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<\/a>Amid Rising Antisemitism, American Jews Make Aliyah to Israel Seeking Safety, Community, Impact<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\nAilin Vilches Arguello<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n NEW YORK\/TEL AVIV \u2014 Confronted with rising antisemitism and unease in the United States, a growing number of American Jews are choosing to make\u00a0aliyah<\/em>, embracing the risks of war in the Middle East for the chance to build new lives and foster meaningful communities.<\/span><\/p>\n On Wednesday,\u00a0225 new\u00a0olim<\/em>\u00a0arrived in Tel Aviv<\/a>\u00a0on the first charter\u00a0aliyah<\/em>\u00a0flight since the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.<\/span><\/p>\n Aliyah<\/em>\u00a0refers to the process of Jews immigrating to Israel, and olim<\/em>\u00a0refers to those who make this journey.<\/span><\/p>\n Nefesh B\u2019Nefesh (NBN) \u2014 a nonprofit that promotes and facilitates\u00a0aliyah<\/em>\u00a0from the US and Canada \u2014 brought its 65th charter flight from New York, which\u00a0The Algemeiner<\/em>\u00a0joined.<\/span><\/p>\n Founded in 2002, NBN helps\u00a0olim<\/em>\u00a0become fully integrated members of Israeli society, simplifying the\u00a0aliyah<\/em>\u00a0process and providing essential resources and guidance.<\/span><\/p>\n In partnership with Israel\u2019s Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, the Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth, and the Jewish National Fund, NBN has helped nearly 100,000\u00a0olim<\/em>\u00a0build thriving new lives in Israel.<\/span><\/p>\n Shawn Fink is one of the 225 people who embarked on the life-changing journey earlier this week, leaving Cleveland, Ohio, with his wife, Liz, and their son.<\/span><\/p>\n For Fink and his family, making\u00a0aliyah<\/em>\u00a0was driven not only by their love for Israel and desire to build a new community, but also by the escalating threats and uncertainties facing Jewish communities abroad since the outbreak of the war in Gaza.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cMostly, we were frustrated with the direction the United States is taking, and the rise in antisemitism was a major concern for us,\u201d Fink told\u00a0The Algemeiner<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n Like many countries around the world, the US has seen an alarming\u00a0rise in antisemitic incidents and anti-Israel sentiment<\/a>\u00a0since the Oct. 7 atrocities.<\/span><\/p>\n According to the latest data issued by the FBI, hate crimes perpetrated against Jews increased by 5.8 percent in 2024 to 1,938, the largest total recorded in over 30 years of the federal agency\u2019s counting them.<\/span><\/p>\n A striking 69 percent of all religion-based hate crimes that were reported to the FBI in 2024 targeted Jews, who constitute just 2 percent of the US population, with 2,041 out of 2,942 total such incidents being antisemitic in nature. Muslims were targeted the next highest amount as the victims of 256 offenses, or about 9 percent of the total.<\/span><\/p>\n Fink explained that the increasing costs of living a Jewish life in the US \u2014 from education to kosher food \u2014 weighed heavily on his family\u2019s decision to make the move to Israel.<\/span><\/p>\n While they first considered making\u00a0aliyah<\/em>\u00a0five years ago, Fink and his family had to put the plans on hold for personal reasons \u2014 returning to the idea only in the past few months when the timing finally worked in their favor.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe started planning it seriously in November and began the entire process with Nefesh B\u2019Nefesh,\u201d Fink told\u00a0The Algemeiner<\/em>. \u201cIt\u2019s been a nonstop whirlwind ever since.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n For them, the current war did not stop their plans, but it did influence the cities they explored for their new home.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe war really reinforced for us the importance of supporting Israel and our community,\u201d Fink said. \u201cBy making\u00a0aliyah<\/em>, we felt we could do even more to help.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Even though it is difficult to leave behind family and close friends, they look forward to reconnecting with friends in Israel, making new connections, and building a vibrant new community.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cMaking\u00a0aliyah<\/em>\u00a0in less than six months has been a whirlwind. I\u2019d encourage anyone considering it to give themselves at least twice as much time, double the budget, and be prepared for plenty of unexpected starts and stops along the way,\u201d Fink told\u00a0The Algemeiner<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n Nefesh B\u2019Nefesh provides assistance to families throughout their entire\u00a0aliyah<\/em>\u00a0journey, offering guidance before relocating and continued support once in Israel.<\/span><\/p>\n The Israeli government also complements these efforts with resources and financial incentives to help newcomers settle and ease their transition into their new lives.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cOnce the ticket is finally in your hand and you\u2019re waiting to board the plane, you realize that all the challenges and obstacles along the way were worth it,\u201d Fink said.<\/span><\/p>\n Veronica Zaragovia was also one of the 225\u00a0olim<\/em>\u00a0who joined the flight earlier this week.<\/span><\/p>\n Similarly to Fink and his family, Zaragovia decided to make\u00a0aliyah<\/em>, driven not just by her love for Israel, but also by the increasing challenges of being Jewish abroad and the hope of making a meaningful impact by serving her community.<\/span><\/p>\n From Florida, she embarked on the journey alone, excited for all the new opportunities and possibilities that awaited her in her new home.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI want to take pride in being Jewish and in Israel \u2014 that\u2019s why I\u2019m making\u00a0aliyah<\/em>,\u201d she told\u00a0The Algemeiner<\/em>, reflecting on the move she has been planning for the past two years.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a huge concern for me that in some places in the US, I can\u2019t \u2014 or maybe shouldn\u2019t \u2014 wear my Star of David necklace,\u201d she said. \u201cI don\u2019t feel that Jews can be fully safe anywhere in the country. The rise in antisemitism has been truly shocking and deeply concerning.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Zaragovia, who worked as a journalist in the US, said her love for storytelling and uncovering the truth played a key role in her decision to make this move.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAfter Oct. 7, I felt that the way my colleagues and other journalists were covering Israel was wrong and unfair,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAs someone whose career is built on facts and truth, I didn\u2019t see that reflected in their reporting. That\u2019s why I decided to make a difference by being there myself,\u201d she continued.<\/span><\/p>\n Rather than deterring her decision to make a change, Zaragovia explained that the current war only reinforced it.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt became clear that I needed to go, be there with my people, and make a difference through my work,\u201d she said. \u201cI couldn\u2019t have done this without Nefesh B\u2019Nefesh. They\u2019ve been incredible, guiding me every step of the way from start to finish.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Zawarto\u015b\u0107 publikowanych artyku\u0142\u00f3w i materia\u0142\u00f3w nie reprezentuje pogl\u0105d\u00f3w ani opinii Reunion’68,<\/em> . Amid Rising Antisemitism, American Jews Make Aliyah to Israel Seeking Safety, Community, Impact Ailin Vilches Arguello Olim gather at JFK Airport in New York, preparing to board Nefesh B\u2019Nefesh\u2019s 65th charter flight to Israel. Photo: The Algemeine NEW YORK\/TEL AVIV \u2014 Confronted with rising antisemitism and unease in the United States, a growing number […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6],"tags":[33,24],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123625"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=123625"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123625\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":123648,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123625\/revisions\/123648"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=123625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=123625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=123625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n![](\"https:\/\/www.algemeiner.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Israel-1.jpg\")
Olim gather at JFK Airport in New York, preparing to board Nefesh B\u2019Nefesh\u2019s 65th charter flight to Israel. Photo: The Algemeine<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n
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