From 7:55 a.m. until 8:35 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 17, Wayland community members protested against the recent antisemitism in the “Wayland Stands Against Hate” rally. The rally took place outside of Wayland Middle School, and several Wayland residents, students and officials attended.

After large Nazi swastikas were found painted on Rice Road on Nov. 14, Wayland residents Kristine Hammond, Risa Burgess and Jodi Chase organized a community-wide rally to demonstrate that Wayland is an inclusive town and will not stand for antisemitism.

“We [are here because] we want to stand up with our Jewish neighbors who are feeling threatened,” Wayland resident Mary Ann Borkowsai said. “I am sad for how [the antisemitic acts] make our community look. We need to name the things that divide us and stand up for the things that unite us.”

Some people brought signs to the rally that displayed words of support for the Jewish community, or phrases condemning the antisemitic events in town. The organizers of the rally requested that participants refrain from bringing signs with messages pertaining to the Israel-Hamas war, as the rally was solely meant as an effort to denounce antisemitism in Wayland.

“We need to remember that there is a war going on between governments, not between people, and the Jewish people in Wayland, and around the world, aren’t at war with anybody,” community member Susan Garfield said. “[The Jewish community is] a community that tries to embrace peace and not divergence.”

The rally took place at WMS due to the recent acts of antisemitism in the building, in which some students were making the “Heil Hitler” salute to each other in the hallways. According to the Director of Education at Temple Shir Tikva Alison Weikel, some WMS Jewish students feel disheartened by these circumstances and want to help their community come together.

“I’ve been thinking about these issues [of antisemitism] for decades, and some of my students have only been thinking about it for a few years, so I feel pain for them because it’s almost like a shattering of innocence,” Weikel said.

Rabbi Danny Burkeman from Temple Shir Tikva also attended the rally to stand in solidarity with the Wayland community, and especially with the students of Temple Shir Tikva. While he was not surprised that the antisemitic actions occurred given the rising levels of antisemitism across the United States, it was upsetting to see nonetheless, as these actions hit close to home for him and some others.

“I think that at the moment, the most important thing in general when we stand up to hate, prejudice, racism or antisemitism is that we show our allyship,” Burkeman said. “[It’s important that] we show up in support of others and stand up for the values we hold dear. Those values about equality, acceptance, openness [and] welcomeness are so vitally important, and [are values] we can all stand up for.”

Member of the Wayland Interfaith Leaders Association and of Wayland’s Humans Rights, Diversity, Equality and Inclusions Community Janot Mendler De Suarez shared that she felt “sick” when she heard about the recent antisemitism.

“One of my first thoughts was all the little kids on their buses and how the [antisemitic symbols] made them feel when they drove down Rice Road,” Mendler De Suarez said. “[These antisemitic actions] are terrorizing everyone. We need to talk about antisemitism, and it can be difficult to have that conversation.”

Some non-Jewish members of the community also showed up to the rally to show support for their Jewish friends, neighbors and classmates.

“Hate is hate, it hurts us in any form and any way,” Newton resident and Islamic Center of Boston member Aijaz Baloch said. “[The Islamic Center of Boston] got a lot of support, including from [Temple Shir Tikva] when we had a problem, so I wanted to come show my support and make sure that [this act of hate] doesn’t happen again ever.”

Acting Superintendent David Fleishman and Acting Assistant Superintendent Betsy Gavron also attended the rally to show support to Wayland’s Jewish community, and especially any students who were affected by the recent antisemitism.

“It’s really important to stand united in this work,” Gavron said. “I was nauseous when I heard [about the antisemitic events,] and I could only imagine how members who are in the Jewish community felt.”

Fleishman also shared in a statement to Wayland Public Schools families that WHS has an active Jewish Student Union (JSU) and additional affinity spaces for other groups. He also noted that WMS will also be offering affinity spaces for several student groups, including the Jewish community.

“I think a lot of the work [needed to move forward from this issue] is around learning and honoring people’s experience,” Gavron said. “I was just at a professional development [class] offered by Facing History and Ourselves, which is an organization that’s dedicated to combating antisemitism, and they talked about how important it is to listen and learn from the wide variety of perspectives within the Jewish community. I think we can do more educationally as a district.”

Weikel shared advice for how people can support the Jewish community during this time. She suggested starting off by reaching out to members of the Jewish community to check in, as well as learning about the history of antisemitism and its effects.

“One of the things about humans is that, at the core, we are the same,” Weikel said. “Who we associate with, what we believe, what we read and what we consume on social media are the things that pull us out from that center. If we can get back to that center place where we are all human, then we can start to build on that and [respect other perspectives], but [recognize] that we are all still human.”

Juniors and JSU leaders Rebecca Grossman, Rachel Goldstone and Bella Schreiber were also present at the rally to represent Wayland High School’s Jewish community. Grossman shared that, in her opinion, Jewish voices have been silenced in Wayland recently, which is an issue she hopes to shed light on.

“I think that making the Jewish community feel safer is all about people caring more and asking more questions,” Grossman said. “The only people who have reached out to me are fellow Jewish people, and I don’t think that’s okay. I think other people should be more informed about what’s going on, even if it’s not about their own community.”

According to Mendler De Suarez, the best way to heal from this event and support the Jewish community is for community members to spark conversations about antisemitism, not only to gain a multitude of perspectives, but to also educate themselves about the impact of antisemitism. In addition, there is going to be a similar rally against antisemitism at Temple Shir Tikva at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 19 that is open to all Wayland residents.

“You don’t need to be a victim to open a conversation,” Mendler De Suarez said. “We refuse to accept injustice, we refuse to accept discrimination and we refuse to accept acts of hate that harm people. We need to find a way to have conversations where differences of opinion can be heard and understood.”

This article is a developing story that is subject to updates.

This story was originally published on Wayland Student Press on November 18, 2023.