An Update from the Shadows

 Dear Reader, Whoever You may be…

     It’s been a great several months since I wrote to you. Since the last letter, 33 Hostages were released back to Israel in a deal, another 15+ were recovered and given a dignified burial. At the time of writing, 50 Hostages remain in Gaza, it's been more than 640 days since that dreaded day, Oct 7th 2023. In the meantime, Israel had launched a series of strikes at the head of the terrorist snake, Iran. This was followed up by a series of attacks conducted by the United States Air Force on nuclear facilities in Iran, disabling an existential threat before it matured. Stateside, things have been moving along. Of those mentioned in my previous letter, Shai Davidai was finally cleared of any alleged wrongdoing at Columbia University and has since resigned. Tessa Veksler has since been honored by UJA(United Jewish Appeal)-Federation of New York as the inaugural recipient of their NextGen Leadership Award for her actions and advocacy. On a more personal note, I am deeply thankful for a lot. Since the last letter, I have been in one way shape or form embraced by my fellow Jewish students both from my campus and nearby campuses, something I cherish deeply. I have also had the opportunity to go to a conference in Washington D.C. where I’d meet others like me, non-Jews in the shadows who advocate for their fellow Jewish students on their respective campuses. This has brought me great joy in that I’m definitely not alone in this country. I’ve begun to prepare for one final year at my campus, and I wouldn’t be simply studying. If you’d read my previous letter, you’ll know I have done advocacy before and am likely poised to re-enter the advocacy game. Why?

      If you have met me personally and under the proper context, you may have heard some of this before but please bear with me.  From 2021-23, I was a part of my community college’s student government, it was literally the only activity available to students during the craze that was the COVID-19 Pandemic. I made friends there, and was mentored by people with whom, though I don’t agree with them on many things, I deeply respect them for teaching me the art that is advocacy. Definitely some of the best 2 years I had, though would I do it again? I’d told many people, most likely not. It’s exhausting, at the time I wanted to transfer out and be simply a student again. Only when I transferred, things turned for the worse. 

     Immediately after Oct 7th, antisemitic rallies and demonstrations broke out on university campuses all over America, my university being one of them. I knew I had to act, yet I didn’t know how, I was on Week 5 of my first semester on an unfamiliar campus that I didn’t know much about. So for a while, I was what some may call a quiet observer. Taking notes, slowly but surely getting involved in other spaces to gain some bearings within a new system etc. Then February rolled around and then-Student Body President Tessa Veksler at UCSB would be targeted in her office. Hateful posters written with antisemitic slogans and death threats were plastered in her office. This hit a smidge too close to home for me personally. Though I was never a student body president, I understand the position Tessa was in. I was in a similar position about nine months earlier. What if this happened to me? Or to another Jewish/Zionist student government member? I did not wait long to act, but I was subtle about it. After all, being the one of like three non-Jewish Zionists kids on my campus isn’t exactly an enviable position to be in, let alone the personal safety problem. I started to look into what the major antisemitic factions were on my campuses, and looked for connections to aid me. I spent time learning cryptography and other non-digital secure methods of communication. I'm not the best but I did restrict myself to non-digital methods so I asked for it. I also started becoming more involved in Jewish safe spaces on my campus, and things were uphill from there. However, you the reader, may be wondering how I’d do my advocacy from here on out and frankly why do I even do it? I’m a chemistry major after all, it's definitely not because of any career benefit, since there’s none.

      As to how my advocacy may look, that’s for me to answer day by day and I can’t give a concrete answer. One thing I will say is that the neutrality of my student government days are long gone. Especially under the context of a post-Oct 7th world, I personally can no longer be a neutral actor with a clear conscience. Why I do this work however, is frankly simple. No person deserves to be harassed, assaulted or worse just because of who they are. Jewish students are routinely harassed on campuses across America just for being who they are, that is absolutely unacceptable (and that’s an understatement). Though not of the Tribe, I will continue to stand by my Jewish friends as it's the right thing to do. The last thing, frankly, is deeply personal. As someone who grew up in the shadow of 9/11, having seen the polarization in America, and witnessed the unchecked rise of antisemitism that culminated in Oct 7th, I am deeply unsure for the next generation, that of my potential children, or at the very least, potential nieces and nephews. Those that protest and spew antisemitic trash in our streets could very well become future leaders in our society, and this doesn’t bode well for our society. And frankly, should I not act now and at the very least try something to turn this mess around, I am not sure if I could live with a clear conscience. Though not married, and if my love life is anything to go by I won’t be in a while, I understand I could end up the head of a household at some point, and I owe it to my potential kids to at the very least, have them be born into a slightly better world than the one I was born into. A world where tolerance is expected, not a privilege. Where people wouldn’t be harassed just for being who they are. Where people of all backgrounds, whether they be Jewish, Chinese, Welsh or frankly anyone, can live in relative harmony, and can go to class in peace and security. 

Am Yisrael Chai

From Your Friend in the Shadows…

P.S. If you’re an incoming student reading this, feeling despair about the rise of antisemitism on our campuses. Don’t despair, you’re not alone, I am sure that your campus probably has a few birds like myself that act in the shadows, maintaining a nest of joy, peace, and light in this world of darkness. It may be tricky to find us, but you may just need to be in the right safe spaces and I believe that G-d will lead you to them in His own time.