Hundreds gather to support Macon’s Jewish community after antisemitic rally
Editor’s note: Details about the antisemitic group and their rhetoric will not be published in order to prevent spreading their hateful messages. Our reporting will focus on the community response.
Hundreds of Maconites gathered on the steps of Temple Beth Israel in downtown Macon Saturday afternoon to show their support of and solidarity with Macon’s Jewish community.
They met with purpose, carrying signs, passing out bottles of water and greeting each other with hugs and handshakes, in response to what had happened on the same sidewalk fewer than 24 hours before, when a handful of people claiming to be members of an antisemitic hate group gathered outside of the synagogue Friday afternoon.
Shouting from a bullhorn and hanging an effigy from a street sign, the extremist group broke up after one of their members was arrested by Bibb County Sheriff’s deputies on charges of disorderly conduct and public disturbance.
Flyers covered in antisemitic and anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric were thrown in neighborhoods in Warner Robins and Macon Friday, according to the Warner Robins Police Department and Macon residents. The flyers were inside plastic bags weighed down with what police believe were pine pellets.
Temple Beth Israel was founded 163 years ago, and long-time members said the extremist group’s rally was the first of its kind in the synagogue’s long history. It prompted an almost immediate response.
Mike Kaplan, a Macon native whose family has attended the synagogue for five generations, said he was saddened to see the antisemitic protest. He and his sister Jaime Kaplan were at the synagogue early Saturday afternoon.
“I knew it wasn’t people in Macon-Bibb, because the Christians, Jews and various other religions have had an extremely peaceful coexistence in this town forever,” Kaplan, who is the chair of the county election board, said. “This congregation was established in 1859, and we’ve never had this happen. We’re more grateful for the response than we are saddened by the actions of these few people who came from out of town and brought hate to Macon.”
Attendees included many members of Macon’s Jewish and LGBTQ+ communities, Mercer students and professors, as well as Bibb County district attorney Anita Howard and Bibb County Sheriff David Davis.
“This is sacred ground. We must not let it be defiled ever by hatred. That cannot happen, not here, not in Macon, not as long as we are here,” Jim Crisp Jr., whose social media post kickstarted Saturday’s event. “I think when that kind of hatred rears its ugly head, our response has to be swift, immediate and powerful. And look at this, there were 10 people yesterday spouting their hate. Look at all of you! This is who we are. This is who Macon is.”
Deborah Adler has lived in Macon for 43 years. Her mother, Eda Yardeni Tavor, who is buried in Rose Hill Cemetery, survived the Holocaust.
“The foundation of what happened yesterday was hate,” she said. “I used to have debates with my mother, who survived Auschwitz, she said, ‘How could they let neo-Nazis march?’ And I said, ‘In America, even those that have hate speech are allowed to speak, because otherwise, who would choose what you could say and who could say it?’ So you have to give them allowances, but we must answer back. We must fight back against the hate.
The demonstration was sidetracked when members of the antisemitic group showed up again and began shouting hateful rhetoric. A circle formed around the group, with Maconites chanting “Not here!” and “Go away!”
Eventually, Maconites clasped hands to form a circle around Temple Beth Israel and began to sing songs, including “This Little Light of Mine.” By 3 p.m. most people had left, although a small cadre of antisemitic protesters were still across the street from the synagogue.
‘Canary in the coal mine’
Temple Beth Israel’s Rabbi Elizabeth Bahar told the Telegraph that the synagogue is planning a service for Sunday, July 2 that will be open to the public. Friday’s antisemitic protest began shortly before the Friday evening Sabbath service.
“I’m obviously saddened to find Macon being the unexpected target of these extremists,” she said. “This organization, they’re interested in air time and attention, but on the flip side, I feel that I must confront antisemitism when it rears its ugly head.”
She noted that protests like the one outside of Temple Beth Israel Friday night are the “the canary in the coal mine,” a sentiment shared by many of the counter-protesters Saturday afternoon: that while coming from a small group, the extremist rhetoric is indicative of wider sentiment.
“In this moment of darkness, let’s strive to highlight the light and warmth that Shabbat can provide as we come together to reaffirm the values that define us as a warm, welcoming, loving Jewish congregation,” Bahar wrote in an email to her congregation. “I encourage you to reach out to one another, to offer each other support as we stand in solidarity and navigate these challenging times together.
“Let us draw upon the strength from our sacred texts, the resilience that our ancestors have demonstrated and the love that binds us together as the sacred community.”
The U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, Peter Leary, released a statement in response to the antisemitic group.
“The events in Macon and Warner Robins targeting the Jewish and LGBTQ+ communities are deeply troubling. I strongly condemn acts to intimidate and threaten people based on their faith, race, ancestry, or LGBTQ+ identity,” Leary said. “Our office will defend the civil rights of all citizens.”
Leary’s office recently conducted training in Columbus for how to respond to antisemitism.
People are urged to report antisemitic incidents and hate crimes to the local authorities first and then contact the FBI at 1-800-225-5324 or tips.fbi.gov and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia at 478-752-3511.
Grant Blankenship of Georgia Public Broadcasting contributed to this story.
This story was originally published June 24, 2023 at 4:55 PM.
