Watch and read the full speech from the Co-Leads of The Movement for Progressive Judaism, Rabbi Charley Baginsky and Rabbi Josh Levy, at this weekend’s rally against antisemitism:
Today British Jews stand together in all our diversity, from across the breadth of our community. Standing with us are allies from across British society.
That unity is powerful. It speaks to the seriousness of this moment.
The past months have been painful. Exhausting. At times deeply isolating. Many Jews in this country have felt frightened, alone, unseen.
People who have never questioned their place in Britain have found themselves hesitating – before speaking, before going out wearing something identifying, before sending our children out into the world.
We stand here heartbroken, angry, frightened.
But we also stand here determined.
Determined to seek our safety – and more than that.
Protection matters. We are grateful for it. But we also refuse to accept that this should be the norm for the next generation of British Jews.
The opposite of antisemitism is not only security. It is the ability to live openly and confidently in the country that is our home.
The opposite of antisemitism is belonging.
Belonging is built through relationships, responsibility and the kind of country we choose to build together.
And it is also built with words.
In Jewish tradition, words matter because words form worlds. The language we use shapes the society our children inherit. Words can make space for dignity and complexity. Or they can harden fear and suspicion.
Over recent years the language of this country has become harsher. More angry. Complexity is mocked as weakness. Minorities are spoken about as threats instead of people.
As Jews, we know where that kind of language can lead. We know because we have seen it before. And we are beginning to feel it again now.
Jewish life cannot just be about what we fear. Judaism is a story about what we are commanded to build.
The prophet Micah has a vision of a world in which everyone – not only Jews – can sit under their vine and fig tree, and none would make them afraid.
That is the vision we pursue – A Britain in which people can live openly, disagree without hatred, and belong without fear.
We want our children to inherit a Britain shaped not by suspicion or division, but by responsibility and care for one another.
We are responsible – for what we say, and for the kind of society our words make possible.
So yes: there must be real action against antisemitism. Serious action. Sustained action.
And there is something else we must demand of ourselves as a society.
That we do not become a country shaped by suspicion, anger and permanent division.
Because Jewish life in Britain has never only been about survival. It has also been about helping build a society rooted in justice, compassion and human dignity.
And that is why today matters. And why it matters that we all stand here together.
Because this is not simply a gathering against antisemitism. It is a statement about the country we still believe in, and the future we want our children to inherit.