Cincinnati Jews mark Passover as antisemitic attacks continue to climb nationwide

The Jewish holiday of Passover begins at sundown Wednesday. The week-long Jewish observance is a time to gather and remember family traditions. It overlaps again this year with Easter and Ramadan.

It also comes as the number of antisemitic incidents continues to climb in the U.S. Late last month, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) released its annual audit of antisemitic incidents. It shows a 36% increase in incidents of antisemitic harassment, vandalism and assault from 2021 (2,717 incidents) to 2022 (3,697 incidents).

"Passover this year, as any year, is a joyous holiday," says Rabbi Ari Ballaban, director of the Jewish Community Relations Council. "We in our community are looking forward to making this into an important commemoration. That being said, antisemitism is on the rise, and it's undoubtedly true that Jews are feeling anxious, so there's a set of mixed emotions that go into that."

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The Jewish Federation of Cincinnatiis participating in a national campaign created by the foundation to combat antisemitism. It's called "Stand Up To Jewish Hate." Its most recognizable symbol is a square blue emoji meant to represent solidarity with Jews against antisemitism. It's usually paired with the hashtag #StandUpToJewishHate.

You can see an example in this tweet.

Ballaban says local Jewish organizations are focused on keeping people safe.

"Of course, if there are any imminent threats you should be calling and reaching out to local law enforcement, but our Jewish community does a lot of work to keep a sense of what's going on around us to be vigilant and to make sure that we can safely do what we do," he says.

"My recommendation for folks in the Jewish community is to not let any difficulty in the current climate stop you from expressing your Jewish identity."

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Ballaban also makes the point that no hate should be tolerated, not just antisemitism.

"The Jewish community stands as an ally to any community that is experiencing a form of hate," he says. "At the same time, it's really important for people to stand with the Jewish community because the concerns that we have, the threats that we face, are very much real."