‘Antisemitism Goes Against the Values of Our City’: Community Comes Together for Town Hall Meeting After Shootings of Two LA Jewish Men

Following the recent shootings of two Jewish men near synagogues in Los Angeles, California, city leaders and community members came together for a town hall meeting on Monday to address the issue of rising antisemitic hatred.

Around 400 people attended the meeting, which was held in the Pico-Robertson neighborhood, where last week’s attacks occurred. It was organized by the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles.

“Today we’re not just here to stand in solidarity against last week’s shootings,” said Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. “We’re here locked arms against all forms of hate, bigotry, and discrimination, because antisemitism goes against the values of our city and goes against our humanity.”

I joined Angelenos in Pico-Robertson tonight for a town hall to hear directly from the Jewish community in the wake of recent shootings.

Let it be clear: Los Angeles will always stand in solidarity against anti-Semitism and hate. pic.twitter.com/D0zxpDdXBJ

— Mayor Karen Bass (@MayorOfLA) February 21, 2023

“The fear we feel is real,” said Noah Farkas, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, the organizer of the meeting. “The horror we’re experiencing is real.”

Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Chief Michel Moore said, “No one is born hating someone. It is a product of a society in which we live in.”

The suspect in the shootings, 28-year-old Jamie Tran, was arrested last Thursday and faces hate crime charges. U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said Tran targeted his victims — both of whom survived their wounds after receiving medical treatment in hospitals — “because they were Jewish or he believed them to be Jewish.”

Watch a Fox 11 Los Angeles report on the meeting here: