MembersRising Anti-Semitism Drives Aliyah

Eli and Sophi Hershkowitz of Long Island, New York are packing up their bags and moving with their young son to Israel.

By Yossi Aloni |
ALL SMILES: Some young people see a brighter future in Israel than in the Diaspora Photo: Shahar Ezran (via Yossi Aloni)

“The increase in anti-Semitism in the US is pushing me to immigrate to Israel because I think it’s not safe here [in America],” Sophi explains. “They say all the time that it’s not safe in Israel, but the truth is that I feel safer in Israel. In Israel everyone takes care of each other, and if there is an attack and something happens, everyone backs one another.”

 

Eli and Sophie were among the 1,500 Jews who attended the annual immigration fair of Nefesh B’Nefesh, an organization promoting North American aliyah or immigration to Israel. This was the largest such gathering in the group’s history, and it comes against the backdrop of a sharp increase in anti-Semitic incidents in the US since President Donald Trump took office in January.

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