Jewish communities throughout the United States are increasing security protocols and stepping up emergency preparedness as Rosh Hashanah and the High Holidays approach.
Magen David Adom, Israel’s national emergency medical service, has joined with the U.S.-based Community Security Service to train synagogue security volunteers in communities nationwide. Aryeh Myers, a senior paramedic with Magen David Adom, told News Outlet that many community members are increasingly anxious amid rising antisemitism.
“There is this heightened sense of concern, of worry that these attacks are now a question of when rather than if,” Myers said in an interview.
Israeli senior paramedic Aryeh Myers leads a First 7 Minutes training course for volunteers in New York. ((Courtesy, Community Security Service))
Myers has conducted First 7 Minutes sessions in the U.S. and abroad for Jewish, Christian and non-religious organizations, preparing volunteers to act during the critical window after an attack and before emergency crews reach the scene.
The training emphasizes basic first aid, clear communication with first responders and the most effective ways for volunteers to support emergency personnel once they arrive.
Volunteers take part in training on how to respond following a mass-casualty attack. ((Courtesy, Community Security Service))
“Our expertise is in response to mass casualty events…. We respond on the national level to everything from delivering babies, to terror attacks to war situations,” Myers said.
“The advantage that Magen David Adom brings is unfortunately having that level of experience, that we have seen multiple mass casualty attacks and multi-casualty attacks and have learned from those,” he added.
Jewish communities across the globe have faced increasing levels of antisemitism in the years since the October 7 terror attacks in Israel.
Many U.S. universities became hotbeds for anti-Israel and antisemitic attacks amid Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.
A new report from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) found that Jewish teachers have also faced rampant antisemitism from teachers unions.
The organization surveyed 307 Jewish members of teachers unions, many of whom admitted to censoring themselves and being disappointed with how unions handled concerns about antisemitism.
The Anti-Defamation League warns in a new report that antisemitism is not only found at on-campus protests, but also in classrooms. (Drazen Zigic/iStock/Getty Images Plus)
“What we found is not the work of a few bad actors. It is a structural and cultural failure,” ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement. “Jewish educators deserve to feel safe and protected in their union spaces. And instead of that, they are self-censoring and fearing backlash for raising concerns.”
Sydney Altfield, CEO of Teach Coalition, an organization that advocates for Jewish schools, said the report was particularly concerning because teachers unions were meant to represent and protect all educators.
“What strikes me is that these unions are supposed to be homes for everyone, and [they’re] not being that,” Altfield told News Outlet.
One of the key findings of the report was the high rate at which Jewish educators were self-censoring out of fear of retaliation. According to the ADL, 70% of respondents “somewhat or strongly agreed” that bringing up concerns about how Jews were treated in union spaces “could lead to reputational or professional consequences.”
