By Thane Grauel

WESTPORT — Hundreds came to Temple Israel Tuesday night for a community discussion on the rise of antisemitism in recent months.

Stacey Sobel, the Connecticut Anti-Defamation League’s regional director, was the presenter. Rabbi Michael Friedman led a question-and-answer session afterward.

“I promise you. We, none of us, are alone,” Sobel told the congregation.

“In the wake of a well-publicized antisemitic incident in the Westport schools, we can all agree that antisemitism has no place in our schools, and that every student needs to feel safe and secure in their school community,” Sobel said, referring to incidents that led a Westport father to write about his son’s experiences with classmates in an article published by newsweek.com.

“Yet the reality is that antisemitism does occur and can occur anywhere. And when it occurs, it’s our obligation to name it, and address it, including by educating our community or students and our educators with tools and strategies to understand what it is and confront it when we see it.”

Sobel said she would not address the specifics of the Westport incident, but told the crowd that the ADL has been in touch with both the family and the school system.

“We affirm out commitment to ensure that our schools and the community have the resources, support and knowledge to address antisemitism and all forms of bias swiftly and effectively to provide a safe learning environment so each student can thrive as their whole selves,” Sobel said.

Some Westport officials were among the crowd, including Board of Education Chairwoman Lee Goldstein. A couple of Representative Town Meeting members also were there, including Matthew Mandell, District 1, who at the Dec. 5 RTM meeting made a lengthy statement on antisemitism. View it here.

Sobel cited a long list of statistics about the recent rise of antisemitism, particularly since Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attacks on Israel. She said she was glad to see school-age children in the crowd, and encouraged college students to connect with their campuses’ Jewish groups for support.

Despite the rise in antisemitic incidents, Friedman saw hope.

“I’ve been lifted up by some Temple Israel members who’ve called me and wanted to have conversations something like, I work for a publicly traded firm or I work for a Fortune 500 company and I’ve experienced such and such, such and such,” Friedman said of people wanting to talk through how to handle certain scenarios.

“I’m really proud of our members,” he said. “Each of us needs to individually stand up and oppose antisemitism in our spheres, our social circles in our families, in our places of work.”

Thane Grauel grew up in Westport and has been a journalist in Fairfield County and beyond for 35 years. Reach him at editor@westportjournal.com. Learn more about us here.