We are living through one of the most turbulent periods diaspora Jewry has known in modern memory. From my vantage point in Manchester, covering the Jewish world daily for Israeli newspaper Maariv and tracking the pulse of communities across the UK and beyond, it is impossible to ignore the anxiety, isolation and dislocation permeating our campuses, communal centres and streets.
Rising antisemitism, alongside deepening strains in the relationship between Israel and the diaspora, have left many feeling trapped on the defensive. Too often, the instinctual response is to justify, react, or quietly retreat into the background.
This posture of retreat is more than a strategic mistake; it is an existential trap. Viktor Frankl taught that when external circumstances strip away our sense of control, one radical freedom remains non-negotiable: the ability to choose our attitude and determine our response. Modern psychology terms this an “internal locus of control” – the realisation that we are not passive victims buffeted by reality, but active authors duty-bound to shape the future with our own hands. World Jewry cannot afford to remain an anxious audience watching events unfold. We must shift from defensive reaction to deliberate, proactive leadership.
This understanding is deeply personal to me. As someone on the autism spectrum, I have spent a lifetime pushing back against a society quick to define people with neurological or physical differences by their perceived limitations. My campaign to champion the term “people of determination”, alongside efforts to reform aviation accessibility and ensure Holocaust victims with disabilities are remembered with dignity, arose from this refusal to accept an unjust baseline. Transformation never begins by waiting for others to grant permission; it begins with an uncompromising refusal to accept reality as it is.
To get more from community, click here to sign up for our free community newsletter.