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CBS News
23-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Chicago Jewish leaders warn of dangerous trend, announce increased security measures after deadly D.C. shooting
The murders of two Israeli Embassy workers in Washington, D.C., have Jewish leaders in Chicago making changes, adding additional security measures, including an unusual level of secrecy ahead of a press conference to announce their plans. The specific location for their press conference in downtown Chicago wasn't revealed until minutes before the event, just one example of the new security measures leaders are taking in light of increased attacks targeting Jewish people. A Chicago Police Department squad car was stationed outside Ald. Debra Silverstein's office in the 50th Ward in West Rogers Park on Friday to protect the predominantly Jewish community. "The police have been absolutely wonderful," said Silverstein, the only Jewish member of the Chicago City Council. "They're all out and aware. There are definitely going to be more cars out here; a much bigger presence throughout the neighborhood." That increased police presence is a direct result of Wednesday's shooting in D.C., when a young couple was killed outside the Capital Jewish Museum. The suspect was identified as 31-year-old Elias Rodriguez from Chicago. He was charged Thursday with felonies, and the murder charges carry up to life in prison or the death penalty, if he is convicted. "The Capital Jewish Museum attack was an act of pure, unadulterated antisemitism, full stop," said David Goldenberg, Midwest regional director of the Anti-Defamation League. Friday morning, Chicago Jewish leaders and supporters held a news conference in the Loop to call attention to the impact of the attack. They warned that violent hate is part of a growing and dangerous trend. "Jewish Chicagoans, like our Latino, Black, Middle Eastern, Asian, and other neighbors, want nothing more than a safe place to raise our families, grow our professions and contribute to making our broader community welcoming for all," said Daniel Goldwin, chief public affairs officer of the Jewish United Fund. "However, with antisemitism surging, here in Chicago and around the nation, there are too many people trying to stop us from doing just those things." Jewish leaders also announced new efforts to increase security at synagogues and other Jewish facilities and events. "Because of what happened in Washington, D.C., every Jewish organization, every Jewish institution is revisiting their security plans, is reviewing their protocols. What training do they need to bring in? How do they harden the facilities and so forth," Goldwin said. The Anshe Emet Synagogue in Lakeview has been sealed off with padlocks and reinforced doors "to ensure the safety of our community now and into the future," said Rabbi Michael Siegel. The synagogue built a new wall outside its north entrance since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, but this week's Jewish Sabbath is the first since the deadly shooting in D.C. "So tomorrow, I'm quite sure, and tonight when we have services, there will be a patrol car near our congregation" Siegel said. A stronger police presence is just one of the changes. Jewish leaders said they'll also improve security around publicized events like fundraisers and celebrations. For example, registration lists will be scrutinized, and RSVP's will be strictly enforced. While the date and time of such events might be known well in advance, the location won't be revealed until 24 hours before the event. The same new rules were spelled out in a press release announcing Friday's press conference. "We just told you it was going to be in the Loop," Goldenberg said. Media were directed to a contact to get the exact location. "Even then, we waited to give you the address as to where we were going to be," Goldenberg said. "When you talk about what are you doing for security, there is the practical and the physical changes, but there is an emotional toll that every single Jew in the U.S. is now feeling very very acutely, and that's not going to go away," said Yossi Held, executive director of StandWithUs Midwest, a non-profit supporting Israel and fighting antisemitism. Chicago Police said they are paying special attention to Jewish worship services and they're in contact with Jewish leaders. Dorothy Tucker Dorothy Tucker is a Chicago native, raised in Chicago's Lawndale and Austin communities. She has been a reporter for CBS2 Chicago since 1984. She is a reporter on the station's 2 Investigator team and is also president of the National Association of Black Journalists. contributed to this report.
