Mark J Epstein Awards Call For Entries

COUNTY OF SUFFOLK

OFFICE OF THE COUNTY EXECUTIVE

H. Lee Dennison Building 100 Veterans Memorial Highway

P.O. Box 6100 Hauppauge, New York 11788-0099

(631) 853-8270

Jason Stern Suffolk County Jewish Advisory Board

Chair Roderick A. Pearson EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Minority Affairs

Dear Student,

American Jews were targets of more anti-Semitic incidents in 2019 than any other year over the past 40 years. Seventy-five years after the Holocaust, antisemitism is being expressed publicly and violently. This award has been created to challenge young people to think about how they can fight antisemitism as it is appearing today in all our lives.

In Poway, California, a shooting at a Jewish center killed a 60-year-old woman and injured three others in April 2019. This was six months after a gunman killed 11 worshippers at a Pittsburgh synagogue. In Jersey City, New Jersey, two suspects are accused of killing a police detective near a cemetery in December and then storming a nearby kosher market where they shot and killed three people. In Monsey, New York, five Orthodox Jews were stabbed by an attacker during a home Hanukkah celebration and a 72-year-old man later died from his injuries. More recently, the Covid-19 pandemic has given rise to a sharp increase in online conspiracy theories against Jews. Jewish students on college campuses across the country are physically attacked and harassed for their support of Israel.

To help combat the scourge of antisemitism, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone and the Suffolk County Jewish Advisory Board are hosting the first annual Mark J. Epstein Suffolk County Leadership Award to fight Antisemitism, named to honor the life of the JAB’s founding chairman, who passed away in June. Proudly Jewish, Mark was a selfless fighter for the public good, whether as chairman of the Long Island Railroad Commuter Council, a commissioner on the Suffolk County Human Rights Commission or in a number of roles promoting justice and human rights.

The award is open to all students in grades K-12 in Suffolk County. A total of three awards will be made--one award at each school level (elementary, middle/junior and high school). The honorees will be selected based on their personal work and/or commitment to fighting antisemitism in their community or more broadly. The award reflects the deep commitment of both County Executive Bellone and Mark to fight antisemitism and build a diverse community in which peoples of all backgrounds can thrive with mutual respect. In that spirit, we encourage students of all faiths and backgrounds to participate. Guidelines follow. Good luck!

The Suffolk County Jewish Advisory Board