A broad coalition of British businesses, faith leaders, charities, sports organisations and media figures has issued a public message of solidarity with the UK’s Jewish community following a
series of antisemitic incidents in London.
The open letter comes in the wake of several arson attacks targeting Jewish sites, along with a double stabbing in Golders Green that police are treating as an act of terrorism.
Addressed directly to British Jews, the statement declares: “This country belongs to you as much as any of us. You are as British as all of us who call this country home.”
It continues with a pledge to stand against hatred and extremism, promising: “We will do everything we can to protect you and your community from the extremists who threaten you.”
The letter stresses that antisemitism is not solely a concern for Jewish people, stating: “This is not a problem for Jewish people to have to respond to. This is a problem for all of us to fix.”
Signatories span multiple sectors of British public life. Among them are major business groups including the Confederation of British Industry, the Federation of Small Businesses, the British Retail Consortium and the British Chambers of Commerce.
Sporting organisations such as the Football Association, the England and Wales Cricket Board and the Rugby Football Union also backed the initiative, alongside senior figures from leading media outlets including ITV, The Guardian, The Independent, The Spectator, the Mirror, the Express and the New Statesman.
Religious leaders from Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh and Zoroastrian communities added their support, while charities and public bodies including the National Lottery Community Fund, the Local Government Association and the National Council for Voluntary Organisations also signed the letter.
Brendan Cox, co-founder of the Together Coalition, which helped organise the initiative, described the message as “an incredibly powerful statement of solidarity”.
He warned that antisemitism should not be viewed as an issue affecting only Jewish communities.
“It’s a cancer in our society that undermines the kind of inclusive country that we all want to build,” Cox said. “Extremists are trying to divide us, to target minorities on the basis of their race or religion and to turn community against community. We won’t let them.”
Julie Siddiqi, co-chair of the UK Muslim Network, said British Muslims and British Jews should stand together against hatred and extremism.
“As British Muslims we know what it’s like to face hatred and violence because of our faith,” she said. “That shared experience should make British Jews and British Muslims allies in tackling extremism.”
Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis called the letter “a powerful riposte to the hateful extremists who have targeted the Jewish community in recent weeks”.
He welcomed the united response from institutions across business, sport, faith and civil society, adding that he hoped others would follow their lead “in workplaces, boardrooms, classrooms and on social media”.
Adrian Cohen, acting president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, said visible allyship was essential in confronting “the scourge of anti-Jewish hatred and its violent manifestations”.
Rabbi Charley Baginsky, co-lead of The Movement for Progressive Judaism, said the support would provide reassurance to many Jewish people feeling “anxious and exposed” amid rising tensions and attacks. Photo by Erfurth, Wikimedia commons.
