5 days ago
Grand Junction Jewish community speaks out
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KREX) – Lee Soifer, who is the community chair for Temple Ohr Shalom, states, 'We're a small minority in the country and the world, and it is really the concern of our primary concern. And what we want for our communities is to feel safe, you know, to feel [like] to have a free and safe future for our children.'
The anti-semitic attack took place on the front in Boulder, but back here on the Western Slope, WesternSlopeNow was able to sit down with Lee Soifer, a member of the Grand Junction Jewish community. He says these kind of acts have been going on for generations.
Soifer reveals that Jewish people have been taking extra security measures, avoiding marking their location, events or schedules due to recent events.
'I think that's the biggest thing is just being aware of the issue of antisemitism, and not just here in the Grand Valley, but how it is playing out and affecting the entire country. Because it is on the rise,' Soifer explains.
And when it comes to recognizing your surroundings, he says there isn't as much concern.
Soifer explains, 'I don't think that I would say that this incident is going to cause us to heighten our vigilance and security, because we're already there. But I do want to say that here in the Grand Valley, we do feel very welcome. We practice very openly.'
When WesternSlopeNow was asking Soifer about whether the Grand Junction Jewish community is worried about their presence, the reaction was the opposite.
'We do feel welcome here, and we want to continue that, and we want to be a strong part of this community, which we are. We've worked in the past to strengthen ties with the city, with the school districts, just in terms of being here as a resource and we've gotten positive reactions to those efforts,' Soifer said.
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