“What is your message to Belgian Jews as more and more among them are thinking to leave the country and go to Israel, the U.S. or elsewhere?”
This was one of the questions journalists asked U.S. Ambassador to Belgium Bill White Wednesday night at an impromptu meeting. The conversation took place after he received the prestigious King David Award from the European Jewish Association at its annual conference in Brussels, for his outspoken defense of Jewish religious freedom and his firm stance against antisemitism.
“Don’t leave. Stay. I say stay and fight. I mean that categorically. Stay and stand up for yourself,” the ambassador replied.
He added, “We are here to support you. If you want to come to the United States, I welcome you. I will help you with your travel arrangements, and I hope you are investing in the United States and hiring Americans and creating business. But if you want to stay in Belgium, let’s all get together and help you do that.
“From my very first meetings with Belgium’s Jewish community, I heard a deeply troubling message: ‘We don’t feel safe anymore.’ That is unacceptable. No one should feel they don’t belong in their own country. The attacks are real, the threats are real and they demand action. The United States stands with Jewish communities unequivocally. Defending the right of Jews to live openly and practice their traditions, including circumcision, is not political, it is a matter of principle and a fundamental freedom that must be protected,” White declared.
In February, the ambassador openly challenged the Belgian government on the issue of Jewish circumcision and accused the authorities of antisemitism in the case of legal proceedings against three mohels in Antwerp. He called for the charges to be dropped, warning that such moves represent a direct threat to Jewish freedom of religion and a dangerous precedent for Jewish life across Europe.
His stance, taken amid rising antisemitism and a surge of violent attacks on Jewish communities, positioned him as a rare and prominent voice willing to confront government actions seen as undermining fundamental rights.
“What do you think about the people who say that you are interfering in Belgian politics? What do you respond to that?” one journalist asked.
“It’s OK. We all interfere in our respective politics all day long. I hear from everyone in the Belgian government who would like to interfere with American politics. I’m OK talking about American politics, about how much I love my president, Donald J. Trump. So, I’m happy to talk about internal American politics with anyone,” he responded.
No right to target Jews
“One of the things I am trying to explain is that when someone dislikes a policy of Israel, that doesn’t give them the right to target a Jewish man, a Jewish child or a Jewish business owner in Belgium.”
White added that “a Jewish person in Antwerp is not the State of Israel. He is a Jew. He’s a Jewish man. He is not making the decisions of Israel. Now, I’m not talking about the decisions. I’m just talking about the fact that we cannot look at a beautiful Jewish kid on the street in Antwerp or an old man that was spit on because somebody thinks that’s Israel. It’s just a Jewish man.
“It’s almost like in America when we had the Vietnam War, they would spit on the soldiers when they came home. If you want to spit on somebody, spit at the politician who made the policy. Don’t spit on the soldier. He’s just a soldier. He’s not the government making the policy.
“I would love to see every country around the world do what President Trump did and appoint a man or a woman like Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun [U.S. envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism] and have a designated senior level ambassador or envoy at that rank. We are encouraging the Belgians actually to pick somebody at that level,” the ambassador said.
”People should be able to go to temple on Friday night, Saturday night, whenever they want, in peace. Unfortunately, a lot of people are staying away from going to the temple because they are afraid for their security,” White said.
More than 100 Jewish leaders, policymakers and diplomats gathered on Wednesday for the two-day conference to address the escalating crisis facing Jewish communities across Europe. Central to the conference agenda was the proposal to establish a legal framework for a special protected minority status for Jews in Europe, aimed at ensuring long-term legal, cultural and security protections.
European Jewish Association Chairman Rabbi Menachem Margolin warned that Jewish communities can no longer rely on shifting political landscapes for their security. “Our future is in someone else’s hands,” he said, pointing to the instability created by changing governments and inconsistent policies toward Jewish life across Europe.
“The Jewish story had never been a story of surrender. It’s always been a story of strength, responsibility and hope. The future of Jewish people in Europe will not and cannot be decided by others. We will build a safer, stronger and better future for the generations,” he added.
His address formed part of a broader discussion on the future of Jewish life in Europe, including rising threats on campuses, in public spaces and within political discourse. Conference participants repeatedly stressed that current frameworks are failing to adequately protect Jewish communities.
Originally published by the European Jewish Press.
