Over the past month, we’ve watched with alarm as the Trump administration escalates its attacks on civil liberties and democratic values. Executive orders, policy rollbacks, funding cuts, and detentions have spread fear across communities, weakened democracy, and undermined the very institutions that are meant to protect us all.

Some of these actions have been framed as efforts to combat antisemitism. Yet in truth, these policies make our Jewish community — and all communities — less safe.

For more than sixty years, JCUA has stood against antisemitism in all its forms. We regularly train our members and partners not only to recognize antisemitism, but to understand its deep roots, how it intersects with other forms of oppression, and how we can challenge it in real time. We care deeply about the safety of our Jewish community — especially when antisemitism appears in the spaces we hold dear. And it is crucial that we come together to oppose the administration’s attempts to exploit antisemitism to justify injustice and divide our movements.

In this critical moment, we must come together to defend inclusive democracy and advance a vision of Jewish safety that is rooted not in fear, but in solidarity.

Recent Actions

On March 9th, federal immigration agents arrested Mahmoud Khalil — a Palestinian green card holder and former Columbia graduate student in New York City. He remains detained by DHS and separated from his family. Despite widespread condemnation from civil society organizations, including many Jewish organizations, the administration has refused to release him. In the weeks since Khalil’s arrest, individuals at Georgetown, Tufts, and other universities have been detained by ICE following allegations of antisemitism. Just last week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the revocation of hundreds of student visas — raising the alarming possibility that students here in Chicago and across Illinois could soon face similar detentions.

What is Project Esther?

This rush to detain and deport individuals for their speech is just one part of the administration’s “Project Esther” strategy, crafted by the right-wing Heritage Foundation as part of its broader Project 2025 blueprint. Project Esther cynically exploits the Jewish community’s fears and experiences of antisemitism to justify oppressive policies, including deportations, criminal prosecutions of activists, and attacks on civil society organizations, including colleges and universities. Ironically, no Jewish leaders were included in the creation of Project Esther, and its authors have repeatedly suggested that they understand antisemitism better than Jews themselves.

This effort has deep implications for the work JCUA does every day. Expanded deportations and increased ICE authority are already creating fear and instability in immigrant communities. These policies fracture solidarity and suppress democratic participation — undermining the very coalitions we need to build a thriving, multiracial democracy. And by using antisemitism as a pretext for authoritarianism, Project Esther risks making Jews the face of repression — fueling division, mistrust, and harm.

A Better Approach

At JCUA, we believe that true safety comes not from isolation or state power but from solidarity across diverse communities, united in a commitment to justice. We recognize that Jews are safest in democracies where everyone’s rights are protected, resources and power are shared, and relationships with neighbors are deep and meaningful. That belief is the foundation of our work — whether we’re organizing to defend immigrants and refugees, support our unhoused neighbors, advance police accountability or expand mental health resources.

We know this work is not always neat or easy. It means navigating complexity, staying in relationship even when it’s hard, and choosing courage over comfort. But we stay rooted and connected because we know our liberation is bound up with one another’s.

In this moment, we call on all JCUA members and allies to resist the dangerous misuse of antisemitism and to take action to protect all our neighbors. Let us recommit ourselves to justice, equity, and a vision of collective safety that holds all of us together.