Dear Zionists and supporters of ZOA,
Happy Hanukkah from all of us at the Zionist Organization of America!
On this holiday in particular, we celebrate the miraculous survival of the Jewish people; the Maccabees victory in saving Judea & Samaria where the Maccabees lived; and the Maccabees’ victory over the assimilating Jewish Hellenists who were abandoning their Jewish faith. We remember the extraordinary achievements throughout history that have led to vibrant Jewish life in Israel and throughout the world.
However, despite all of the good, Jews are facing increasing anti-Semitism throughout the world, including in America and on our American college and university campuses. Jews are being regularly attacked and even murdered by African Americans, Hispanics, and Muslims. A recent article in the Algemeiner by Charles Jacobs cited ZOA as the only organization that understands this issue and is confronting it head on in Congress, in the media, and through our writings and lectures.
It was a great honor for ZOA Chair Mark Levenson and I to attend the White House Hanukkah party, where the President signed an Executive Order that protects Jewish students under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. This is something that ZOA cares deeply about, and that its Center for Law & Justice, led by Susan Tuchman, Esq., has paved the way for, with landmark legal complaints that were filed against American education institutions with the goal of having Jewish students protected under Title VI.
ZOA has recently won landmark cases against Duke and University of North Carolina’s bigoted, biased and anti-Semitic programs. Their programs will now be monitored, and classes in fighting anti-Semitism and bias against Israel will now be instituted for students and faculty.
This monumental achievement is just one light that will surely serve to extinguish some of the darkness threatening our community today.
Thank you for supporting ZOA and the remarkable work of the organization, including its Center for Law and Justice, ZOA Campus, and the Government Relations department.
Wishing you a chag sameach and healthy and happy new year,
Morton A. Klein
National President, Zionist Organization of America
Mark Levenson, Esq.
Chair, Zionist Organization of America
