Op-Ed: Nathan Diament: Congress must act against the American Intifada
The American Jewish community is under attack, but Congress is acting like business as usual.
In just the past three weeks, two Israeli Embassy employees were murdered in the nation’s capital, and 15 senior citizens were set on fire in Boulder, Colorado, for no other reason than their Jewish identity.
If there was any doubt, now it’s clear: the pro-Hamas call to “globalize the Intifada” has arrived in America. In both cases, the perpetrators shouted antisemitic and anti-Zionist slogans. There is no ambiguity about their motivations. It is open season on the Jews.
The usual heartfelt statements followed, but let’s be honest: the time for sympathetic press releases has come and gone. Thoughts and prayers are not going to protect us from the next act of violence. It is time for Congress to act to provide security and reassurance to the Jewish community.
The federal government already has the tools to do so. The National Security Grant Program (NSGP), started in 2005, provides grants to nonprofits, including synagogues, schools, and community centers, to purchase and improve life-saving security measures, like video cameras, alarm systems, fences, etc. These measures have already saved thousands of lives.
The problem is that the program is drastically underfunded, and Congress is failing to meet the urgent demands of the moment.
In 2024, 7,584 nonprofits and religious institutions (not all of them Jewish) requested $973 million in total funding, but only $454.5 million was granted. Recipients also encountered unnecessary administrative hurdles and delays, including this year, when a funding freeze at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) caused payments and reimbursements to be paused for months, putting lives at risk.
On Monday, the House Appropriations Committee proposed $305 million in NSGP funds for the 2026 Homeland Security funding bill, a far cry from what is needed. That number is a marginal increase from 2023 funding, but still less than 2024 and 2025, which included supplemental grants totalling $400 million.
The first thing that needs to happen is for DHS to open up this year’s grant money — $275 million — for application.
Second, Congress needs to increase the funding in the NSGP for fiscal year 2026 in light of the increased antisemitism sweeping the country. A bipartisan group of more than 130 House members and 33 senators have called for appropriating $500 million for the NSGP. That must be done.
Third, Congress should allocate $200 million of the Department of Justice’s existing grants to local police specifically for increased patrols and police presence at Jewish (and other faith communities) institutions.
If you walk past a Jewish synagogue on the Sabbath or a Jewish holiday, you will often see local police officers protecting the grounds. This extra protection is usually paid for by members of the Jewish community because local communities don’t have the resources to protect all its members, especially some of the most vulnerable.
This amounts to an unfair and absurd “anti-Semitism tax” on the Jewish community, and it needs to stop. Congress can remedy the imbalance by directing police grants to targeted communities.
Finally, Congress needs to pass the Antisemitism Awareness Act (AAA), which will make it easier to prosecute antisemites who violate Jews’ civil rights under the guise of opposing Israel. The House passed the AAA overwhelmingly last year, but some Senate Democrats and Sen. Rand Paul (R., Ky.) hijacked the bill in Committee to derail it.
The threats to the American Jewish community are not imagined. The FBI announced there is an “elevated threat” from copycat attacks and called for vigilance from American Jews. Rest assured, our communities are putting in the effort. It’s time for Congress to do the same.
Nathan Diament is the executive director of the Orthodox Union Advocacy Center.
