No American Should Have to Hide Their Faith

There was a time in America when openly identifying as Jewish was simply an expression of faith, heritage and family. Today, for too many people, it has become a question of personal safety.

That reality struck me during Lake Mohegan Lake Day.

While meeting residents, I spoke with a young father accompanied by his 3-year-old daughter. After a few minutes, he noticed the Chai necklace I wear around my neck. He smiled and quietly told me he was Jewish as well. Then his smile faded.

He explained that he is careful about letting people know he is Jewish because he worries about the safety of his family.

Think about that.

Not in another country. Not in another era. Here, in our own community, a young father believes openly acknowledging his Jewish faith could place his wife and little daughter at risk.

That conversation has stayed with me.

No American should ever feel compelled to hide their faith out of fear. Whether someone is Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, or of no faith at all, the freedom to live openly according to one's beliefs is one of the foundations of our nation.

Yet antisemitism is rising at an alarming rate. Jewish students report feeling intimidated on college campuses. Synagogues have increased security. Jewish-owned businesses have been vandalized. Families think twice before displaying symbols of their faith.

This hatred has not appeared in a vacuum.

Political rhetoric has become increasingly divisive, and too often antisemitism is minimized, excused, or ignored depending on who is saying it. In recent months, some candidates backed by the Democratic Socialists of America have generated serious concern within the Jewish community because of rhetoric, associations, or responses to antisemitic incidents that many believe lack the moral clarity this moment demands. Americans can disagree on taxes, immigration, foreign policy or the size of government. Those are legitimate political debates. But there can be no ambiguity when it comes to condemning hatred directed at Jews.

This should not be a Republican issue or a Democratic issue. It is an American issue.

History teaches us that antisemitism rarely begins with violence. It begins with words. It grows when prejudice is tolerated, when people look the other way, and when silence becomes easier than speaking the truth.

That is why Yorktown's annual Holocaust Remembrance ceremony is so important to me. Each year, we bring together residents of every faith and background to remember the 6 million Jews murdered in the Holocaust, honor the millions of other innocent victims of Nazi persecution, and reaffirm the promise of "Never Again." The ceremony is not simply about remembering history. It is about teaching the next generation that hatred must be confronted before it takes root and that unity is our strongest defense against allowing such evil to happen again.

As elected officials, educators, clergy, and citizens, we all share the responsibility to confront antisemitism with the same resolve we would confront racism, anti-Christian bigotry, anti-Muslim hatred, or prejudice against any other group. Our commitment to equality cannot depend on the identity of the victim or the politics of the offender.

The father I met at Lake Mohegan was not making a political statement. He was simply trying to protect his family. The fact that he felt compelled to quietly acknowledge his faith only after noticing my Chai necklace should concern every American.

As I watched his little daughter standing beside him, I thought about the America she deserves to inherit. She deserves a country where wearing a Star of David, a Chai, a cross, or any other symbol of faith is met with respect rather than suspicion. She deserves a nation where her father never has to wonder whether saying, "I am Jewish," could place his family in danger.

That should not be a controversial aspiration.

As Town Supervisor, I have the privilege of serving people of every faith, every background, and every political belief. That is why I will continue to wear my Chai proudly. It is also why there is a mezuzah on the doorway of my home and on the doorway of my office at Town Hall. They are not political statements. They are expressions of my faith, my heritage and the values that have shaped my life.

No American should ever feel they have to hide who they are or what they believe because they fear for their family's safety.

The young father I met at Lake Mohegan should never have to hesitate before saying, "I am Jewish." His 3-year-old daughter should grow up in an America where she can wear a Star of David, display a Chai, hang a mezuzah on her front door, or celebrate her faith openly without fear or intimidation.

That is the America we inherited. It is the America we must defend. And it is the America we must leave to the next generation.