A letter to young Jews
The speech I wish no generation had to hear—and the one every generation of Jews eventually needs.
Dear Young Jew,
We were supposed to bequeath you a comfortable world.
Instead, you inherited one where people who know nothing about Jews have very strong opinions about us. A world where terrorism is explained away but Jewish self-defense requires a thousand footnotes. A world where your grandparents’ warnings suddenly sound less like ancient history and more like tomorrow’s news.
Welcome. Pull up a chair.
The first thing you need to know is that none of this is new.
Jews have always lived in an age that believed it had discovered the perfect reason to hate Jews. Religion. Race. Money. Capitalism. Communism. Colonialism. Cosmopolitanism. Nationalism. Today the fashionable excuse is Israel. The accusation changes every century or so. The target never does.
Do not be intimidated by people who insist they are merely “anti-Zionist.” If the world’s only Jewish state is the only nation they obsess over, if every Jewish student somehow becomes responsible for events thousands of kilometers away, if every synagogue needs police protection while they explain this is all about “politics,” then congratulations. You have discovered antisemitism wearing a fake mustache.
Don’t argue over the mustache. See the face beneath it.
The second thing you need to know is that you owe nobody an apology for existing.
Not for wearing a Star of David. Or speaking Hebrew, visiting Israel, or defending Israel. Not for succeeding or surviving.
Especially not for surviving.
Your ancestors crossed deserts, survived pogroms, expulsions, inquisitions, gas chambers, and terrorist bombs so that you could stand upright without asking anyone’s permission to be Jewish.
Don’t waste their gift by apologizing for it.
You will be told that being proudly Jewish is provocative.
Smile politely and stand even more proudly Jewish. Wear the necklace. Celebrate Shabbat. Learn Hebrew. Know your history. Show up.
Nothing irritates antisemites quite like happy Jews.
The third thing you need to know is that ignorance is expensive.
You cannot outsource your Jewish education.
Forget whether you are religious or secular, observant or an atheist. Read the Bible and Jewish history. Learn about Zionism from Zionists instead of TikTok activists who do not know where the Middle East begins and ends.
Understand why Israel exists, why it had to exist, and why it must exist.
If your knowledge of Israel begins in 1967, someone has already stolen half the story from you.
Israel is not a guilty European experiment. It is the oldest indigenous success story on Earth. It is Jews returning home after history’s longest exile.
Know the facts and know them cold. Confidence comes from knowledge, not slogans.
The fourth thing you need to know is that courage is contagious.
When one Jew hides a Magen David, another notices. When one Jew refuses to hide it, another notices that too. You have no idea who is watching you. Perhaps another frightened Jewish student. Perhaps your younger sibling. Perhaps your own future children.
Your courage gives other people permission to discover theirs.
The fifth thing you need to know is that Israel changes everything.
For nearly 2,000 years Jews had prayers. Now we also have fighter jet pilots. For two millennia Jews had hope. Now we have hope and an army. Jews once begged kings for protection. Now Jews protect themselves.
That changes Jewish history forever. Israel is not perfect. Neither are you. Neither is your country. Perfection has never been the admission price for nationhood.
Israel’s existence means Jews are no longer guests in history. Never forget what an astonishing privilege that is.
The sixth thing you need to know is to choose your battles wisely.
Not every social media troll deserves your attention. Some people are mistaken. Some are ignorant. Some are genuinely curious. Too many are committed antisemites wearing activist language like camouflage.
Learn the difference. You can educate the first three. The fourth is simply looking for an audience. Don’t provide one.
The seventh thing you need to know is that Jewish humor remains one of history’s greatest survival mechanisms.
Keep laughing. The people who wish us gone absolutely hate that.
Every Jewish wedding, every Jewish joke, every Jewish baby, every Friday night dinner, every Hebrew song. And, most importantly, every family argument about who overcooked the brisket.
These are tiny victories over people who wanted Jewish history to end. Existence can be wonderfully spiteful.
The eighth thing you need to know is that allies matter. You do not need to fight alone. Many decent people reject antisemitism completely. Find them, work with them, and thank them.
Yet never become dependent upon them. Jewish self-reliance is indispensable.
Finally, remember this.
You belong to one of humanity’s oldest stories.
A tiny tribe who gave the world ethical monotheism, the Hebrew Bible, extraordinary scholarship, remarkable science, astonishing literature, Nobel Prizes galore, startup companies, life-saving medicine, and an annoying habit of surviving everyone who predicted our disappearance.
That last achievement seems to upset people the most. Good. Let it.
There will always be fashionable movements declaring that Jewish history has reached its conclusion. Ignore them. Rome is gone. The Nazis are gone. The Soviet Union is gone. Countless empires are museum exhibits.
The Jewish people are still arguing over dinner.
Bet on us. Walk taller than you feel. Know more than your critics. Love your people without embarrassment. Defend Israel without hesitation. Reject victimhood without denying danger. Refuse to surrender either your confidence or your sense of humor.
Above all, remember this simple truth. You are not the last Jews. You are the next Jews.
Act accordingly.
Even I have to admit immodestly that was a pretty inspiring valedictorian-like speech. There is only one thing wrong with it. It does not quite fully capture what I feel.
Let me put my Moral Clarity hat on and have another go.
