In a heartfelt plea, Patricia Heaton has challenged the Christian community to actively oppose the rising tide of antisemitism in the United States.
During an interview with Fox News’s Brian Kilmeade, Heaton expressed her shock at the silence from churches in response to recent violent acts captured on Hamas body cam footage.
“It was like crickets,” she remarked, prompting her to speak out on social media about the moral imperative to support Jewish neighbors today just as one might hope to have done during World War II.
Heaton, renowned for her roles in “Everybody Loves Raymond” and “The Middle,” is a founding member of the October 7 Coalition.
This group of Christians aims to counteract antisemitism following last October’s terror attacks by Hamas, which ignited an ongoing conflict in the region.
In collaboration with the nonprofit JewBelong, the coalition has launched an awareness campaign, placing billboards across the country with messages like “Jewish students deserve to be safe on campus” and “You don’t have to be a Jew to protect Jews.”
Archie Gottesman, the founder of JewBelong, highlighted the loneliness felt by those speaking out since the conflict began, emphasizing the necessity for allies given that Jews constitute only 2% of the U.S. population.
The urgency of this issue is underscored by recent antisemitic incidents, including vandalism at a New York deli and a distressing episode in Las Vegas where a Jewish child was assaulted. Heaton, reflecting on historical parallels, stated emphatically, “We know what’s going on, and it is up to us as Christians to do something about it.”
She concluded with a powerful reminder of the Jewish community’s vulnerability and the vital role of Christian support: “The Jewish people are feeling very, very alone, and they need to know we will stand by them.”
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