Jewish Leaders Petition Michigan Democratic Party Over Convention Safety

Approximately 200 Jewish figures, including several rabbis, delivered a petition to Michigan Democratic Party Chair Curtis Hertel, Jr. urging him to ensure the safety of Jewish delegates at the state party's upcoming convention. The petition calls for a public declaration that anyone who harasses Jews at the event will be arrested and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. This request follows the decision by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, who is Jewish, to skip the August 29 convention due to fears of being targeted for harassment.

Signatories include five rabbis leading congregations in Michigan across Reform, Conservative, and Humanistic denominations. A majority of the signatories are from outside the state, including Rafael Medoff of the David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies, who organized the petition, and Rabbi Etan Tokayer of the Rabbinical Council of America.

While the petition does not name Abdul El-Sayed, the party's new US Senate nominee, some Jewish Democratic leaders have expressed concern over his rhetoric regarding Israel and Jewish safety. Halie Soifer, chair of the Jewish Democratic Council of America, stated that the tolerance of antisemitism in Democratic spaces must end and called for clear action from El-Sayed. In a recent victory speech, El-Sayed stated that his commitment to Jewish safety is the same as his commitment to the safety of his daughters. A spokesperson for El-Sayed did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding Nessel and antisemitism.

According to a 2020 Brandeis University population survey, more than 100,000 Jews live in Michigan, and two thirds of them identify as Democrats.