08/28/2024
Cleveland Stands Together: A Community's Commitment to #BRINGTHEMHOMENOW
On October 7, 2023, more than 250 innocent civilians were taken hostage by the terrorist group Hamas. These individuals are as old as 85 and as young as 9-months; they are men, women, and children; they are Israeli, American, Russian, Argentinian, and Thai. They have missed birthdays, anniversaries, and so many more milestones while being subjected to unimaginable horrors.
Since October 7, the Jewish Federation of Cleveland has continuously advocated for the immediate release of the hostages. 23 days after the attacks, more than 800 people came together at Hebrew Academy of Cleveland for a vigil for the hostages. Photos and names of the hostages played on a projection screen, and speakers offered support, prayers, and told the heartbreaking stories of hostages who were taken. Following the vigil, attendees were encouraged to take posters of the hostages and display them wherever they would be visible. They also were given Shabbat candles and asked to think of the hostages on the posters each time they lit them.
In addition to more than 5,000 posters displayed at homes and businesses across town, more than 2,000 lawn signs were posted outside of homes across Greater Cleveland that support Israel and raise awareness for the hostages.
The Jewish Federation of Cleveland wanted to also make a big, public statement to keep the hostages top of mind throughout Greater Cleveland. In December, a 15-foot-tall and 10-foot-wide ribbon displaying the faces of the 240 hostages was erected outside the Jewish Federation of Cleveland building on Richmond Road. This public art installation was created by local artist Nancy Schwartz-Katz and championed by Sharon Rosenbaum.
To further extend the reach of the “Bring Them Home Now” message to the Greater Cleveland community, the Federation purchased strategically located billboards that demanded the release of the hostages held in Gaza while building awareness to the rise in antisemitism. These billboards were housed on Interstate 90 east near the West 117th Street exit and Interstate 480 west near the Broadway Avenue exit, rotating to different locations throughout the winter and spring.
The Federation also began to run ads on Bally Sports Cleveland during the first round of the Cleveland Cavaliers playoffs and throughout the Cleveland Guardians regular season. The ads ran both as “in-game” spots on Bally’s streaming service and appeared on related Bally’s TV programming at other times. These initial ad series comprised three different spots and featured a specific hostage. They were intentionally silent for both dramatic effect and to pull the viewer’s attention back to the screen when the sound abruptly cuts out.
On the sixth-month anniversary of the October 7 attacks, over 1,000 people turned out to walk and run in memory of those killed in Israel or still held hostage in Gaza. Ratzim Bishvilam, “Running for Them” was held on April 7 and featured a personal story from Natalia Ben Zvi, whose son, Sagiv, 24, was one of the victims at the Nova Music Festival. Each participant walked in memory of an October 7 victim or hostage and could scan a QR code on their racing bibs to read the victim’s story. Participants of the two-mile run and walk carried or draped Israeli flags over their shoulders and held signs and flyers.
Every day since October 7, our Jewish Cleveland community has been standing up to unfathomable hate by delivering immediate help and hope for our Israeli family – for all those whose lives were lost and all those whose lives will never be the same. #BRINGTHEMHOMENOW
TOGETHER, we help save and change tens of thousands of lives in Cleveland, Israel, and around the world. Thank you!
