Last week I flew to Washington, D.C. for an emergency fly-in with 400 leaders and representatives from Jewish communities, federations, and national Jewish organizations across the country. The fly-in was organized by Jewish Federations of North America and the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations in response to the frightening rise of antisemitism in America and, more specifically, the recent, deadly antisemitic attacks in Washington, D.C. and Boulder, CO.  

Our CJP delegation spent time speaking with our representatives, engaging on what our Jewish community needs from our leaders at this time. This was an opportunity to get away from reading and watching the news and to have person-to-person conversations with our elected officials and their staff. 

At a time when trust in government and civic institutions is low, it can be easy to become cynical and suspicious of the motivations and efficacy of our political leaders. While there were moments in D.C. when I too felt some of that cynicism creep in, it was also clear that the people we met with share a passion for democracy and care deeply about our country.  

I left the 24-hour pilgrimage to the Hill with a sense of appreciation for the Jewish People and this country. I was grateful to witness the rare unity and clarity with which so many Jewish organizations from across the spectrum of American Jewish life showed up. While this kind of alignment often results as a response to attacks on our community by those who aim to do us harm, this was a fly-in of agency, not of victimhood.  

Our delegation informed, engaged, and challenged our elected officials and their staffs, and we offered concrete policy recommendations and solutions to help keep the Jewish community, all communities, and nonprofit organizations safe and secure. This was the American political form of Jewish resilience. We asked those charged with serving and protecting us not to pity us, but rather to respond and act, now.   

Walking the halls of the Capitol and passing by other Americans of different backgrounds, ages, and identities — all there to lobby for different issues and concerns — I felt reverence for what it means to be a government by the people, for the people. I witnessed courageous people fulfilling their civic duties, raising their voices, trying to improve their country, one conversation at a time.  

We must do more of this. We must remind ourselves and our officials of the ideals we are fighting for, even if we disagree on how to achieve them. 

I am grateful that my trip to D.C. reminded me both of our American Jewish strength, and of the preciousness of this great American experiment. As we prepare for the Fourth of July, I am reflecting on this question from Terry Tempest Williams, “Do we have enough resolve in our hearts to act courageously, relentlessly, without giving up — ever — trusting our fellow citizens to join with us in our determined pursuit of a living democracy?”  

I believe we do. And this visit was a healthy reminder that we need to show up, to fight for the ideals and values we care most about, and to do so with our strong and diverse Jewish community.  

Shabbat Shalom and Happy Fourth.