Greenwich has created an antisemitic and anti hate task force, months after a series of antisemitic incidents were reported in the public school system.
First Selectman Fred Camillo did not respond to questions about the task force, but it comes months after Hearst Connecticut Media initially reported on a series of antisemitic incidents in Greenwich public schools in the fall of 2023.
Two of those task force members, Meryl Sole and Rebecca Kurzwell Levine issued a joint statement and said the task force was created in response to antisemitic acts after Hamas, a militant group, killed 1,200 Israelis on October 7, the latest in a long running conflict.
“This is a grassroots resident-inspired movement inspired by Greenwich Voices Against Antisemitism, a group of engaged parents and community members concerned about antisemitic incidents in our town, especially since the October 7 massacre,” they said.
The task force is made up of 14 members. Some are religious leaders, others are local officials and some work with diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the local schools.
Sole and Levine cautioned the task force’s reporting system, while still a work in progress, will supplement 911 calls.
“The reporting system will not replace emergency calls for service or incidents currently transpiring,” they said. “Those calls should be made directly to the Public Safety Dispatch Center.”
The task force will set up a self reporting phone and web system to handle reports of bias incidents. While Greenwich has reported anti bias incidents at the schools, the state has also seen an uptick in anti semitic incidents in general over the last few years, according to the Anti Defamation League, which collected the data in early 2023, before the October 7 attacks by the militant group Hamas against Israel.
But the attacks have lead to increasing antisemitism according to previous reporting by Connecticut Public.
