The following announcement was provided by the Jewish Watertown Action Network:
Jewish Watertown Action Network (JWAN) invites you to attend our upcoming program, “Antisemitism in Massachusetts: Progress and Path Forward,” on Thursday, March 5 at 7 p.m. at the Watertown Free Public Library.
This event will feature two members of the Massachusetts Special Commission on Combating Antisemitism. Established by Governor Maura Healey, this historic commission—the first of its kind in the nation—was created in response to the alarming rise of antisemitism across the Commonwealth.
The Commission’s recommendations, released in December 2025, were unanimously approved by its members and have received strong support from leading Massachusetts officials, including Senators Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren and U.S. Representatives Katherine Clark, Seth Moulton, and Lori Trahan. These recommendations outline meaningful, practical steps to address antisemitism in our schools, communities, and public institutions.
We are honored to welcome Rob Leikind, Regional Director of the American Jewish Committee of New England, and David Friedman, Executive Vice President for Legal Affairs of the Boston Red Sox, who both served on the Commission. The program will include a moderated discussion followed by substantial time for audience questions and dialogue.
To register: https://tinyurl.com/JWANmarch5.
We hope you will consider joining us to learn about the Commission’s work and the path forward for Massachusetts. To read the Special Commission’s full report visit: https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/SD3416.pdf.
The event is free and open to the public.
What an embarrassing and pathetic (though entirely predictable) performance by representatives of TIM at our event last night – heckling from the audience, attempts at long-winded political speeches during Q&A despite the clearly enunciated ground rules, and a clearly frustrated audience member ramming a plastic chair with their wheelchair on the way out the door. Clearly the “I” in the acronym should stand for “intolerant”. And if people think that petty vandalism against Jewish members of our community will silence us, they should think again.
I’m sorry to hear that, Jason. Your right to assemble and be heard was clearly a right too far for some people. We like to say how special Watertown is in this forum, and I won’t say it isn’t. I do say how discouraging it sounds that our Jewish community couldn’t host a meeting on combatting antisemitism without it being hijacked by people hostile to the agenda. If people were to disrupt the pro-Palestinian film series at the Church of the Good Shepherd, I would feel the same way. Open meetings should be open to debate, respectfully so.
Thank you Josh. I have attended events such as “Religious Leaders Speak Out on Injustices in Palestine” at the Church of the Good Shepherd and “Concerned Jewish Faculty…..” at the First Parish Church last year, and behaved like an adult despite my objections to what was being said, out of respect for the audience, the organizers and speakers. It took a lot of self-control not to speak out when one the pastors at the first one said “if someone calls you an anti-Semite, you’re probably telling the truth.” I’m not sure why this group of people feels that they are not bound by the same standards of decency. Very telling if you ask me….