Your Daily Phil: Remembering those still in bondage at the Seder
Good Thursday morning.
In today’s edition of Your Daily Phil, we report on a new survey by Jewish Federations of North America and a congressional hearing on antisemitism at Columbia University. We feature an opinion piece by Shaina Wasserman about steps to assess and improve workplace culture in the stressful aftermath of Oct. 7. Also in this newsletter: Rachel Goldberg-Polin, Christopher Wray and Josh Harris. We’ll start with a review of some of the new initiatives coming out for the Passover Seder to acknowledge the dire straits facing the Jewish people this year.
A hostage poster set upright on a chair at the table. A blooming flower added to the Seder plate. A poem by the mother of one of the captives. As more than 100 people languish in captivity in Gaza and increasing numbers of Jews around the world report hiding their identities in public due to rising antisemitism, this year’s Passover Seder — with its focus on liberation and freedom — is sure to be different from all other Seders, reports Jay Deitcher for eJewishPhilanthropy.
To bring the global state of affairs into this year’s Seder, Jewish and Israeli organizations, as well as individual authors, are offering new Haggadot, supplemental readings and recommended practices.
“When we say next year in Jerusalem… we want to say it with the conviction that those who are captive might be returned to their families,” Liz P.G. Hirsch, the executive director of Women of Reform Judaism, told eJP.
Her organization created a Haggadah insert with a prayer specifically for captive women. “The mission statement of the Haggadah is the line ‘B’chol dor vador chayav adam lir’ot et atzmo k’ilu hu hatza mimitzrayim,’ — ‘In every generation, we should see ourselves as someone who personally experienced the Exodus from Egypt,’” Hirsch said. “And this prayer is an opportunity for us to feel that deep empathy and express the pain and the connection that we have to those who are captive.”
Keeping the hostages in mind is essential at all times of the year for the Board of Deputies of British Jews, Michael Wegier, chief executive of the Board of Deputies, told eJP. Since Oct. 7, they’ve held regular vigils outside the House of Parliament showing their support for the hostages. This Passover, they are asking the community to provide a “Seder Seat for a Hostage,” placing a hostage poster in their place.
Other Jewish organizations around the world have created traditions to honor the hostages this year. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum created a Haggadah that was produced at the printing press on Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the hardest hit communities in the Oct. 7 attacks, which has 20 residents in captivity.
The forum’s Haggadah includes the standard liturgy as well as essays and commentaries from Israel’s former Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Meir Lau, family members of hostages and Miriam Peretz, an Israeli educator and Israel Prize winner, who had two sons who were killed in battle, one of them two days before Passover. In her essay, Peretz recalls that year’s Seder almost immediately after the funeral with her son’s four children, who sang Mah Nishtana (Why is this night different from all other nights?). “Despite it all, we celebrated the Seder. We cried and sang with them in deep pain and continued reading in the Haggadah to the commandment, ‘I will not die for I will live,’” Peretz wrote.
Not all of the new Haggadot available this year are directly connected to Oct. 7, however. To find hope, Seder participants can also be inspired by U.S. history and its connection to the Exodus, Stu Halpern, senior adviser to the provost and senior program officer of the Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought at Yeshiva University, told eJP.
Prompted by his kids’ fascination with American history and the hit musical “Hamilton,” Halpern co-edited a new Haggadah titled The Promise of Liberty, with essays by rabbis, journalists, and educators across the political spectrum and religious denominations. The Haggadah discusses how everyone from George Washington to Martin Luther King Jr. were motivated by the Jews escape from slavery.
“The United States has long drawn from the wellspring of the Exodus story for inspiration and to shape its own ideas and ideals,” Halpern said. The Promise of Liberty shows that “the State of Israel, the Jewish story, the Jewish people, should not be thought of as ‘you are either on our side or not on our side.’ This is something that has been a source of national American unity and reaches across the political aisle and has since our country’s inception.”
