In August 1790, George Washington wrote to the Hebrew Congregation of Newport, Rhode Island. His words were simple, but revolutionary: America would give “to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance.”
Washington wrote that every good citizen should “sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree, and there shall be none to make him afraid.”
It was a promise. A compact between our early nation and its Jewish citizens: equal opportunity and liberty defended for all. I’ve been thinking about this promise as we observe Presidents Day this year, especially as antisemitism has intensified these past few years.
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