American Jewish leaders and institutions: will you fight back against right-wing threats to our democracy and way of life with the same intensity you campaign against Israel's critics on the left?
Well said. Even so, make no mistake: Every day brings us a step closer to Jabotinsky's smoldering volcano, especially given no organized resistance to the actions being taken by Trump and Musk (who, in my estimation, is the more dangerous of the two).
Hi Fred - I'm a Jonas too - not too many of us :-) My grandfather (Jonas) emigrated to the USA in the early 1900s from Southeastern Galicia (now Ukraine) - Tarnopil, Bucacz region.
Ted, what a crazy thing. My paternal grandfather came here from Kiev at about the same time yours did. My grandfather's last name was Yanofsky. He had a very notable accent, but he was embarrassed about his heritage. Possibly about being Jewish. So he saw a sign on a building, and it was for a company called Jonas and Brown. He liked the Jonas part, so he changed his name. One of his brothers moved to Massachusetts, and he changed his Yanofsky to Jaffee. When I went to college, my grandfather advised me not to let anyone know the family name had been Yanofsky. There was a girl in my class -- I never bothered to meet her -- and her name was Faye Yanofsky.
How interesting! Our name was always Jonas (eg, I discovered a birth record on a Jewish geneology website (Gesher Galicia) for the birth of my grandfather's oldest sister in their home village in Galicia, Austria Hungary (now Ukraine) the 1880s, and my great-grandfather is listed there, of course, as the father, last name Jonas. It comes from the Hebrew Yonah, and was a common Jewish first name. When the Austrians made Jews take last names in the early 1800s, my ancestor likely took his father's first name - Yonah (and himself he would have been ben Yonah) as his last name, which becomes Yunis in the Yiddish possessive. German (Austrian) spelling Jonas (but pronounced like "Yonas,") and anglicized, Jonas, pronounced like we pronounce it. There's a fair number of Jews with the last name Jonas and likely comes from the same progression: someone's first name turned into the last name, when the European states were making Jews take last names in the early 1800s.
Yes, I was thinking to suggest there is no J in those languages. Switching from a Y makes much more sense. And with the other adjustments you mention.
I no longer remember in what year my paternal grandfather was born. Sometimes, I remember it as 1885, and sometimes, I think it was later. My father would have remembered, but he died in 2016. I don't think anyone else in the family would know. But the story, as I heard it, was that my grandfather came from Kiev.
His name was Alexander Frederick (Yanofsky), and as I was the first born of his grandchildren -- the first of my generation in the whole family -- I was named Alfred (like Al, for Alexander, and Fred, for Frederick). The last name had already been changed in this country to Jonas. Frankly, I have no idea if he changed it legally, or just informally. But he was called Fred, and I was called Freddy. That lasted until my first day of 10th grade, when our ball buster biology teacher had each of us stand, say our name, and say what we like to be called. I said my name -- Alfred Jonas -- and that everyone calls me Freddy. She said that was a "baby name," and I should pick something else. So I offered to be Fred. Everyone who knew me before the first day of 10th grade called me, and most of them still call me, Freddy, and everyone I met from that day to now calls me Fred. So from 1966 until my grandfather died in 1979, there were two "Fred Jonas"es in the family. Except neither of them was a Fred Jonas. My grandfather was Alexander Frederick, and I was Alfred. That's my formal first name, and people like telemarketers, who don't know me any more than they have my contact information, call me Alfred.
I should add that I have given up Judaism/religion, and I don't know much about Yiddish anyway, so you're much more knowledgeable about what you explained than I am.
Excellent commentary, Jeremy. I keep ranting on the fact that Democratic senators, representatives, and governors are, for the most part, silent regarding Trump's executive orders. Deporting undocumented immigrants is the canary in the coal mine. Once our economy tanks, the MAGA Republicans won't blame Trump's policies. They'll blame the Jews. Isn't that always the case? That Jews could support this regime, whether they're Republican Jewish billionaires or Haredim or pro-settlement Orthodox Jewish Americans, shows ignorance and the inability or refusal to understand how the rightwing operates. That Jewish organizations (which, in addition to the ADL, should be named) are silent in the face of Trump's egregious and inhumane executive orders, smacks of both fear and complicity. To quote Albert Einstein, "If I were to remain silent, I'd be guilty of complicity." We need to shout loud and clear that this administration does not represent Jewish values. It's an abomination. If we don't oppose it now, we can't complain in the future when our economy tanks and MAGA Republicans, armed with all sorts of weapons, blame the Jews, not the Trump regime. There is a lot to fear, and a lot for us at J Street to do here in the USA.
Well said and right on, Jeremy. My schtick right now, however, is not only the silence of Jewish leaders. We need ALL the opponents of this government - Democratic, Republican and Independent - at the leadership level, to join together and form a united front. Obama and Murkowski and Hilary and Schumer and Bloomberg, Newsome, Hochsul, Whitmer and Gates, Milley and McChrystal, and all the smart liberal (in the classical, free market, rule of law sense) writers and pundits to do that - form a united front: a Committee to Defend the Constitution, and be a platform for leadership, messaging; a post for people to rally around; and to support and coordinate as much as possible and reasonable, litigation and protests.
I’m surprised that none of the posted comments mentioned a true role model for clergy expressions of concern, Episcopal Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde, who used her pulpit at the Washington National Cathedral to literally speak truth to power.
Yes, the evil forces of darkness that threaten to consume those who are different from or speak out against the minions hatred must be opposed with the light of truth-telling about what they are doing, even at the risk of being consumed. Emiliano Zapata who stood up for the Mexican peasants famously said, "It is better to die on one's feet than to continue to live on one's knees." Resist we must, with kindness, truth, and even-handed justice. Light candles and dispel the darkness.
I am so grateful to see you lay out the connection between Antisemitism, tyranny and the right wing efforts to sow prejudice and violence for all of us who are not white, male and Christian.
Effort on campuses to reduce hate, antisemitism, support for terrorist groups (i.e. Hamas) is important. Such things are morally wrong and bridges need to be built to heal this. Second, antisemitic remarks and support for terrorism plays into the hands of the already very powerful groups that blindly support Israel and make working for peace and human rights much more difficult.
Well said, Jeremy. Keep raising your voice, loudly and clearly. Should J Street now join with others to help organize a mass protest nationwide against all these horrific MAGA policies being implemented? Lawsuits can and will be filed, and I expect at least solid lower court victories. But isn’t it time already for the fears you wrote about above and the 5-alarm Fire Joyce Vance wrote about today to lead to a massive outpouring of organized protests? What else can/should all of us who are outraged be doing?
Thank you for this--I'm so thrilled that you're adding your voice and perspective here. We need it. I want to say a word about Trump's so-called support of Israel. I don't think it's all about Netanyahu and the right-wing cabal he has embraced. More likely, I think, is that his evangelical base supports Israel, but for all the wrong reasons--none of which are openly discussed. These evangelicals may love Israel, but my strong suspicion is that they hate Jews. I wouldn't be surprised if at some point they tried to make it a "Christian" state, in their zealous fervor to make the world theirs.
Jeremy, well said. There is one more critical component that makes the current situation much more dangerous than 1938. The DOGE which is actually not a proper government body has plugged into the government systems and is using the information to start a witch hunt. They have already blacklisted anyone offering DEI or gendered services (broadly defined) and told them to stop or be terminated. A separate memo says that whoever is aware of such activity must denounce it or will themselves be terminated. Scanning the computers and using the information in such a "purge" will make it a totally different endeavour than the previous fascist waves. Here is one such case https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/01/us/politics/elon-musk-doge-federal-payments-system.html which means they see all Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security payments.
Well said. Even so, make no mistake: Every day brings us a step closer to Jabotinsky's smoldering volcano, especially given no organized resistance to the actions being taken by Trump and Musk (who, in my estimation, is the more dangerous of the two).
It is essential to remember Niemoller's famous poem (you paraphrased part of it). And to remember the message of Pesach.
