By Heidi Gantwerk
SAN DIEGO — Over the past few weeks, our Jewish community has bounced back and forth at light speed between celebration and mourning, joy and fear, delight and anger. We have had dozens of joyful, festive events that highlight the rich history, strength, and depth of Jewish life in San Diego.
At the same time, we have been processing two domestic terror attacks against the Jewish community in Washington D.C. and Boulder, Colorado. Both were precipitated by the horrific rise in antisemitic hate speech we are seeing across the country. One of the pillars of our work here at Federation is the safety and resilience of our community. While I wish we could spend all of our time cultivating Jewish joy, we are fully invested in combating antisemitism. We are doing all that we can to make sure anyone participating in Jewish life feels safe and is safe.
When it comes to antisemitic rhetoric and hate speech, we take seriously our sacred obligation to defend and care for the Jewish people. Six years after the attack at Chabad of Poway, no one knows better than San Diego the tragic consequences of hateful antisemitism. We are a founding and active member of The Finest Community Coalition, now comprising over 32 organizations that are working collectively to combat antisemitism. The Coalition has been taking steps on many issues of critical importance. Coalition members have been actively advocating for action to protect Jewish students, faculty, and staff at UCSD and Cal State San Marcos, and we have been deeply involved in the efforts to deplatform the antisemitic and antizionist singer Kehlani as this year’s San Diego Pride Festival headliner.
Today, we announced that no Jewish groups will be participating in Pride this year in response to the decision to feature this artist, whose statements and social media make LGBTQIA+ Jews and their allies unwelcome and unsafe. Having marched with my own synagogue at Pride many times, I am personally saddened and angered by San Diego Pride’s unwillingness to follow New York City, Cornell, and most recently San Francisco Pride in removing Kehlani from the lineup. For LGBTQIA+ Jews, that sense of pain, loss, and anger is far greater. As we’ve seen in D.C. and Boulder, when antisemitism is ignored or tolerated, it fuels a culture that leads to violence.
Our Community Security Director, Bill Ganley, has been working tirelessly. He is responding to security concerns, speaking daily with county law enforcement agencies, and coordinating with the skilled team at the Secure Community Network. Together, they ensure we safeguard our institutions, plan appropriately for events, and engage law enforcement when extra attention is needed. Local law enforcement has been outstanding, stepping up patrols, working directly with synagogues and agencies around events, and simply showing up to support us wherever and whenever we gather.
This year, we have provided 33 organizations with security funding for high holidays, preschool support, grant writing, planning, and physical security. We will continue to support our day schools, preschools, synagogues, and agencies in every way possible.
This week, we read the Torah portion Naso, which I have a special fondness for as it happens to be my oldest son’s Bar Mitzvah portion. In it, we find the priestly blessing, the “Birkat Cohanim.” God tells Aaron and his sons to bless the people of Israel with a threefold blessing, which Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks has described as protection, grace, and peace. He goes on to say “The Jewish people did not ask for wealth or power. They did not hunger after empire. …They asked for protection, the right to live true to themselves without fear; for grace, the ability to be an agent for good in others; and for peace.” This is one of those moments where the moment and the Torah portion are in harmony.
May this Shabbat bring us all the protection, grace and peace every human being so richly deserves.
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Heidi Gantwerk is President and CEO of the Jewish Federation of San Diego.
This is a generated email to send to Pride and local Politicians:
http://jewhate.info/kehlani-sd
SDUT did a lame article stating Todd Gloria was not going to attend. What he’s not going to attend the act but will march in the Parade on page A6. This entire production is concerning and I’m in hopes the act will still get canceled. Todd Gloria showed up for a photo op to the JCC for 10/7 he is not an ally! Sara Jacobs speaks up for everyone else except the Jews- unbelievable!
As a father of a LGBTQ girl, I am saddened by your organization abandoning the cause out of protest for Kehlani. One singer should not cause withdrawal of Jewish voices for equal rights in the time of intense discrimination against Trans kids. We need your protection. Equal rights for all minorities is critical.
Israel is engaged in warfare that is disproportionately killing Palestinian civilians, including thousands of children.
The loss of life on the Palestinian side is many times that of the Israeli side and is continuing, more each day. Many children.
It is not wrong to be angry about that.
It is not wrong to direct that anger at Israel.
It is not wrong to focus that anger on those who support the political ideology of Israel as a state favoring Jewish people and valuing their life over the life of non-Jewish people. This is, to my understanding, the essence of Zionism. It is a political claim to land reserved for the exclusive benefit of one religion.
The Israeli government has used dehumanizing language and its actions more importantly place emphasis on force protection and permit have civilian casualties as collateral damage in their campaign to battle Hamas.
Hamas uses civilians as shields.
But is wrong to blow up women and children when they are being used as shields.
I am open to persuasion, but to me you honestly seem to be allowing anger at the enemy of Israel, responsible for the October 7 attack, justify brutal and unjustifiable retaliation in the form of killing dozens of children for every child lost by Israel.
This seems wrong.
If you have evidence that Kehlani crossed the line, post it.
What did she actually say that was anti-semetic?
What is wrong with venting anger at a country for killing too many civilians in retaliation for an attack?
Thanks.
God bless and thanks for all you do in the community.
But please don’t abandon the cause of the LGBTQ. There is enormous sympathy for Palestine in that community, NOT because they are anti-semetic, but because they relate to the UNDERDOG, and right now, years past October 7 and children dying in airstrikes daily, the Palestinians, not Israel, are the underdogs.
Did Kehlani herself actually call Zionists “scum of the earth” ?
