US President Joe Biden will speak at an event today marking Jewish American Heritage Month, where he will address his administration’s efforts to combat rising antisemitism in the US.
The event will be held at the White House. During the ceremony, there will be a performance by the cast of the Broadway musical “Parade,” which tells the story of Leo Frank, the Jewish man who was falsely accused of murdering a Christian girl and subsequently lynched by a mob in Georgia in 1915.
The US has seen a rise in antisemitic incidents and attacks in recent years, in particular a rise in assaults on visibly religious Jews in the New York Borough of Brooklyn.
A source close to the President told the Associated Press that Biden’s decision to run for the presidency in 2020 stemmed from the 2017 neo-Nazi march in Charlottesville, Virginia, during which marchers chanted: “Jews will not replace us.”

Biden is also expected during his speech to speak about the appointment of a special commissioner to oversee the fight against anti-semitism, increasing federal funding for the security of synagogues and Jewish institutions, and the convening of a summit at the White House to combat hate crimes.
For the first time, the event will feature Israeli food. The White House brought in award-winning Israeli chef Michael Solomonov to prepare the menu.