Hi Fred - I'm a Jonas too - not too many of us :-) My grandfather (Jonas) emigrated to the USA in the early 1900s from Southeastern Galicia (now Ukraine) - Tarnopil, Bucacz region.
Ted, what a crazy thing. My paternal grandfather came here from Kiev at about the same time yours did. My grandfather's last name was Yanofsky. He had a very notable accent, but he was embarrassed about his heritage. Possibly about being Jewish. So he saw a sign on a building, and it was for a company called Jonas and Brown. He liked the Jonas part, so he changed his name. One of his brothers moved to Massachusetts, and he changed his Yanofsky to Jaffee. When I went to college, my grandfather advised me not to let anyone know the family name had been Yanofsky. There was a girl in my class -- I never bothered to meet her -- and her name was Faye Yanofsky.
How interesting! Our name was always Jonas (eg, I discovered a birth record on a Jewish geneology website (Gesher Galicia) for the birth of my grandfather's oldest sister in their home village in Galicia, Austria Hungary (now Ukraine) the 1880s, and my great-grandfather is listed there, of course, as the father, last name Jonas. It comes from the Hebrew Yonah, and was a common Jewish first name. When the Austrians made Jews take last names in the early 1800s, my ancestor likely took his father's first name - Yonah (and himself he would have been ben Yonah) as his last name, which becomes Yunis in the Yiddish possessive. German (Austrian) spelling Jonas (but pronounced like "Yonas,") and anglicized, Jonas, pronounced like we pronounce it. There's a fair number of Jews with the last name Jonas and likely comes from the same progression: someone's first name turned into the last name, when the European states were making Jews take last names in the early 1800s.
Yes, I was thinking to suggest there is no J in those languages. Switching from a Y makes much more sense. And with the other adjustments you mention.
I no longer remember in what year my paternal grandfather was born. Sometimes, I remember it as 1885, and sometimes, I think it was later. My father would have remembered, but he died in 2016. I don't think anyone else in the family would know. But the story, as I heard it, was that my grandfather came from Kiev.
His name was Alexander Frederick (Yanofsky), and as I was the first born of his grandchildren -- the first of my generation in the whole family -- I was named Alfred (like Al, for Alexander, and Fred, for Frederick). The last name had already been changed in this country to Jonas. Frankly, I have no idea if he changed it legally, or just informally. But he was called Fred, and I was called Freddy. That lasted until my first day of 10th grade, when our ball buster biology teacher had each of us stand, say our name, and say what we like to be called. I said my name -- Alfred Jonas -- and that everyone calls me Freddy. She said that was a "baby name," and I should pick something else. So I offered to be Fred. Everyone who knew me before the first day of 10th grade called me, and most of them still call me, Freddy, and everyone I met from that day to now calls me Fred. So from 1966 until my grandfather died in 1979, there were two "Fred Jonas"es in the family. Except neither of them was a Fred Jonas. My grandfather was Alexander Frederick, and I was Alfred. That's my formal first name, and people like telemarketers, who don't know me any more than they have my contact information, call me Alfred.
I should add that I have given up Judaism/religion, and I don't know much about Yiddish anyway, so you're much more knowledgeable about what you explained than I am.
Excellent commentary, Jeremy. I keep ranting on the fact that Democratic senators, representatives, and governors are, for the most part, silent regarding Trump's executive orders. Deporting undocumented immigrants is the canary in the coal mine. Once our economy tanks, the MAGA Republicans won't blame Trump's policies. They'll blame the Jews. Isn't that always the case? That Jews could support this regime, whether they're Republican Jewish billionaires or Haredim or pro-settlement Orthodox Jewish Americans, shows ignorance and the inability or refusal to understand how the rightwing operates. That Jewish organizations (which, in addition to the ADL, should be named) are silent in the face of Trump's egregious and inhumane executive orders, smacks of both fear and complicity. To quote Albert Einstein, "If I were to remain silent, I'd be guilty of complicity." We need to shout loud and clear that this administration does not represent Jewish values. It's an abomination. If we don't oppose it now, we can't complain in the future when our economy tanks and MAGA Republicans, armed with all sorts of weapons, blame the Jews, not the Trump regime. There is a lot to fear, and a lot for us at J Street to do here in the USA.