Promoting an intifada or seeking the eradication of Zionism
go far beyond criticism of Israeli policy. They are attacks on the identity of millions of Jews, including LGBTQIA+ Jews for whom Zionism is a core part of their identity.
Hi James, I just emailed you some of Kehlani’s social media posts, including one where she calls a Zionist the scum of the earth. I too am a parent of children in the LGBTQ+ community, and I have participated in the San Diego Pride Parade each year they have had it since I moved to San Diego in 2018. I will still support efforts to be inclusive of all people from the LGBTQ+ community, I just can’t support the Pride events this year if they are going to feature someone who advocates for the intifada.
I understand where you are coming from and agree. It is not bad to be angry at the deaths of innocent civilians and it is not bad to direct anger at Israel. Grief and anger over these deaths along with the anger towards a government are not antisemitic. The issue for me is not this. It’s more on the phrase she has use in a music video “long live the intifada”. The later Intifada was marked with violence by the same people who in their charter say
“The Day of Judgment will not come about until Moslems fight Jews and kill them. Then, the Jews will hide behind rocks and trees, and the rocks and trees will cry out: ‘O Moslem, there is a Jew hiding behind me, come and kill him.”(Article 7)
“The enemies have been scheming for a long time … and have accumulated huge and influential material wealth. With their money, they took control of the world media… With their money they stirred revolutions in various parts of the globe… They stood behind the French Revolution, the Communist Revolution and most of the revolutions we hear about… With their money they formed secret organizations – such as the Freemasons, Rotary Clubs and the Lions – which are spreading around the world, in order to destroy societies and carry out Zionist interests… They stood behind World War I … and formed the League of Nations through which they could rule the world. They were behind World War II, through which they made huge financial gains… There is no war going on anywhere without them having their finger in it” (Article 22)
“The HAMAS regards itself the spearhead and the vanguard of the circle of struggle against World Zionism… Islamic groups all over the Arab world should also do the same, since they are best equipped for their future role in the fight against the warmongering Jews.” (Article 32)
While she may not even mean the violent part of the Intifada, it still carries the weight of the actions taken during it. For people who lost friends and family in these events, the peaceful parts of the Intifada are inseparable from the violent because of what happened and reasonably so. When that distinction is not made, it puts her voice in a place where she does support all of it, and hasn’t denounced the violent aspects.
I don’t agree with leaving it necessarily but this is my understanding of it.
It’s truly heartbreaking to see how our community is constantly torn between moments of joy and the harsh reality of rising antisemitism. The recent attacks and the surge in hate speech are deeply troubling, and it’s unsettling that we have to divert so much energy from celebrating our culture to defending it. I appreciate the Federation’s commitment to safety and resilience, but it’s devastating that it’s even necessary. The decision to withdraw from Pride this year is bold, yet it raises questions about whether this is the most effective way to address the issue. What are the long-term strategies to ensure that such incidents don’t further divide our communities? It’s exhausting to feel like we’re always on the defensive—when will we see a shift where Jewish joy can truly flourish without fear?
Comments on Jewish Community and San Diego Pride:
From Fabienne Perlov, San Diego Regional Director, Anti-Defamation League:
As we move from May into June, our community is once again confronting the painful reality of rising antisemitic violence. On May 21st, a gunman opened fire at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., killing Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky in a targeted act fueled by hatred and extremist ideology. Less than two weeks later, on June 1st, fifteen people, including an 88-year-old Holocaust survivor, were injured when an assailant threw a firebomb at a peaceful “Run for Their Lives” gathering in Boulder, Colorado. These were not random acts. They reflect a dangerous and growing pattern of violent antisemitism. ADL’s Center on Extremism has prepared a briefing on the Washington, D.C. shooting and a briefing on the Boulder attack, offering important context and insight. As we process these events, we also want to share resources to help empower young people and communities in the aftermath of hate. You can find these tools and strategies here. We mourn alongside the families of those lost and injured, and we recommit ourselves to the urgent work of combating hate in all its forms.
In the midst of our grief and vigilance, we are also deeply concerned by San Diego Pride’s decision to feature Kehlani as a headliner at this year’s celebration. As an organization committed to the safety and inclusion of all communities, ADL San Diego stands with our Jewish and LGBTQIA+ neighbors in voicing serious concern about elevating artists who have used antisemitic rhetoric. Statements that call Zionists “scum of the earth,” promote an intifada, or demand the eradication of Zionism go far beyond criticism of Israeli policy. They are attacks on the identity of millions of Jews, including LGBTQIA+ Jews for whom Zionism is a core part of their identity. In response to these concerns, some Jewish community partners and synagogues, including ADL San Diego who have supported Pride for years, have announced today their withdrawal from this year’s event. At a time when antisemitic violence is surging, rhetoric matters. Pride should be a space of solidarity, not exclusion, and no one should have to choose between celebrating their identity and feeling safe in their own community. You can read the coalition’s full statement here.
As we continue to stand against antisemitism and hate, we also recognize Pride Month as a time to uplift the voices and experiences of LGBTQ+ members of our community. According to the San Diego Jewish Community Study, 16% of Jewish households in our region include someone who identifies as LGBTQ+. We honor their presence and their voices. We also recognize the efforts of organizations like A Wider Bridge and Queers Against Antisemitism, who have developed helpful tools to support secure and meaningful Pride celebrations. We encourage you to visit A Wider Bridge’s PrideSafe 2025 resources and explore their Pride-in-a-Box kits for materials to support your celebrations this month.
In solidarity and hope, we move forward united against hate. Together, we remain committed to fostering safety, inclusion and resilience throughout our community.