CBS News
22-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Chicago police step up security around Israeli consulate, Jewish synagogues after D.C. shooting
Chicago police confirmed they are upping security around the city's Jewish community in the wake of the deadly shooting outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington D.C. Wednesday night. A 30-year-old Chicago man was arrested outside the museum late Wednesday night for allegedly shooting and killing two Israeli Embassy employees who were leaving an event at the museum. They have been identified as Yaron Lischinsky, an Israeli, and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, an American. Video shows the suspect chanted "Free, free Palestine" while being arrested, D.C. police said. Chicago police said in the wake of the shooting, the department is increasing its attention and presence around the Israeli consulate in the Loop and at synagogues and other Jewish places of worship. Alderman Debra Silverstein, the only Jewish member of the Chicago City Council, also said she has spoken with Police Superintendent Larry Snelling, who confirmed that while there is no local threat, the 24th District is increasing patrols. "I ask for law enforcement to investigate any ties to local extremist groups and to act swiftly to make sure the Jewish community in Chicago is kept safe," Silverstein said. "It is time for us to stop allowing antisemitism to masquerade as violent, anti-Israel action. It is time for our elected leaders to keep our local communities safe." There has been a dramatic rise in hate crimes against Jews in the state of Illinois and across the nation in recent years, and particularly following the October 7, 2023 attack on Southern Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza with Hamas. Synagogues also regularly employ extra security measures, especially following antisemitic threats or attacks and around the High Holy Days. In April, the official Pennsylvania Governor's Residence was set on fire and a man charged with arson, terrorism and other offenses during Passover. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is Jewish. And on October 17, 2018, Robert Bowers entered the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh with an AR-15 and three handguns, declared "All Jews must die," and opened fire. Eleven people were killed and more were injured.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Editorial: Antisemitic fears in Chicago coalesce around a controversial puppet
If Chicago's Jewish community felt better respected by the administration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and more confident that its concerns about antisemitism were not being unheard, we doubt there would have been so much angst about a controversial puppet in a city-funded exhibit at the Chicago Cultural Center. But as several representatives of the American Jewish Committee (AJC) came to tell us recently, that is not in fact the case. They spoke of trying to reach out and being rebuffed, of unanswered requests for meetings, of a continued resistance to open dialogue, let alone acknowledging what they, and we, see as a serious problem. The group came to present the AJC's 'State of Antisemitism in America Report,' as released Feb. 12. It concludes that 90% of American Jews say antisemitism has increased either a lot (61%) or somewhat (29%) since the Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, with 33% of American Jews saying they have been 'the personal target of antisemitism — in person or virtually — at least once over the last year.' The report also states that nearly 73% of Jewish adults say Jews in the U.S. are less secure than a year ago. That's a far greater number than in previous years. In our conversations, the group said they fear that City Hall and many in its orbit (there is only one lonely Jewish alderman, Debra Silverstein, 50th) often fail to understand what is meant by antisemitism, despite the existence of internationally agreed upon definitions such as the depiction of Jews with blood on their hands or pulling the strings of control over banking, the media, government or other societal institutions. Which brings us to the puppet that caused City Council briefly to descend into chaos late last month. The two-sided piece, which you can still go and see for yourself for free at the Chicago Cultural Center, forms part of an exhibit called 'Potential Energy: Chicago Puppets Up Close.' It features bloodied, back-to-back caricatures of both 'Uncle Sam' and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The wooden base of the piece features words, scrawled in drippy, blood-like red, such as 'money pays for this' and 'your money funds this.' It stands in sharp contrast to the rest of the exhibit, described as 'an exhibition of potentialities.' 'How can puppets bring us together?' is one of the questions that text placed on the gallery walls says the exhibit strives to ask. Not that particular puppet, it turned out. A letter signed by 27 aldermen was sent to Johnson arguing that the puppet crossed the line into 'hate speech' and demanded its removal, sparking the administration to go into damage control after a City Hall hearing on the matter devolved into a whole variety of aldermanic chaos so immature as to be not worth repeating here. Let's be clear about a few things. The puppet did not initially show the name of its creators, adding to the sense that this was somehow a city-sponsored, anti-Israeli statement in a city-owned cultural space, which was probably not far from being the case. Accepted guidelines on avoiding antisemitic tropes make room for legitimate criticism of the actions of the nation of Israel, when criticized like one might the actions of other countries. But a reasonable viewer would discern this puppet went somewhat further than that. Artists are best judged by peer groups of artists and since we ourselves rely on free speech, we of course believe this particular artist should be free to make and exhibit whatever puppet she wishes. Abby Palen, its 