Well said and right on, Jeremy. My schtick right now, however, is not only the silence of Jewish leaders. We need ALL the opponents of this government - Democratic, Republican and Independent - at the leadership level, to join together and form a united front. Obama and Murkowski and Hilary and Schumer and Bloomberg, Newsome, Hochsul, Whitmer and Gates, Milley and McChrystal, and all the smart liberal (in the classical, free market, rule of law sense) writers and pundits to do that - form a united front: a Committee to Defend the Constitution, and be a platform for leadership, messaging; a post for people to rally around; and to support and coordinate as much as possible and reasonable, litigation and protests.
I’m surprised that none of the posted comments mentioned a true role model for clergy expressions of concern, Episcopal Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde, who used her pulpit at the Washington National Cathedral to literally speak truth to power.
Yes, the evil forces of darkness that threaten to consume those who are different from or speak out against the minions hatred must be opposed with the light of truth-telling about what they are doing, even at the risk of being consumed. Emiliano Zapata who stood up for the Mexican peasants famously said, "It is better to die on one's feet than to continue to live on one's knees." Resist we must, with kindness, truth, and even-handed justice. Light candles and dispel the darkness.
I am so grateful to see you lay out the connection between Antisemitism, tyranny and the right wing efforts to sow prejudice and violence for all of us who are not white, male and Christian.
This is EXCELLENT
Effort on campuses to reduce hate, antisemitism, support for terrorist groups (i.e. Hamas) is important. Such things are morally wrong and bridges need to be built to heal this. Second, antisemitic remarks and support for terrorism plays into the hands of the already very powerful groups that blindly support Israel and make working for peace and human rights much more difficult.
Well said, Jeremy. Keep raising your voice, loudly and clearly. Should J Street now join with others to help organize a mass protest nationwide against all these horrific MAGA policies being implemented? Lawsuits can and will be filed, and I expect at least solid lower court victories. But isn’t it time already for the fears you wrote about above and the 5-alarm Fire Joyce Vance wrote about today to lead to a massive outpouring of organized protests? What else can/should all of us who are outraged be doing?
A longer version by the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, a charity established by the British government, is as follows:
First they came for the Communists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist
Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist
Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist
Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew
Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me
Author:
Martin Niemöller
Add a few more groups:
Then they came for the immigrants
And I did not speak out
Because I was not an immigrant
Then they came for the trans people
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trans person
Then they came for the gay people
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a gay person
Then they came for the federal workers
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a federal worker
Then they came for the liberals
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a liberal (or maybe I was)
Then they came for everyone who was NOT a MAGA Trump/Musk loyalist
And I did not speak out
Because since I was not a MAGA Trump/Musk loyalist, they took me
God bless you! Rev. Dr. Judith Pruess-Mellow, Retired Clergy, United Methodist Church
Thank you for this--I'm so thrilled that you're adding your voice and perspective here. We need it. I want to say a word about Trump's so-called support of Israel. I don't think it's all about Netanyahu and the right-wing cabal he has embraced. More likely, I think, is that his evangelical base supports Israel, but for all the wrong reasons--none of which are openly discussed. These evangelicals may love Israel, but my strong suspicion is that they hate Jews. I wouldn't be surprised if at some point they tried to make it a "Christian" state, in their zealous fervor to make the world theirs.
Why not call them out by name, starting with AIPAC?
Jeremy, well said. There is one more critical component that makes the current situation much more dangerous than 1938. The DOGE which is actually not a proper government body has plugged into the government systems and is using the information to start a witch hunt. They have already blacklisted anyone offering DEI or gendered services (broadly defined) and told them to stop or be terminated. A separate memo says that whoever is aware of such activity must denounce it or will themselves be terminated. Scanning the computers and using the information in such a "purge" will make it a totally different endeavour than the previous fascist waves. Here is one such case https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/01/us/politics/elon-musk-doge-federal-payments-system.html which means they see all Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security payments.
hear hear!