RISING ANTISEMITISM , ANTI-ISRAEL BIAS PROMPT SAN DIEGO COMMUNITY LEADERS TO LAUNCH AJC OFFICE
WELCOME
MITCH SIEGLER
San Diego AJC Board President
For years , we ’ ve watched with alarm the extraordinary rise in antisemitism and anti-Israel bias . It ’ s distressing to see this in America ’ s Finest City , San Diego , my home for 35 years .
In 2022 , a group of Jewish community leaders decided that San Diego needed the American Jewish Committee ( AJC ), which has been standing up for Jews and Israel since 1906 . Jews are the canary in the coal mine ; left unchecked , hate spreads and leads to a breakdown in democracy . Hate starts with the Jews but never ends with the Jews .
Last December , AJC ’ s CEO , Ted Deutch ( former Florida Congressman and just 60 days into his AJC role ) spoke at our home before 50 San Diego Jewish community leaders . In January , we formed an outstanding Board and opened AJC ’ s 25th U . S . office . In February , we hired Sara Brown , Ph . D . – our indefatigable Regional Director . In March , we held our inaugural event on antisemitism , with 250 attendees and in September , Sara held an insider briefing for supporters and key community leaders .
San Diego ); Government Affairs ( building relationships with our Mayors , City Council members and others ); and Allyship ( reconstituting the Latino-Jewish Coalition and mobilizing supporters from across the county ).
The massacre of October 7 have created a heightened sense of urgency in these battles . Fortunately , AJC ’ s staff and resources have proven to be outstanding and just what San Diego needs . And the priorities we set forth a year ago are critical in the current moment .
Each of you has his or her own reasons for supporting AJC San Diego . Mine derive from Jewish pride , my father ’ s history ( he fled the Nazis as a boy in 1937 ) and the fact that the U . S . is a great country and San Diego is an amazing community . We have much to be thankful for , but we can ’ t take our freedom for granted . In his 1967 inauguration speech , California Governor Ronald Reagan said “ Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction . We didn ’ t pass it to our children in the bloodstream . It must be fought for , protected , and handed on for them to do the same , or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children ’ s children what it was once like in the U . S . where men were free .” As Jews , we must keep this idea top of mind , stand up against antisemitism and hate and do the work required for ourselves and for our children and grandchildren .
In that spirit , please join us as we stand up for our Jewish community and for Israel . If you ’ d like to support our work , we ’ d love to hear from you .
Last year , we established three strategic priorities : Education ( working to create a safe learning environment for Jewish students at all levels in msiegler @ sandiegoajc . org
RISING ANTISEMITISM , ANTI-ISRAEL BIAS PROMPT SAN DIEGO COMMUNITY LEADERS TO LAUNCH AJC OFFICE