SURVEY SAYS
Most Americans say Gaza cease-fire should only come once hostages are released, new JFNA poll finds
Over a quarter of Americans — 28% — now support a unilateral unconditional cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war, an increase from the 20% who supported it toward the start of the conflict. But the figure is still far less than the 51% of Americans — and 80% of American Jews — who call for a long-term cease-fire only if the more than 100 hostages still in Gaza are released, according to a new survey commissioned by Jewish Federations of North America, reports eJewishPhilanthropy’s Judah Ari Gross.
All on board: JFNA President and CEO Eric Fingerhut said in a statement that the survey results showed that “despite the length of the war, and unrelenting biased media coverage, Americans understand that Israel’s fight against terrorism is also our fight. They know that a ceasefire without the return of the hostages and the eventual defeat of Hamas is wrong for Israel, wrong for Americans and wrong for the free world.”
Feeling unsafe: The survey also found that roughly a quarter of American Jews said they had made themselves less visibly Jewish since Oct. 7, though the majority of them — 64% — said they have since stopped doing so. A third of American Jews said they have experienced either a physical attack (3%) or been the target of an antisemitic remark either in-person (13%) or online (17%) in the past year. American Jews were also almost twice as likely to say they felt at least somewhat concerned for their personal safety (58%) compared to the 32% of the general population that said that.
Methodology: The survey was conducted by Benenson Strategy Group by text message between Feb. 23 and March 11, with funding from the Diane and Guilford Glazer Foundation. The poll had a sample size of 1,901 American Jews and 4,143 American non-Jews.
IN THE HOT SEAT
Columbia president pressed at hearing about profs who support Hamas
Columbia University President Nemat Shafik largely escaped the fireworks at a Wednesday congressional hearing that brought down two of her Ivy League colleagues last year, but nonetheless faced a grilling over the school’s handling of antisemitism, particularly regarding professors who have made pro-Hamas comments, reports Marc Rod for eJewishPhilanthropy’s sister publication Jewish Insider.
Status update: Questioning from lawmakers on the House Education and Workforce Committee highlighted Joseph Massad and Mohamed Abdou, who expressed support for Hamas and other terrorist groups, and Katherine Franke, who said that IDF veterans are too dangerous to remain on Columbia’s campus. Shafik said that she was “appalled” by Massad’s comments and condemned them, adding Massad had been “spoken to,” an answer Republican lawmakers found inadequate. Shafik said Massad remains under investigation.
Divided on definitions: Shafik also found herself at odds during the hearing with Claire Shipman and David Greenwald, the co-chairs of Columbia’s board of trustees, as well as David Schizer, the Columbia law professor who chairs the school’s Antisemitism Task Force. In one case, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) asked whether there had been protests at Columbia “saying ‘We are against Jewish people,’” to which Shafik said no — a position that the other members of the panel later contradicted. Shipman referenced one incident “that the students were trying to call a ‘protest,’ but it was an event to harass admitted students who were Jewish, and it’s outrageous. Greenwald likewise said, “There have been antisemitic events on campus, which I interpret as anti-Jewish.”
Read the full report here and sign up for Jewish Insider’s Daily Kickoff here.
LOOKING INWARD
Fostering strong workplace culture to weather tumultuous times
“For many working in the Jewish communal sector, the struggle to find a path forward since Oct. 7 has been challenging, to say the least… To intensify this already turbulent period, many Jewish organizations are rethinking if and how diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives can be woven into the fabric of the Jewish communal sector amidst the surge in antisemitism,” writes Shaina Wasserman, interim executive director and senior director of strategic operations at SRE Network, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy.
Don’t stop now: “Yet even in the eye of the storm, it has never been more important that we strengthen our commitment to fostering cultures of safety, respect and equity within our Jewish organizations. Safeguarding the well-being of our staff and maintaining healthy workplaces is paramount if we are to weather this crisis and emerge with a vibrant and purposeful future for our organizations and the broader Jewish community… It is not enough to simply acknowledge these ideals; workplaces must embody them in their policies and actions.”
