More than 160 political, religious and social leaders across the state on March 28 tuned in to “Two Steps Forward Against Anti-Semitism: a Virtual Summit for Massachusetts Mayors and Town Officials,” sponsored by the Jewish education group the Lappin Foundation of Beverly, with Peabody Mayor Ted Bettencourt as honorary chairman.
Beverly City Councilor Hannah Bowen tuned in because the subject dovetails, in part, with her work at the North Shore Community Mediation Center.
“It was really informative to hear from leaders about how these issues have shown up in their communities and how they’ve responded as government officials,” she said. “I also wanted to see what advocates are asking people to do. Some of this is about pre-emption and indicating what antisemitism is so it won’t be tolerated. It’s important we’re all aware of this. Arbitrary lines between communities don’t provide protection. We all cross those lines.”