We stand united against bigotry

As elected officials in Greenwich, we hold the public trust. We represent every member of our community. While we may differ on policy matters, there is one thing we all agree on and will never shrink from — our obligation to stand united against hate, bigotry, antisemitism, and racism.

We fully support the establishment of the Greenwich Antisemitism and Anti-Hate Task Force. First Selectman First Camillo has put together a dedicated group of religious leaders, school administrators and educators, academics, elected officials, business leaders, and concerned citizens, and he has charged them with standing against hate and antisemitism in our town, and with supporting victims who may need help when they have nowhere else to turn. The goal of the Task Force is to provide awareness of resources on antisemitism and hate, to support educational programs on the issues, and to promote civil discourse. We believe the task force can bring our community together and be a source of pride for everyone in our town.

Just days after it was announced, and before it even had a chance to begin its work, the task force and its members were criticized publicly in anonymous articles. While we respect freedom of speech and the rights of everyone to express their views, these misguided pieces, which seem not to understand what antisemitism and hate are all about, are just further examples of why we need this task force. Here is a suggestion — if you are confused about what hate and antisemitism are, just talk to the parents of boys and girls who have been bullied in the school yard because of their race, or on the school bus because they are Jewish, or the families of Holocaust survivors that have had to deal with swastikas and hateful graffiti popping up in our town. They will tell you exactly what hate and antisemitism look like.

And that is one of the main functions of the task force, to provide an avenue for victims to tell their stories and to get help. This initiative is not political — the task force has no power to adjudicate incidents or to “ratout neighbors,” a strange criticism of a body that was founded to help children, parents, and residents deal with antisemitism and hate. The sad fact is that antisemitic attacks and incidents of hate have increased nearly fourfold in our country in recent years, and such incidents have been on the rise in our state and yes, even in Greenwich, in recent months. We applaud this effort by the first selectman to support residents that need help, to restore civility, and to deter the spread of hate and antisemitism. All of us have a responsibility to make sure that racism, bigotry, hate, and antisemitism have no place in our town.

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Jessica Adams, Representative Town Meeting District 3 Elliot Alchek, Board of Estimate and Taxation

Jennifer Andrews, RTM District 6 Debbie Applebaum, RTM District 7, Secretary

Hector Arzeno, state representative; RTM District 8

Peter Berg, RTM District 8 Jane Brash, RTM District 5 Ellen Brennan-Galvin, RTM District 7; Land Use Committee, vice chair

Adam Brodsky, RTM District 11; Public Works Committee, vice chair

Joshua Brown, RTM District 4; Town Services Committee, chair Kip Burgweger, RTM District 8, Legislative and Rules Committee, chair

Dr. Marilyn Ross Cahn, RTM District 6

Fred Camillo, first selectman Glen Canner, RTM District 12

Dr. Jill Capalbo, RTM District 8 Rob Carter, RTM District 6 Bob Chaney, RTM District 11 Linda Cochran, RTM Disrict 5 Matt DesChamps, BET Christina Downey, RTM District 5; Education Committee, vice chair Susan Fahey, RTM, District 11, Chair; Education Committee, secretary

Fred Feldman, RTM District 1 Doug Fenton, RTM District 5 Jeff Ferraro, RTM District 3

Jim Finn, RTM District 8 Noah Finz, RTM District 6 Mary Connely Flynn, RTM, District 12

Dawn Fortunato, RTM District 3, secretary

Icy Frantz, RTM District 5, vice chair

Betsy Frumin, RTM District 9, chair Bill Galvin, RTM District 7; Health & Human Services, vice chair Lynn Garelick, RTM District 1 Allison Ghiorse, RTM District 1 Tracy Grossman, RTM District 6 Hillary Gunn, RTM District 7 Brooks Harris, RTM, District 10, chair

Shaye Hester, RTM District 9 Barbara Hindman, RTM, District 12, chair

Karen Hirsh, Board of Education Rabbi Mitch Hurvitz, Temple Sholom, senior rabbi; task force member

Daniel Izzo, RTM District 6; Budget Committee vice chair Scott Kalb, BET, task force member

Jonathan Kantor, RTM, District 12 Joe Kelly, RTM District 2, chair Rachel Khanna, state representative

Myra Klockenbrink, RTM District 8; Parks and Recreation Committee, secretary

Laura Kostin, Board of Education Sophie Koven, Board of Education Lucy Krasnor, RTM District 5 Miriam Kreuzer, RTM District 7; task force member

Abbe Large, RTM District 9 Brigette Lee, RTM District 1 Frederick Lee, RTM District 1, Chair; Appointments Committee, vice chair

Marina Levine, RTM District 7 Lindy Lilien, RTM District 5 Mary Ellen Markowitz, RTM District 2

Abigail McCarthy, RTM District 12 Bob McKnight, RTM District 4, Chair; Appointments Committee, chair

Kamele McLaren, Greenwich Academy, director DEI; task force member

Janet McMahon, RTM District 8, secretary

Steve Meskers, State Representative; RTM District 6 Richard Montier, RTM District 12 Anthony Moor, RTM District 7; Transportation Committee, chair Noelle Moore, RTM, District 12 Leslie Moriarty, BET

Cheryl Moss, RTM District 8, chair; Public Works Committee, chair Ellen Murdock, RTM, District 12, secretary

Sean Olesen, RTM District 5 Barbara O’Neill, RTM District 6 Sheila Phelan, RTM District 8 Nerlyn Pierson, RTM District 11 Dan Quigley, RTM District 1, Land Use Committee, chair Lauren Rabin, Board of Selectmen

Sam Rosenfeld, RTM District 1 Chloe Rosenfeld, RTM District 1 Steven Rubin, RTM District 3; Education Committee, chair Stephen Selbst, BET Jonathan Shankman, RTM District 9, secretary

David Snyder, RTM District 6 Allison Soler, RTM District 8; Health & Human Services Committee, chair

Joanne Steinhardt, RTM District 9 Louisa Stone, RTM District 10 Janet Stone McGuigan, Board of Selectmen

Kathleen Stowe, BOE

Jay Teevan, RTM District 2; Legislative and Rules Committee, secretary

Joan Thakor, RTM District 5

Dr. Alecia Thomas, Brunswick, Director DEI; task force member Mary Tobin, RTM District 6 Kimberly Treibick, RTM District 5 Karsten Vagner, RTM District 3, vice chair

Lucy Von Brachel, RTM District 4, secretary

James Waters, RTM District 12; Budget Committee, chair David Weisbrod, BET Stacey Widlitz, RTM District 6 Andrew Winston, RTM District 12 Victoria Martin Young, RTM District 6

The Rev. Marek Zabriskie, Christ Church, rector; task force member Greg Zorthian, RTM District 11; Finance Committee, chair Mark Zuccerella, Greenwich Police Department, deputy chief; task force member