The 25th anniversary of the September 11th attacks, coinciding with Rosh Hashanah, starkly highlights a profound transformation in American Jewish life: the permanent integration of robust security measures into the fabric of communal worship and practice. What was once an unusual precaution – a security guard outside a synagogue – has become an indispensable, permanent precondition, costing the Jewish community an estimated $1 billion annually. This shift, catalyzed by the post-9/11 understanding of specific animus towards the Jewish people, has led to the creation of national security networks like the Secure Community Network (SCN) and the Community Security Service (CSS), which provide intelligence, training, and coordination for thousands of volunteers and institutions nationwide. From armed guards and secured doors to extensive surveillance and daily threat monitoring, the visible presence of security, while a staggering financial burden and a stark contrast to the open doors of other houses of worship, is now deemed essential to ensure that fear does not dictate participation in Jewish life, enabling communities to continue to ‘lean into Jewish life’ with confidence despite escalating antisemitic threats, which tragically represent a disproportionate percentage of religiously motivated hate crimes in the U.S.
Adapted from: Latest World News on Fox News