Taking our own medicine: “At SRE Network, we recognize this moment as a reminder to take intentional, proactive steps to embed the principles we promote into the fabric of our own organization. In the spirit of openness, it is important to share that our organizational culture, like any other, is not perfect. Embracing this vulnerability inspires our willingness to be on a long-term journey of growth and improvement, guided by the wisdom of Pirkei Avot: ‘It is not your responsibility to finish the work, but neither are you free to desist from it.’”… If we implement tangible strategies for change and foster a culture of continuous learning and collaboration, together we can build a Jewish communal sector that can weather this storm and emerge stronger and more resilient on the other side.”
Worthy Reads
A Champion of Civic Education: In Philanthropy Daily, Hans Zeiger, president of the Jack Miller Center for Teaching America’s Founding Principles and History, highlights lessons philanthropists can draw from the work of the center’s eponymous founder, who recently stepped down from his 20-year role as chairman at 95. “In 2026, our nation will celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and the birth of the American experiment. The loss of civic awareness and purpose is the principal challenge we face as we prepare for this important milestone in our country’s history. So what can donors learn from Jack Miller’s example? First and foremost, take the time to learn about and understand the issues that concern you. Meaningful change requires a nuanced understanding of the challenges at hand. Second, long-term investments are the best way to tackle systemic problems. While this mode of philanthropy demands patience and perseverance, it can yield transformational results. Third, prioritize collaboration and partnership. By uniting with like-minded organizations and individuals, philanthropists can amplify their impact and maximize the efficacy of their investments. Lastly, invest in people and values that align with your vision, and hold them accountable for delivering tangible results. Philanthropy is ultimately about effecting positive change, and this can only be achieved through unwavering commitment and diligence.” [PhilanthropyDaily]
Hate in My Hometown: In The Wall Street Journal, Jon Pepper writes about the prevalence of antisemitism in Dearborn, Mich., in the past and today. “When I was growing up between the 1950s and 1970s, Dearborn was known for Ford Motor Co., then the second biggest carmaker in the world… Dearborn celebrated Ford in every conceivable way. Streets, schools and libraries were named for Henry Ford, the company’s founder… [I] gradually became aware of another side of Dearborn the American Automobile Association didn’t promote in its brochures. Henry Ford had a troubling history of antisemitism. His publication of the Dearborn Independent, a weekly newspaper, served as a platform for crackpot conspiracies about the Jews… Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack revealed that Dearborn’s ‘progress’ on such issues hadn’t progressed as expected… I last visited in the autumn, after my brother Jay died unexpectedly on the same day as Hamas’ attack. During visitation at a Dearborn funeral home several days later, one of my Lebanese friends collared another brother of mine about the war. He insisted, with support from the media, that the Israel Defense Forces had bombed the Al Ahli hospital in Gaza City. Not long after, we learned that the story had been twisted and that the explosion had in fact been caused by an errant Palestinian Islamic Jihad missile. We bade farewell to more than my brother during that trip. We also said goodbye to the hope that Dearborn’s reputation for racial and ethnic rancor was finally behind it.” [WSJ]
Why This Hill?: In The Atlantic, Tufts University’s Michael Cohen considers the reasons behind Oct. 7 rape denialism and the dangers it poses. “Why have so many of Israel’s critics — and pro-Palestine activists — chosen to fight on this hill? Many insist, like the feminists who signed the open letter, that they are questioning claims used to justify a war they oppose. But there is also a disquieting sense that pro-Palestine activists believe they must defend Hamas. Accusations of systematic rape and sadistic sexual violence not only tarnish the terrorist group, but also undermine the notion that October 7 was legitimate ‘armed resistance’ against Israeli occupation. The rape denialists might think they are winning a near-term public-relations battle against Israel, but denying Palestinians agency, and accusing Israel of fabricating allegations of mass rape, does far more harm than good… It isn’t just wrong; it doesn’t just diminish the trauma experienced by Israeli women on October 7 — it makes the pursuit of peace and genuine reconciliation impossible.” [TheAtlantic]