26-year-old 'artistic director,' finally talked to a friendly Sun-Times columnist, Rummana Hussain. In the Feb. 14 column, alas, Palen and the exhibit co-curator, Grace Needlman, doubled down, with the latter calling Silverstein's response a 'predictable and unimaginative' response that is 'not about Jewish safety.' We'd have rather they said something like this: 'We defend our right to make our puppet and make our peer-reviewed statement about our opposition to the war in Gaza. But we also understand how some Jewish people feel, given the tropes we employed.' We would add the exhibit had nothing artistic to say about the Oct. 7 attacks, and this was not a private gallery or a nonprofit museum but the city's official cultural showcase where casual viewers, kids and all, can just walk in off the street. There is good reason why the AJC and others tend to worry about puppets: Nazi propaganda often featured images of Jewish overlords pulling the strings of politicians and many antisemitic puppet-master cartoons followed; some, to our shame, ran in this newspaper in the first half of the 20th century. Worth an empathetic conversation, at the very least. Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@
Chicago Tribune
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Editorial: Antisemitic fears in Chicago coalesce around a controversial puppet
If Chicago's Jewish community felt better respected by the administration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and more confident that its concerns about antisemitism were not being unheard, we doubt there would have been so much angst about a controversial puppet in a city-funded exhibit at the Chicago Cultural Center. But as several representatives of the American Jewish Committee (AJC) came to tell us recently, that is not in fact the case. They spoke of trying to reach out and being rebuffed, of unanswered requests for meetings, of a continued resistance to open dialogue, let alone acknowledging what they, and we, see as a serious problem. The group came to present the AJC's 'State of Antisemitism in America Report,' as released Feb. 12. It concludes that 90% of American Jews say antisemitism has increased either a lot (61%) or somewhat (29%) since the Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, with 33% of American Jews saying they have been 'the personal target of antisemitism — in person or virtually — at least once over the last year.' The report also states that nearly 73% of Jewish adults say Jews in the U.S. are less secure than a year ago. That's a far greater number than in previous years. In our conversations, the group said they fear that City Hall and many in its orbit (there is only one lonely Jewish alderman, Debra Silverstein, 50th) often fail to understand what is meant by antisemitism, despite the existence of internationally agreed upon definitions such as the depiction of Jews with blood on their hands or pulling the strings of control over banking, the media, government or other societal institutions. Which brings us to the puppet that caused City Council briefly to descend into chaos late last month. The two-sided piece, which you can still go and see for yourself for free at the Chicago Cultural Center, forms part of an exhibit called 'Potential Energy: Chicago Puppets Up Close.' It features bloodied, back-to-back caricatures of both 'Uncle Sam' and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The wooden base of the piece features words, scrawled in drippy, blood-like red, such as 'money pays for this' and 'your money funds this.' It stands in sharp contrast to the rest of the exhibit, described as 'an exhibition of potentialities.' 'How can puppets bring us together?' is one of the questions that text placed on the gallery walls says the exhibit strives to ask. Not that particular puppet, it turned out. A letter signed by 27 aldermen was sent to Johnson arguing that the puppet crossed the line into 'hate speech' and demanded its removal, sparking the administration to go into damage control after a City Hall hearing on the matter devolved into a whole variety of aldermanic chaos so immature as to be not worth repeating here. Let's be clear about a few things. The puppet did not initially show the name of its creators, adding to the sense that this was somehow a city-sponsored, anti-Israeli statement in a city-owned cultural space, which was probably not far from being the case. Accepted guidelines on avoiding antisemitic tropes make room for legitimate criticism of the actions of the nation of Israel, when criticized like one might the actions of other countries. But a reasonable viewer would discern this puppet went somewhat further than that. Artists are best judged by peer groups of artists and since we ourselves rely on free speech, we of course believe this particular artist should be free to make and exhibit whatever puppet she wishes. Abby Palen, its 26-year-old 'artistic director,' finally talked to a friendly Sun-Times columnist, Rummana Hussain. In the Feb. 14 column, alas, Palen and the exhibit co-curator, Grace Needlman, doubled down, with the latter calling Silverstein's response a 'predictable and unimaginative' response that is 'not about Jewish safety.' We'd have rather they said something like this: 'We defend our right to make our puppet and make our peer-reviewed statement about our opposition to the war in Gaza. But we also understand how some Jewish people feel, given the tropes we employed.' We would add the exhibit had nothing artistic to say about the Oct. 7 attacks, and this was not a private gallery or a nonprofit museum but the city's official cultural showcase where casual viewers, kids and all, can just walk in off the street. There is good reason why the AJC and others tend to worry about puppets: Nazi propaganda often featured images of Jewish overlords pulling the strings of politicians and many antisemitic puppet-master cartoons followed; some, to our shame, ran in this newspaper in the first half of the 20th century. Worth an empathetic conversation, at the very least.
