GLENDALE, Wis. — From drones in the sky to a gelt drop and a mega Menorah on stage, night one of Hanukkah was celebrated loudly and proudly in southeast Wisconsin.
For the Jewish community, the holiday is all about spreading light— something they say is more important now than ever.
Levi Stein, the executive director of the Friendship Circle, says the rise in antisemitism across the world makes coming together in love and community that much more important this year.
“We celebrate, not just being Jewish but we're celebrating religious freedom, we're celebrating being able to be who you are. Here we can be proud, we can be proud to be who we are,” Stein said.
High school senior, Brieny Lipskier, agrees that it's vital in turbulent times to continue celebrating tradition proudly.
“The way to fight antisemitism is to come out stronger with more love, more peace, more light and it’s just such a great way to do it together like this,” Lipskier told TMJ4.
Hundreds gathered in Bayshore to begin the holiday doing just that hand in hand with their Jewish brothers and sisters.
Rabbi Yisroel Lein shares that the global trauma many Jewish people are facing brings out perseverance in the community as a whole.
“The more difficult the external challenges, the more internal we have to dig within ourselves to find that internal strength and resilience that we have,” said Rabbi Lein. “And when that resilience comes out we realize how powerful we are.”
So as the week-long festivities begin, Stein offers this call to action:
“To the Jewish community watching, be proud, put the Menorah in your window. To everyone else, if you see a Menorah, go over to the person and tell them happy holidays, happy Chanukah.”
A reminder that, despite our differences, we can all celebrate love together.
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