new york, new york – To improve the security of the Jewish facilities of Miami-Dade County, the Greater Miami Jewish Federation and the Community Security Service (CSS) announced a partnership to enable Jewish congregations to play a more active role in security through organized, volunteer-led programs and training opportunities.
The partnership comes at a time when anti-Semitism and extremism are on the rise and Jewish places of worship remain targets of violence, vandalism and hate crimes. His ADL, a CSS partner, recently released a report, “Hate in the Sunshine State – Extremism and Anti-Semitism in Florida 2020-2022.” This shows that hate crimes have continued to rise in Florida over the past few years. Notably, hate crimes against Jews accounted for her 80% of religiously motivated incidents in 2020.
Over the past two years, CSS has taken several steps to improve security at Jewish facilities across the United States. The training involved volunteers from local synagogues and partnered with private security firms and local law enforcement agencies to teach situational awareness and best security practices, adding another layer to synagogue security plans. increase.
“While we have made great strides in building awareness of the critical need for volunteer security across the country, when it comes to grassroots efforts and responsibility, the Jewish community in America remains committed to its global counterparts. We are catching up,” said Bernstein, National Director and CEO of Evan R. CSS. “Given the increasing number of attacks on synagogues and Jewish institutions, establishing a true and complete partnership centered on the idea that security is everyone’s responsibility is critical to improving security outcomes. It is one of the most tangible ways to do so, so we are very excited to provide, free of charge, a mechanism that allows members of the Jewish community in Miami to empower and engage in the protection of their synagogues and events.”
CSS recently hired Hannah Iberkleid as Southern State Director to focus on the growing number of CSS-related agencies in Miami-Dade County. Iberkleid will work closely with James Somohano, Director of the Federation’s Office of Community Security (OCS), to oversee program collaboration, coordination and implementation. OCS directs the security posture of Jewish agencies and organizations throughout the county. Hannah previously worked as an intelligence analyst with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. She also worked for various Jewish organizations.
This new Federation-CSS partnership includes offering multi-level security training programs for synagogues, institutions and events. Additionally, the two entities maintain regular contact and information sharing in the event of security-related issues. “The Coalition believes that volunteer-led security is a doubling of power in a world that requires undue vigilance in a context of threat to the Jewish community,” said Jacob, Coalition President and CEO. Solomon says.
About Community Security Services (CSS):
CSS is the leading Jewish volunteer security organization in the United States. Founded in 2007, CSS has long been held by sister communities around the world that protecting Jewish life and the Jewish way of life begins with taking ownership of our security. It was the first organization to bring the traditional way of thinking to the United States. CSS focuses on training volunteers in basic security procedures to protect institutions and events nationwide. Volunteers learn how to identify suspicious activity, prevent and respond to potentially threatening situations. Developed by industry-leading security experts, the program is tailored for different levels of interest and ability. Since its inception, CSS has created a national network of thousands of trained volunteers who help protect synagogues and events across the country. Visit thecss.org.
About the Greater Miami Jewish Federation:
For 85 years, the Greater Miami Jewish Federation has been the unifying force of Jewish community building and philanthropy. Improving the quality of Jewish life in Miami-Dade County by bringing comfort and hope to the vulnerable, investing in programs that build Jewish knowledge, identity and humanity, and securing the next generation of Jews. Raise. The mission of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation is to care for those in need, strengthen Jewish life, and promote unity, values, and common purpose among Jews in Miami, Israel, and around the world. to mobilize human and financial resources. Visit JewishMiami.org.
