(C) Daily Montanan This story was originally published by Daily Montanan and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . 'The Christmas Menorahs,' story of courage after antisemitism, republished on 30th anniversary – Daily Montanan [1] ['Keila Szpaller', 'More From Author', '- December'] Date: 2023-12-12 In the book “The Christmas Menorahs,” one of the characters talks about love and hate as the city of Billings banded together to support a Jewish family after an attack on their home. “Hate can make a lot of noise. Love and courage are usually quieter. But in the end, they’re the strongest,” said Tammie Schnitzer in the book, first published in 1995. In the story, Schnitzer’s son, Isaac, has a menorah in his bedroom window for Hanukkah during the holiday season of 1993, but someone throws a rock through the window and breaks the glass. In 1993, skinheads had started infiltrating the city of Billings, according to the book. Isaac feels afraid, and the police chief tells the family vandals also targeted African Americans in town. In response to the act of intolerance, however, and with Christians in the lead, the community of Billings rallies to support the Jewish family by putting up menorahs in windows all around town. Author Janice Cohn wrote the book to tell the story of the act of courage by a small community after she read about it in the New York Times in 1994. Now, Cohn is republishing the book 30 years later in a time when she said the message of tolerance, of love over hate, is crucial. “Unfortunately, the book has become so relevant and so important in terms of the message that it sends,” Cohn said in a recent telephone interview. She said the time is also right because it’s the 80th anniversary of the rescue of Danish Jews in 1943, which inspired the support for Jews in Billings in a roundabout way. In the book, illustrated by Bill Farnsworth, a series of people take action in response to the vandalism. Mrs. Schnitzer gives a television interview, which prompts Margaret MacDonald, with the Montana Association of Churches, to offer up an idea: “Let’s all put up menorahs.” Cohn, an author, psychotherapist and former columnist for The Washington Times, describes the people who take a stand, such as MacDonald, as “upstanders.” In the book, she encourages people to be upstanders, and in an interview, she said the identity is distinct from being a bystander. “A bystander witnesses what happens but doesn’t necessarily take action,” Cohn said. “An upstander is someone who witnesses injustices but then takes action. And the tens and tens of thousands of people in Billings became upstanders.” She said people can be upstanders against acts of antisemitism, Islamophobia and racism, but they can also stand up against more general acts of bullying. More than ever, it’s important to remind people of stories of goodness and courage, she said, and Billings should feel proud of this piece of its history, also presented in a documentary, “Not In Our Town.” “People can act according to their better angels,” Cohn said. One of the reasons Cohn said she wanted to republish the book herself is she wanted readers to have access to materials that go with the story, and she didn’t want to negotiate. “I thought it was crucial that all the material in the back be included, but I didn’t want to have to fight with a publisher or editor about what should be included and what should not,” Cohn said. Extra material includes a copy of the New York Times story from 1994, a copy of a 1993 Billings Gazette page printed with a menorah and request from the newspaper that readers display it in their windows, an interview with a woman who was a Jewish child in Denmark during World War II and recounted a rescue by a fisherman who took families to Sweden, and a discussion guide. MacDonald, who in 1993 raised the idea of posting menorahs throughout Billings, went on to serve in the Montana Legislature. In the book, Cohn said MacDonald reframed the problem of harassment against Jews, African Americans and other groups as “not their problem, it was the town’s problem.” MacDonald, now with Big Sky 55+, said in a recent email the Montana Association of Churches and local congregations took a stand then to support Montana’s small Jewish community. Big Sky 55+ advocates for older Montanans. “I believe this effort was firmly grounded in the teachings that Jesus emphasized in Matthew’s gospel to ‘Love your neighbor as yourself,’ the Great Commandment,” MacDonald said. She also said republication couldn’t come at a better time for the book. “Once again, the demon of antisemitism has reared its ugly head in the world and more particularly in the United States,” MacDonald said. “This helps us tell our children our life-giving story about what it means to be neighbors and to be faithful.” Cohn said the culprits in Billings were never caught; she believes they slunk away after it became clear the community would not accept their actions. Cohn is a psychotherapist, and in her work with mental health, she sees people struggling with helplessness and despair, more so than in the past. She said she still believes love is stronger than hate, but it’s getting harder. “When I see someone being kind to someone, going out of their way to show someone that they’re not alone, those are the things that give me hope,” Cohn said. “And I do have hope, but unfortunately, it’s very dark times right now.” Disclosure: Daily Montanan Editor-in-Chief Darrell Ehrlick, former editor of the Billings Gazette, was interviewed for Cohn’s book project. [END] --- [1] Url: https://dailymontanan.com/2023/12/12/the-christmas-menorahs-story-of-love-and-courage-republished-on-30th-anniversary-of-antisemitism-in-billings/ Published and (C) by Daily Montanan Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/montanan/