San Diegans Rally Against Antisemitism in Second ‘Standing Together’ Event

Antisemitism is a society-wide issue, and it demands a response that is just as broad.

That was the message from the second “Standing Together: A Community Response to Antisemitism” symposium over the weekend, which was sponsored by American Jewish Committee San Diego in partnership with the Jewish Federation of San Diego.

The first such event was held after the slaughter of hundreds of people at a music festival in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 — and a wave of global antisemitism that followed it.

That was an inflection point, said Darren Schwartz, the Jewish Federation of San Diego County’s chief planning and strategy officer.

“I think a lot of our Jewish leaders and members of our Jewish community have felt very alone,” he said.

The “Standing Together” symposium in 2024 was a response to that feeling, Schwarz said, and to open up a space to talk about antisemitism and bigotry.

This year, the AJC and Jewish Federation wanted to thank the communities who support them.

“We did this last year and we decided we wanted to do it again this year, but specifically bring in the people who have shown up for us as allies.”

The symposium brought together a diverse array of San Diegans for conversations and workshops aimed at building skills to build community and greater understanding between Jewish people and other groups.

“Antisemitism is not just a threat against Jews,” aid AJC San Diego Director Sara E. Brown. “It is a threat against our democracy, our liberty, our values, our freedom. So we must take a stand not just as a Jewish people, but as a human family.”

Author and journalist Franklin Foer pointed out the relationship between antisemitism, conspiracy theories, and democracy; many conspiracy narratives used to attack democratic institutions are antisemitic at their core.

“As Jews, as allies, I think we all need to work on this collective project of reinvigorating democracy and understand that antisemitism matters because it’s a bellwether for how conspiracy theories flourish in our country, how we are incapable of trusting one another, and how we struggle to have conversations about difficult things,” Foer said.

With about 100,000 people, Jews make up roughly 3% of the greater population in the San Diego area. They are also an increasingly diverse, growing community in the region.

“Antisemitism has never been just a Jewish problem,” San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria said in a video address to the symposium. “It’s one we must all solve. Because that’s what a community does.”