Good Wednesday morning.
In today’s edition of Your Daily Phil, we report on the U.S. Jewish community’s rare consensus regarding Israel’s war against Hamas and preview the upcoming Variety“Hollywood and Antisemitism Summit,” which begins today. We feature an opinion piece from Mark Charendoff about how North American Jews can support Israel’s military campaign. Also in this newsletter: Ronen and Orna Neutra, Beth Mayerowitz and U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. We’ll start with the Jewish Federations of North America’s fundraising campaign for Israel.
The Jewish Federations of North America has raised $388 million toward its $500 million emergency campaign for Israel in the wake of Hamas’ deadly rampage and ensuing war, the organization announced on Tuesday, report eJewishPhilanthropy’s Haley Cohen and Judah Ari Gross.
“Amid the horrors of what is happening in Israel, our community is rising up to be a pillar of support in a way I have never seen in my adult life,” JFNA Chair Julie Platt said in a statement. “From every corner of North America, from every Federation community, we are astonished by the generosity and speed with which people are stepping up to support Israel in her hour of need, whether supporting emergency workers and trauma counselors, hospitals, displaced families, or victims of terror.”
The $500 million campaign represents an unprecedented philanthropic mobilization effort in terms of its scale. In an average year, American Jewish groups donate roughly $2 billion to Israeli nonprofits, meaning this campaign — coming on top of existing donations — represents a 25% increase in just a few days. This comes at a time when American Jewish giving to Israel has been on the decline.
“It’s a large goal,” Eric Fingerhut, JFNA president and CEO, toldeJP. “One of the largest in our history. While no guarantees, we have already seen evidence of the very strong desire of our communities to step up and assist our brothers and sisters in Israel.”
The fund will go to “immediate, urgent needs as well as rebuilding and rehabilitation needs,” Fingerhut said.
Of the $388 million raised so far, $10 million has already been distributed to a variety of emergency relief and support efforts in Israel, including direct assistance of victims of the Oct. 7 massacres, volunteer mobilization groups, emergency services, hospitals and mental health services.
The announcement came alongside the “Unity in Crisis” event at the Sixth & I synagogue in Washington, D.C., which was attended by Jewish leaders and a bipartisan group of politicians. The event was hosted by a number of large Jewish organizations, including JFNA, as well as the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, American Jewish Committee, American Israel Public Affairs Committee and Anti-Defamation League, among others. (For more information about the event, see the coverage by eJewishPhilanthropy’s sister publication Jewish Insider.)
Read the full report here.
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