On August 22, Jewish leaders in Pittsburgh delivered this letter to Senator Toomey’s office asking him to stand with his Jewish constituents against President Trump's antisemitism and white nationalism.
His staff wouldn’t let us into his office. We have received no answer. It’s time for Senator Toomey to hear from more of his Jewish constituents. Add your name to demand he answer us and take action to keep us all safe.
Dear Senator Toomey,
We came to your office as some of your nearly 300,000 Jewish constituents to ask you to stand up for our safety, the safety of our families, and the safety of the entire Jewish community of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
This week, President Trump called American Jews disloyal. This is the same President who referred to white nationalists carrying torches and chanting “Jews will not replace us” as very fine people.
The president’s language is dangerous for all Jews.
We know the dangers of this language because we learned about it as part of Holocaust curricula in our Jewish day schools and religious schools.
We know the dangers of this language because some of us are the descendents of Jews who did — and did not — survive the Holocaust.
We know the dangers of this language because some of us live in Squirrel Hill.
We know the dangers of this language because some of us are members of the congregations targeted last October, and because we’ve all lost friends and neighbors.
We watched you during the vigil for the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting at Soldiers and Sailors and saw the anguish on your face. We hope we never end up in the same room again under those circumstances.
But when we hear the president regularly use antisemitic tropes, we fear they will lead to more death and more vigils.
Senator Toomey, we ask you to issue a statement addressing our all-too-valid fears. Will you stand with American Jews and tell President Trump that all of your Jewish constituents are loyal regardless of how they vote?
Will you stand with American Jews against President Trump’s antisemitism and white nationalism?
We pray your answer will be yes.
Signed,
Leaders of Bend the Arc: Pittsburgh