On Saturday night, February 7th I departed from the John F. Kennedy Airport to em-bark on a forty-eight hour solidarity mission to France organized through the Jewish Federation of North America (JFNA). Forty community leaders from eighteen different cities across the United States joined the trip including Rabbi Kenneth Brander, Vice President of University and Community Life at Yeshiva University. One student leader from each respective campus had the privilege of taking part in this incredible trip as well. Natan Szegedi, President of the Yeshiva Student Union represented the Wilf Campus, and I, Amanda Esraeilian, President of the Torah Activities Council was privileged to attend and represent the Beren Campus.
Each site that we visited and each person that we met helped us gain a broader under-standing of the issues that the Jewish community in France faces daily. Our first stop was The Victoire Synagogue, where three French soldiers guarding the entrance greeted us. I cross-referenced this with the entrance of my synagogue in Roslyn, New York, and it hit me then that this experience was going to be an extremely eye-opening one. Never in my life could I imagine the entrance of my synagogue being protected by three soldiers.
Our next stop was the Aliyah Fair where we learned that in 2014, 7,000 French Jews made aliyah, and up to 15,000 are anticipated to make aliyah in 2015. Jews are making that shift more and more as the years go on because of their inability to feel safe in their current home. We saw thousands of French teens at the fair exploring opportunities in Israel, excited to see what the future could hold for them. As we drove to our next stop, the Hyper Cacher Supermarket (the market where the recent terrorist attack took place), I felt the mood of the group completely transform. When arriving, I immediately recognized all the flowers and memorial candles which burned for the four innocent Jews killed. As a group, we recited Yizkor and Kadish and took a moment to pay our individual respects.
When we returned to the hotel, we heard from Mohamed Sifaoui, a leading journalist and expert on radical Islam. We then took part in dinner and a panel discussion with members of the Jewish community in France. On the panel was Joel Mergui, president of the Consistoire, a representative body for Jewish congregations which oversees interests of synagogues, schools, charities, and the kosher-observant community. With him was Yonathan Arfi, vice president of CRIF (Conseil Representatif des institutions Juives de France) – an umbrella for more than sixty Jewish organizations. The other members of the panel were, Daniel Elalouf, chairman of the executive board and treasurer of FSJU-an umbrella organization with over three-hundred affiliates across the country, active in five major fields of French Jewish life and Sacha Reingewirtz, president of the UEJF (Union des Etudiants Juifs de France). In total, the student union has an astounding 15,000 members throughout France.
On Monday, February 9th we met with Mr. Gilles Clavreul, InterMinistrial Delegate for the fight against racism and anti semitism. Walking out of this meeting, I felt incredibly conflicted. It was difficult to detect whether it is preferable for the Jews in France to stay there and work on establishing a sense of security and protection, or if the solution is to have the Jews leave France with no intention of ever returning. As we got on the bus and went to our next stop, the Lucien Hirsch School, the oldest Jewish School in Europe, I contemplated this question.
Visiting the school was the most impactful part of the experience for me. We had the opportunity to interact with students who were part of the elementary school as we walked through their playground during recess. We then heard from four students, two girls and two boys, about how the anti-semitism in France has personally affected them. After the panel I spoke to one of the boys privately. He shared with me that he is currently a sophomore at this school, however, up until this year he had been going to public school his whole life. It was only about a year ago that he and his family started feeling like the school he was in was not safe anymore, and as a result made the switch.
This was the most meaningful experience of the trip for me because it gave me the op-portunity to really interact with the community. Anti-Semitism is on the rise not only in Europe but all over the world. It is crucial that Jews show their fellow brothers and sisters in Europe their support in whatever capacity they can. The Jews in Europe need to see now more than ever that we care. For those who wish to leave, Israel will welcome them with open arms and an open heart. For those who wish to stay and work on maintaining what has taken so long to build, their community must remain strong. No matter their choice, we must be supportive and remember that what happens to a Jew in France affects us in America.
We are one heart and one mind.
Walking out of France on Tuesday morning, February 10th I felt inspired, enlightened, concerned and empowered. I felt inspired to push through when there are struggles within Judaism, enlightened by how much knowledge I had the opportunity to grasp, concerned with what may continue to befall the Jews in Europe and everywhere in the world, and empowered, by seeing how much my voice can make a difference in keeping the Jewish community alive.