I personally led this fundraising effort to give a voice to the many Jews in our city who feel silenced and misrepresented. Following Netanyahu’s UN General Assembly speech and his provocative campaign against Mayor Mamdani, we felt it was critical to make our position publicly known.
We are deeply pained by the repeated use of our Jewish identity and sacred religion to advance the agenda of a foreign government. We reject the notion that Jewish New Yorkers are extensions of Israel or that Netanyahu speaks on our behalf.
Zionism and Judaism are fundamentally distinct. Our faith is not a political instrument, and our communities should not be drawn into Israel’s political battles.
Netanyahu and his allies claim to care deeply about antisemitism, yet they ceaselessly conflate Jewish identity with the State of Israel, disregarding the consequences for Jewish communities worldwide. This pernicious conflation fuels resentment against Jews and undermines the very peace and harmony we cherish. We refuse to have our sacred religion exploited to advance a foreign government’s political agenda.
We want our cry to be heard. We want to live in peace and harmony with our neighbors. We want our children to grow up in a city where being Jewish does not mean being identified with the actions of a foreign government.
We will not be silenced.
Sincerely,
Rabbi Moshe Dovid Katz
Founder, Torah Jews