100 days ago, on October 7th, the world changed as a nightmare scenario unfolded impacting Jewish communities around the world. We watched helplessly on social media as our brothers and sisters in Israel were brutally attacked by Hamas, which murdered, wounded, raped, and assaulted our people. 100 days later, over 100 hostages remain in captivity, and time is running out to ensure their survival and safe return.
There is a palpable sense of fear and abandonment by many Jews as our security is threatened. Can we still wear our kippot/yarmulkes (skull cap) or our Magen David (Jewish star) necklaces in public? Who will stand up for us if we are assaulted in the city streets? Where are the voices of our allies?
Since October 7th, antisemitic incidents have increased in our city significantly. The Community Security Initiative – a joint project of JCRC-NY and UJA-Federation of New York – has worked tirelessly to ensure the security of nearly 2,400 Jewish institutions in our state, conducting physical and cyber security assessments, reviewing intelligence, and working to provide extra security guards where the greatest needs exist. While these activities are incredibly important, they are only one piece of the puzzle.
For decades, JCRC-NY has planted the seeds to build relationships with the current and emerging leaders in New York. Thousands of leaders from the faith, community, and non-profit arenas have visited Israel with us, as have elected officials, including then-Assembly Members Hakeem Jeffries, Adriano Espaillat, and Grace Meng, then-City Council Members Ritchie Torres, Donovan Richards, Vanessa Gibson, Antonio Reynoso, and Mark Levine, and then-Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams. The goal is to work with folks from the beginning and be there with them as partners on their journeys.
But what’s the secret sauce here? Surely we can’t afford to take everyone to Israel. Our strategy is to work here, at home, in our city to build new and improve existing relationships with our current and emerging leaders. JCRC-NY’s Center for Shared Society is the “OG” when it comes to this work. By creating annual fellowships where diverse leaders come together, learn together, and grow together, they become more aware of the issues facing New Yorkers of all backgrounds and are granted the skills to effectively communicate, navigate complexity, and solve problems.
Since 2008, JCRC-NY has created at least a dozen different fellowship programs for diverse, emerging leaders. These include the “We Are All Brooklyn,” and “We Are The Bronx” fellowships, which train young adult leaders on how to combat hate together, bringing together people who otherwise would have never met. Seeing the Jewish members of these groups embraced by other participants is a wonderfully emotional experience.
YouthBridge-NY and YouthBridge Brooklyn are fellowships that provide high school juniors and seniors who show leadership potential how they can learn from each other’s experiences and become better leaders. The Bridges-NY fellowship, which just graduated its first cohort, works with individuals who are interested in seeking public office in the future, and the fellowship gives them an opportunity learn and travel together, and build a network with each other and current city leaders. We are also very proud of our Community Leadership Program, which trains young community and faith-based leaders in Long Island in working cross-culturally. Next week, the inaugural Blumberg Fellowship for Jewish Community Relations will begin, bringing together a new generation of Jewish civic leaders to become our community’s ambassadors to New York’s future leaders.
The fellowships have long been a key part of our organization. They involve a shared sense of purpose, cross cultural support, and the willingness of individuals to dedicate time and energy to the good of our city and our world. They transcend individual interests and encourage collaboration, fostering a spirit of cooperation crucial for building bridges. Since 2009, we’ve had a total of 1296 fellows, from teens learning leadership and community building skills, to diverse faith leaders learning how to keep their respective neighborhoods safe, to emerging leaders in the world of New York City politics. Many of our alumni have gone on to run our public agencies, non-profits, spiritual centers, and several who have been elected to public office. We are confident that these relationships will help ensure the vitality of the Jewish community in New York for the next generation.
To support our work in securing this future and building allies and partners for the Jewish community, kindly consider a donation to JCRC-NY by clicking here.
The JCRC-NY team is fortunate that every day our partners reach out to us, especially in our time of need, just as we strive to be there for them. New York’s future depends on our ability to work together as members of different faith and community groups and build a shared society. Our work at JCRC-NY in developing these relationships not only helps us meet this
