Some 2,500 people, many wearing kippot (yarmulkes), gathered on April 25 in front of Berlin’s Jüdisches Gemeindehaus (Jewish community center) to show their support and solidarity for the country’s Jews.

Organizers had encouraged Berlin’s citizens to assemble wearing a kippah on their heads in response to an anti-Semitic attack on April 17, when a young Israeli Arab man wore the distinctly Jewish headcovering to see if it was safe to walk the streets of Germany as a Jew. He was beaten with a belt while the attacker shouted “Jew” in Arabic.

Following the incident, some members of Berlin’s Jewish community questioned whether it was safe for Jews to walk alone in the city with a kippah.

Rabbi Yehuda Tiechtel, Chabad-Lubavitch emissary and community rabbi of Berlin, said the call to show public Jewish pride was indeed a most effective way to react to anti-Semitism.

“Hiding ourselves as Jews will never solve hate,” he said. “There’s no place in German society for people who aren’t tolerant. The public display of support by so many in Berlin is the greatest sign of a strong Jewish future.”

Organizers encouraged Berlin residents of all backgrounds to attend the rally wearing a kippah. After an anti-Semitic attack on April 17, some in the Jewish community questioned whether it was safe for Jews to walk alone in the city wearing the traditional head covering.
Organizers encouraged Berlin residents of all backgrounds to attend the rally wearing a kippah. After an anti-Semitic attack on April 17, some in the Jewish community questioned whether it was safe for Jews to walk alone in the city wearing the traditional head covering.
Rabbi Yehuda Tiechtel, left, said showing Jewish pride in public is an effective reaction to anti-Semitism.
Rabbi Yehuda Tiechtel, left, said showing Jewish pride in public is an effective reaction to anti-Semitism.