White House Hosts ‘Celebration of Jewish-American Heritage,’ New York Leaders in Attendance

YS Gold 

The month of May has been designated as Jewish heritage month in the United States of America, and it has become a tradition for the president and the vice president, along with their spouses to host a dinner expressing that America is a welcome place for Jews to thrive in freedom, as we have for centuries. 

As this era in U.S. history has seen a rise in anti-Semitic incidents—especially against visibly-Jewish people, which makes this event especially welcome, according to Assemblyman Simcha Eichenstein, who was one of the 250 guests invited to the White House. 

“It is always an honor to be invited to the White House,” the assemblyman told Rockland Daily. "Tuesday was an extremely busy day at the White House as the president is in the midst of hard-fought negations with lawmakers on the debt ceiling. That he made the effort to come out and speak to us speaks volumes about the commitment of the U.S. government to the safety and well-being of Jews in this country.” 

The Assemblyman related that President Biden reiterated this very commitment, saying, “My dad would always tell me how upset he was that our government didn’t do more for the European Jews during WWII. He said they should have bombed the tracks to Auschwitz.” 

Rabbi Avi Greenstein, CEO of the Boro Park JCC, was likewise at the event, and he placed it in the following context: “80 years ago, hundreds of Rabbonim marched on the White House, begging to be seen by the president in an effort to spare European Jews… but they were locked out in humiliation. In the short span of this time, American Jews find an open door to the president of the United States, who pledges to do all he can for Jews in his country as well as abroad. It’s remarkable.”