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Philadelphia City Council Voting on
Resolution to Condemn Antisemitism
Jarrad Saff ren | Staff Writer
tive director of the Greater
Philadelphia chapter of the
Zionist Organization of America,
speaking out is not enough. Th e
city needs to act. Feldman would
like to see Mayor Jim Kenney’s
offi ce or the council explain “the
Jewish people’s history and its
connection to the land of Israel.”
On Nov. 29, Kenney’s Offi ce of
Immigrant Aff airs sponsored an
“International Day of Solidarity
with the Palestinian People” at
the Municipal Services Building
on John F. Kennedy Boulevard.

Th e rally was a local version of
a United Nations-organized
event. Its promotional poster
featured the fl ags of the Palestine
Liberation Organization, a group
that opposed the Jewish state of
Israel upon its founding in 1964.

Courtesy of the Philadelphia City Council
I n 2021, the Anti-Defamation League
recorded 2,717 antisemitic incidents
of harassment, vandalism or violence.

Th at was the highest number since the
ADL started releasing its annual tally in
1979. Th is year, the number of incidents
is at a similar pace, according to ADL
CEO Jonathan Greenblatt.

Also in 2022, a Republican, Doug
Mastriano, ran for governor of
Pennsylvania in part by joining the same
social media site, Gab, which provided a
safe space for the Tree of Life synagogue
shooter four years ago. Later in 2022,
rapper and fashion designer Ye (Kanye
West) and NBA star Kyrie Irving became
the latest celebrities to make antisemitic
comments in public. Ye said he wanted
to go “death con 3” on Jewish people, and
Irving tweeted a link to a fi lm that denied
the Holocaust and quoted Adolf Hitler.

In response, the Philadelphia City
Council is considering a show of support
for its Jewish residents.

Ten council members, or more than
half of the 17-person body, are introducing
a resolution that would “unequivocally”
condemn “the rise in antisemitism and all
forms of hate in the City of Philadelphia,”
according to its title. Th ose other forms
of hate include racism and homophobia.

Councilman Mike Driscoll, who rep-
resents the Sixth District, which includes
Northeast Philadelphia and river wards
like Port Richmond, introduced the resolu-
tion. Councilmembers Katherine Gilmore-
Richardson, Brian J. O’Neill, Mark Squilla,
Helen Gym, Cindy Bass, Kenyatta Johnson,
Kendra Brooks, David Oh and Isaiah
Th omas have signed on as co-sponsors.

With the recent resignation of Allan
Domb from the city council to run for
mayor, none of the remaining members
are Jewish. Nonetheless, Driscoll expects
unanimous approval on Dec. 1 when the
resolution comes up for a vote. He has not
heard any opinions to the contrary, he said.

“I believe that the Jewish people are
being singled out once again,” Driscoll
added. “In 2021, we had more incidents
since the ADL started tracking harass-
ment and vandalism and violence. It’s
getting worse.”
Th e council did not host the rally.

Either way, to Feldman it showed that the
resolution was not enough.

“At best, it’s meaningless and, at worst,
it’s hypocrisy,” he said.

Gilmore-Richardson, the fi rst coun-
cilmember to sign on as a co-sponsor, did
not see it that way. She said the resolution
counted as policy because it would be
voted on by the council and become part
of Philadelphia’s historical record. She also
said it’s vital to call out antisemitism and
hate whenever and wherever you see it.

Th e councilwoman is Black and a
descendant of slaves and sharecroppers.

She said she looked at the resolution from
that perspective.

“If it’s happening to them, it can hap-
pen to you, too,” Gilmore Richardson
concluded. “Silence means you agree.” JE
jsaff ren@midatlanticmedia.com
Councilman Mike Driscoll introduced the
resolution condemning antisemitism.

Th e councilman was a state repre-
sentative for his Philadelphia district in
the Pennsylvania General Assembly four
years ago when the Tree of Life shoot-
ing happened. Aft er 11 Jews were killed
in Pittsburgh in the deadliest antise-
mitic attack in American history, one
of Driscoll’s colleagues from western
Pennsylvania brought survivors to the
state house in Harrisburg. As Driscoll
remembered it, “We prayed together, we
worshipped together and we did reso-
lutions condemning antisemitism and
applauding people of all faiths who came
together to support one faith.”
Th e day stuck with him. He thought
about it in October when the anniver-
sary of the shooting arrived and when
Mastriano campaigned for Pennsylvania’s
executive seat. Around the same time, Ye
had his Instagram and Twitter accounts
locked for alluding to the conspiracy the-
ory that Jews control powerful institu-
tions, while Irving was suspended for fi ve
games by his NBA team, the Brooklyn
Nets, for promoting a Holocaust denial
movie and refusing to apologize.

“It became fresh in my mind, and I said,
‘I want to speak out,’” Driscoll recalled.

But for Steve Feldman, the execu-
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