RELEASE: RO KHANNA SPEAKS AT ANTISEMITISM TOWN HALL HOSTED BY BAY AREA JEWISH COALITION
Santa Clara, CA — Today, Rep. Ro Khanna (CA-17) spoke with over 200 constituents at a town hall hosted by the Bay Area Jewish Coalition on the recent rise in antisemitism, highlighted by and especially in the wake of the horrific October 7th attack on Israel. He shared his work in Congress to help combat antisemitism in the district and answered questions from the community.
Oded Shekel, the founder and Executive Director of the grassroots organization, the Bay Area Jewish Coalition, started the event by sharing the struggles of the Jewish community in the past few months: “We have seen a tremendous rise in antisemitic incidents in our community, many related to anti-Israel hate, to the point that kids cannot safely attend school anymore. We appreciate Rep. Khanna for coming here today to hear from the community, and we hope to see leaders like him continuing to fight antisemitism in Congress and beyond.”
Rep. Khanna has worked across the aisle with Rep. Fitzpatrick (PA-1) to ensure that Americans have the tools and skills necessary to identify misleading and harmful information online and have an accurate understanding of history relating to the Holocaust, World War II, and antisemitism. Together, the lawmakers introduced a bipartisan resolution encouraging schools to teach digital literacy and comprehensive education. The resolution was supported by the Anti-Defamation League, the American Jewish Committee, J Street, Stop Antisemitism, and B'nai B'rith International. More information can be found here.
Rep. Khanna has also visited college campuses across the county including Harvard to talk to impacted students and plans to meet school administrators and school boards at local schools where antisemitic incidents have taken place. In Congress, he is pushing for online standards that will address social media accounts spreading antisemitism and his district office is available to handle reports of antisemitism.
“Jewish communities in my district and across the country are understandably distraught and afraid right now. As they mourn those murdered in the October 7th attack and since then as they fight for the release of hostages, support family and friends who were wounded and in harm's way, the community has also had to grapple with a surge in antisemitism, which has hit K-12 school and college campuses particularly hard. After listening to brave students and hurt community members, let me be clear: antisemitism has no place in this country. It is not enough just to speak out. I am also working in Congress to ensure that people have the skills and knowledge to recognize and push back on antisemitism. I am committed to continuing these important discussions to drive change and make sure everyone feels safe and supported,” said Representative Khanna.
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Congressman Khanna represents the 17th District of California, which covers communities in Silicon Valley. Visit his website at khanna.house.gov. Follow him on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @RepRoKhanna.