by Samuel L. Spector, Avremi Zippel
Rabbi Samuel Spector has been the rabbi of Congregation Kol Ami in Salt Lake City since 2018. Rabbi Avremi Zippel is a lifelong Salt Lake City resident, and has served at Chabad Lubavitch of Utah since 2014.
These days, life has not been easy for American Jews. Though we represent only 2% of the United States population, Jews account for more victims of faith-based hate crimes than all other religions combined.
Since Oct. 7, 2023, the number of reported hate crimes against Jews has grown by 360% and has reached nearly 10,000 incidents a year, although most go unreported. A 2025 Washington Post poll found that 40% of American Jews hide displays of Judaism out of fear. Millions of dollars are spent on advertisements to combat the scourge of Jew hatred, including on billboards in Utah.
At our synagogues, hundreds of thousands of dollars are spent annually on security guards and capital upgrades to combat threats. To American Jews, antisemitism is a local issue of utmost importance. In both parties, antisemitism is rising. Sadly, there are candidates nationally and locally who reinforce antisemitic tropes or marginalize the Jewish community at a time of our vulnerability.
We need our neighbors, Democrats and Republicans, to not stand idly by and reject antisemitism at the ballot box as if our lives depend on it, because they do.
As rabbis in Utah, we take pride that our state has been a safe home to Jews since 1853. Brigham Young led the Latter-day Saint pioneers to Utah to escape religious persecution and bigotry. Young later assisted the Jewish community in establishing synagogues and cemeteries and stopped an antisemitic boycott against Jewish businesses.
In 1917, our state became the second state in the nation to elect a Jewish governor. Utah has a rich history of welcoming and protecting its Jewish minority.
At a time of rising antisemitism, we call on candidates to uphold that legacy. All Utahns must reject rhetoric that divides and endangers. As we head to the polls this June and again in November, we ask voters to stand with their Jewish neighbors and ensure that our state remains a place where all can live openly and safely.
