Reverberating Lessons from Hostage Families

I spent the beginning of the week attending JFNA’s General Assembly, alongside a couple of thousand of Jewish leaders from across North America. The highlights?

• Our Federation and the Hostages and Missing Families Forum co-hosted a standing-room-only panel with family members of hostages Dalia Cusnir, Sagui Dekel-Chen, Omer Neutra, and Arbel Yahud. In the packed room, we not only stood in solidarity to hear their essential voices but were asked to “choose the good of the Jewish people” by recommitting to calling loudly and often for the release of the hostages.
  After the panel, I interviewed Barak Ravid, Israeli political reporter and Middle East expert for Axios. His blunt responses to my questions about the status of negotiations and what parties could be doing differently sent reverberations across the conference. We have significant challenges ahead, but we must not despair.
• Of course, you didn’t have to be in the room to feel the excruciating pain of the hostages’ families. Rachel Goldberg-Polin reminded us all this week that “…our challenge as we limp forward toward the light, as we rise from the ashes that are still smoldering (and our cherished 101 hostages in Gaza, still languishing there as of this writing), is relearning how to listen.”
• There was hope at this gathering, too. It was great to be with so many DC-area and other Jewish leaders. And it was inspiring to consider how we lean into “the surge” of Jewish engagement, including growing interest in Hillel, Jewish day schools, and other forms of Jewish engagement and learning.

On Sunday, I’m headed to Israel. I look forward to representing our community at the Jewish Agency for Israel’s Board of Governors meeting and traveling from the south to the north to visit people and organizations we’ve funded this year with your help. I’ll share updates throughout my trip.

Read on for more from the week, and details on events in DC to support the hostages this afternoon and on Sunday. I hope you’ll join for both.

• Last Sunday, I spoke with Fox 5 DC in response to the deeply disturbing vandalism at Char Bar, which coincided with the 86^th anniversary of Kristallnacht, the night of broken glass. I was glad to do it — it’s crucial that Federation lifts up the facts on the ground to the broader community whenever we see antisemitism. In this case, local and national news outlets, including The Washington Post, shared our statement calling for an investigation and arrest. As always, Federation’s JShield security team also continues to keep a close eye on our region. Should you witness anything concerning, please report it here.
• Earlier this week, several Federation leaders attended the play, “Prayer for the French Republic,” at Edlavitch DCJCC’s Theater J and shared how powerful and thought-provoking it was. As we face antisemitism at home and abroad and so many of us continue to both grapple with and embrace our Jewish identity, art like this offers an essential perspective. I’d love to hear your thoughts if you’ve seen it. The play will run for another week or so.
• If you haven’t visited the Empty Shabbat Table before, I hope you’ll join Federation for today’s on the National Mall. These have been set up in public around the world every Friday since October 7^th, with each empty chair representing a hostage still in captivity. Today’s will be at the 10^th St. Center Gravel Panel from 1:00 – 5:00 PM. We’ll be there in continued solidarity — and praying that these empty chairs will soon be filled.
• This Sunday, November 17^th at 1 PM, will be another chance to stand with the hostages during a short march beginning at Smithsonian Metro and organized by our grantee, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. I encourage you to join them.