Human rights advocate to speak on Krystallnacht in Orange

Written by Hersam Acorn Newspapers
Wednesday, 04 November 2009 13:25

A nationally known human rights advocate will be the featured speaker at a Krystallnacht Commemoration at Congregation Or Shalom of Orange this Sunday.

The synagogue will host its third annual Krystallnacht commemoration from 10 a.m. to noon on Nov. 8. The program will be open to the public. Krystallnacht, which is generally considered to have been the start of the Holocaust, took place Nov. 9 and 10 in 1938.

Fern Tausig, chairwoman of the synagogue’s Adult Education Committee that is sponsoring the event, noted that the keynote speaker will be Tammie Schnitzer who was appointed by former President Bill Clinton to serve on the U.S. Council for Hate Crimes Advisory Board, served on the U.S. Senate-appointed U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Advisory Board and travels throughout the country challenging communities to stand up to hate crimes and their perpetrators.

Schnitzer is a fourth generation Montanan who converted to Judaism while in her 20s. After giving birth to her two children, her life took a dramatic turn when a series of hate crimes shattered her peaceful and comfortable life and that of her community of Billings, Montana with a population of 100,000 people. When she decided to do something about it, she and her family became targets of hate.

“I decided to document the incidents against the Jewish community that included hate letters, bomb threats, hateful heckling and taunting. My synagogue received a bomb threat on Rosh Hashanah, our holy day, and a Jewish cemetery was desecrated,” she said in a press release.

When a concrete block was thrown through her son’s bedroom window on the first night of Chanukah in 1993, however, the city of Billings could no longer ignore what was happening. At her urging, the local newspaper, the Billings Gazette, ran an illustration of a Chanukah Menorah in support of the Schnitzer family and the community quickly responded. Within weeks, more than 10,000 of the paper menorahs were displayed in homes throughout town.

“All I cared about was what I was teaching my children. I needed the opportunity to show Isaac and Rachel that you don’t hide from this and you don’t run from bullies. You hold your ground and most importantly, you don’t accept less than the right to walk the streets and proudly proclaim who you are. When the 10,000 paper menorahs appeared in windows, my son who was in kindergarten at the time commented that all the homes were Jewish. I said no, they all are here to let you know that there are 10,000 arms wrapping themselves around you and saying it’s safe to be here. You’re Isaac Schnitzer, a Jew.”

In addition to her former activities on the federally appointed committees, Schnitzer travels extensively, citing her personal experiences as a means of alerting communities about the threats of hate crimes.

“There are consequences to every action and there are consequences to every inaction. By riding that fence of indifference you are supporting the perpetrators and someone else is at risk. Moving forward may be as simple as sitting down with your children and reading the local newspaper with them and asking how would you feel if this were you. And what do we do to make the situation better. It’s about creating empathy and finding ways to open up conversation.”

Schnitzer’s story was depicted in a PBS documentary that aired nationally. At the event on Nov. 8, she will autograph copies of the children’s book entitled “Christmas Menorah” that explains her story. The book will be on sale at the synagogue.

The Schnitzer family now lives in South Carolina where she works in the private sector. Information about the program is available by calling the synagogue at 799-2341. Congregation Or Shalom is located at 205 Old Grassy Hill Road.