More than 200 Jewish teens from across New York City, Westchester and Long Island gathered on March 1 at the Moise Safra Center for the New York Jewish Teen Summit, a teen-led experience focused on education, belonging and confronting antisemitism with confidence and pride. Twenty-five New York City-area teen leaders began meeting last fall to plan the day-long event.
At a time of rising antisemitism and growing bias against Israel, the summit enabled Jewish students to feel confident in their Jewish identity at school, where many are experiencing antisemitism in-person and online following the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
“Today, the metro New York Jewish community, led by our local JCCs, is conveying a clear and unwavering message to Jewish public and independent high school students: ‘You are not alone. We are here for you and with you,’ ” said Leonard Petlakh, executive director of Kings Bay Y, one of the event’s organizers.
He continued, saying “we are mobilizing a growing network of teen leaders, youth professionals and Israeli emissaries who will collaborate, galvanize and guide our Jewish teens as they navigate a new and complex reality by strengthening their resilience, deepening their Jewish identity and empowering them to stand proudly as Jews.”
Guided by three core principles—Learn the Past, Lead the Future and Unite as One—the summit brought together teens to learn from each other and develop the skills to lead in their schools.
Throughout the day, teens participated in interactive workshops and heard from prominent Jewish leaders and experts. Rachel Fish, a Brandeis University scholar and co-founder of Boundless, addressed the importance of confronting antisemitism through knowledge and action. David Harris, longtime leader in the Soviet Jewry movement, drew parallels between historic Jewish human-rights advocacy and the challenges facing Jewish teens today. Ben Freeman, founder of the modern Jewish Pride movement, spoke about embracing Jewish identity unapologetically, including within LGBTQ+ spaces. Tessa Veksler, a Jewish activist who was the student body president at the University of California, Santa Barbara, held a session titled “Confronting Jew-Hatred on Campus and Beyond.”
Representatives from United Hatzalah shared insights into their 24/7 emergency medical-response work across Israel. Firsthand accounts from Holocaust survivors, those who witnessed the Oct. 7 massacre in Israel, and a soldier from the Israel Defense Forces who served in Gaza offered personal perspectives on resilience and courage.
“Jewish teens are not asking to be shielded from antisemitism or from hard conversations about Israel,” said Rabbi David Kessel, senior vice president of JCC Association of North America. “They want brave leadership spaces for education, networking and asking difficult questions, which was our goal for the summit. This is just the beginning of an ongoing effort by JCCs and our partners to help teens thrive Jewishly, especially at school.”
Workshops included speaking out against Jew-hatred on campus; real-world simulations in response to antisemitism on social media; and guided discussions on navigating misinformation and developing confident, informed responses on Israel.
UJA-Federation of New York, Park Avenue Synagogue, JCC Association of North America, Israel’s Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism and RootOne sponsored the program.
