America, knowing who is coming for you? Synagogues will be protested and attacked; Jewish events will face hostility. More security will be needed at schools and synagogues, and more Jews will be afraid to outwardly wear a kippah, tzitzit, or other Jewish symbols.

How many more Jews will have to hide their identity because of people screaming at and attacking them on the street? Why would anyone want their family to experience this hatred?

I am the first to say Israel has its issues, but everyone here knows who hates us and who wants to harm us. We have our sons and daughters serving in the IDF to protect us. We live in a land where, regardless of our religious or political differences, we are one people and one nation: Am Yisrael.

We are waiting to welcome you to your homeland. Whether you need help finding a job, joining a community, finding the right doctors, or just knowing where to shop, Israelis of all kinds are eager to help you and see you come home.