Around the Web
Rachel Goldberg-Polin was named to Time magazine’s list of the most influential people of 2024; comedian Alex Edelman, Baby2Baby co-founder Norah Weinstein and computer scientist Yoshua Bengio were also named to the list…
FBI Director Christopher Wray told Jewish leaders that his agency had launched three times as many investigations into hate crimes against Jews in the four months following Oct. 7 compared to the preceding four months…
The Washington Jewish Week interviews Josh Harris, the new owner of the Washington Commanders, about his Jewish upbringing, philanthropy — notably his contributions to a fund created by Israeli President Isaac Herzog — and how his sports teams celebrate Jewish culture…
The Jewish Nonprofit Planning and Research Institute and Gemiluth Chessed of Greater New York conducted a study of kosher households in the New York area experiencing food insecurity. The “prime takeaway” was that people receiving food assistance appreciate flexibility in choosing foods that fit their preferences and dietary restrictions…
In The Wall Street Journal, President Joe Biden called on Congress to pass an aid bill to assist Ukraine and Israel…
More than 100 Yeshiva University students met with Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) to express their gratitude for his support for Israel and to present him with a YU sweatshirt…
The grandchildren of several hostages in Gaza spoke to reporters about the significance of holding a Passover Seder this year without their grandfathers…
New footage of the kidnapping of Yarden Bibas, who is still being held in Gaza — as are as his wife and two young children — was released yesterday, showing his apparently civilian captors beating him and shouting…
Sheppie Abramowitz, a volunteer and advocate for refugees, died earlier this month at 88…
Pic of the Day
Staff at Central Synagogue in New York City joined forces with TOM (Tikkun Olam Makers) to build 14 Toddler Mobility Trainers (TMT) like the one pictured here. These innovative devices enhance mobility and independence for children ages 6 months to 3 years who face physical challenges. The TMTs were delivered to families from the Weinberg Family Cerebral Palsy Center at Columbia University and Mount Sinai hospital.
TOM is an Israeli-Jewish global venture launched in 2014 with the goal of improving the lives of millions globally by creating and delivering radically affordable and accessible solutions to neglected needs of people living with disabilities, the elderly and the poor. The collaboration between TOM and Central Synagogue was made possible by the support of James and Merryl Tisch, longtime members of the congregation.
Birthdays
President and dean of Ohr Torah Stone institutions in Israel since 2018, Rabbi Kenneth R. Brander…
Chief rabbi of the Old City of Jerusalem until 2008, Rabbi Avigdor Nebenzahl… Partner in the intellectual property law firm of Furgang & Adwar, Philip Furgang… Former executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union for 23 years until 2001, Ira Saul Glasser… Biochemist, geneticist and winner of the Nobel Prize in medicine in 1985, Joseph Leonard Goldstein… Managing director of fundraising consulting firm, Mirsky, Jaffe & Associates, Michael Jaffe… English barrister and arbitrator, his clients have included the British chief rabbi in a case that held that the rulings of the Beth Din were not subject to judicial review, Michael Jacob Beloff… Corporate turnaround expert and mergers & acquisitions specialist, Jerry W. Levin… Los Angeles resident, Saul Bernstein… Former member of the Vermont State Senate and co-founder in 1984 of Jogbra, Hinda Miller… Former mayor of Phoenix for eight years after two terms on the Phoenix City Council, Phil Gordon… Composer, pianist and musicologist, Robert M. Greenberg… Former college basketball coach for 34 years, he is now an ESPN analyst, Seth Greenberg… Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and director of the Northeastern University School of Journalism, Jonathan Kaufman… Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of four acclaimed books, Susan Faludi… Community leader in Detroit and former president of AIPAC, David Victor… Editor of Commentary magazine and columnist for the New York Post, John Mordecai Podhoretz… VP and deputy general counsel at Scholastic Inc, Mark Seidenfeld… Executive director of the American Zionist Movement, Herbert Block… Emmy Award-winning actress known for her work on daytime television, Tamara Braun… Film director and producer associated with the horror genre, Eli Roth… Chabad rabbi, founder and executive director of the Aspen Chabad Jewish Community Center, Rabbi Mendel Mintz… Poet, critic, translator and professor, Ilya Kaminsky… Under secretary of Homeland Security for strategy, policy and plans, Robert P. Silvers… Political director for AIPAC’s Florida region, Evan Philipson… Dov Maimon…
