What does it mean to celebrate Passover during a time of rising authoritarianism, climate crisis, and genocide? Every year, Jews mark Passover by reading the Haggadah and by refraining from eating leavened bread for eight days in commemoration of the ancient Israelites’ hurried trip out of Egypt. The Exodus story tells of their journey from slavery to freedom, and each year Jews are commanded to experience this ritual anew, imagining that God is setting them free as if in the days of old.
But as the yearly calendar brings us to a holiday celebrating divine redemption and freedom, it’s hard to avoid the despair of this historical moment. There are efforts to dismantle the federal government, expel undocumented immigrants, and advance theocratic ideas to further erode the separation of church and state, all alongside the collapse of the ceasefire in Gaza and violent Israeli military incursions in the West Bank. Meanwhile, the Trump administration appears to be implementing Project Esther. The administration is shutting down pro-Palestine organizing by weaponizing antisemitism rather than actually fighting it, and every day more students and faculty are being targeted for harassment, including having their visas revoked and facing deportation.
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