Interfaith potluck aimed to soothe tensions over Israel-Hamas war
SOUTH MIAMI - Several groups frustrated by antisemitism and islamophobia dished their perspectives on Sunday to soothe tension.
They hold different faiths. But the clergy involved shared a platter hardly easy to digest.
"This is an everyday conversation and it's something to be concerned about," Matt Anderson of Mosaic Miami, one of the events co-sponsors.
Along with Temple Beth Am's unBIASed Initiative and the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Miami, Anderson's group organized an Interfaith Potluck that aimed to break bias.
"(The current tension in communities) is looking very much like 9/11 where being outwardly Muslim or outwardly Jewish is dangerous," Anderson said. "So these things are on our radar."
In Detroit, authorities found a Jewish leader killed outside her synagogue this weekend. A few weeks ago, authorities arrested a man for yelling hateful messages at anyone visibly Jewish outside the Chabad of Sunny Isles Beach.
After war erupted between Israel and Hamas, tensions hardly eased.
Hassan Shibly, an attorney with Muslim Legal, showed CBS News Miami threatening messages sent to his email Thursday. Then, there are the intimidating looks he sees from strangers.
"The (Muslim) community feels targeted and that's why I think it may be important to take steps to de-escalate the conflict," Shibly said Thursday.
The unbiased Initiative and partners invited people of different backgrounds to bring food that resonates with their upbringing to share at Sunday's potluck.
"The goal is to give people that hope that you can come together," Anderson said.
Edith Osman runs is the Initiative's Chair. Her parents survived the Holocaust so just hearing verbal attacks is overwhelming, Osman said. She hoped the event would stir up motivation for people who hear antisemitism and islamophobia but do nothing about it.
"The goal is to have people build bridges, build relationships, understand that we need each other and that' we're going to be a better community if we are good neighbors for one another," Osman said.
