Jewish leader urges action amid unprecedented rise in antisemitism

Eric Fingerhut warns of growing threats to Jewish safety and religious freedom across the U.S. following record antisemitic incidents.

By David Brummer, World Israel News

A leading figure in the American Jewish community is raising urgent concerns over escalating antisemitism and its impact on the safety and freedom of Jews and supporters of Israel across the United States.

Eric Fingerhut, president and CEO of the Jewish Federations of North America, warned that the spike in antisemitic threats is placing Jewish institutions under siege.

“You cannot have one faith group, one community, that has to be behind barricades, just to go practice our faith,” he told The Daily Signal.

The Anti-Defamation League reported 9,354 antisemitic incidents in 2024—more than double pre-2020 figures and the highest annual total in over four decades of tracking.

Fingerhut described how Jewish organizations are being forced to cancel or scale back community events due to security risks.

“We’re approaching a point where the cost of securing Jewish life is interfering with our constitutional rights,” he said, noting that the visibility of Jewish identity—such as wearing a kippah or flying an Israeli flag—has increasingly made individuals and institutions targets for harassment and violence.

Fingerhut, a former congressman from Ohio and former head of Hillel International, emphasized the strain placed on Jewish Federations, which operate in 140 communities nationwide.

The organization raises over $2 billion annually for Jewish welfare, but security costs are becoming “an overwhelming responsibility,” he said.

He pointed to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Nonprofit Security Grant Program as a vital tool in protecting vulnerable institutions.

The program awarded $454.5 million in 2024 for physical security upgrades like reinforced doors, surveillance systems, and blast-resistant windows.

Fingerhut is calling for that figure to be doubled.

Indeed, amid a marked uptick in antisemitic attacks, the Department of Homeland Security on Friday announced a $94 million initiative to over 500 Jewish faith-based organizations, reported The Jewish Voice.

https://twitter.com/jfederations/status/1940833375930982491?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw 

In the political arena, he said members of Congress who speak out in support of Israel have faced “vicious threats and incitement to violence,” especially since the October 7 Hamas attacks that triggered the current conflict in Gaza.

Fingerhut also criticized the selective enforcement of university protest policies during recent pro-Palestinian campus encampments.

“The content of many of these protests went beyond free speech—it was incitement,” he argued.

When asked how the public can help, Fingerhut urged Americans to take a firm stand.

“Speak out. Let your local leaders know that antisemitism has no place in our communities,” he said.

“People spreading this hate should not be in positions of influence.”