On a chilly May day outside Downing Street, they came together in their thousands to face down antisemitism at the “Standing Strong” rally.
“Britain Stands With Britain’s Jews” was the slogan, as Jews and non-Jews gathered to demand action after the rising tide of hate had exploded into a crisis in recent weeks.
Here was a moment to acknowledge how British society is being tested in an echo of the darkest chapters of history.
One attendee at the rally, Sean, looked back to his own family’s past as demanding his presence, after earlier generations had combatted extremism in the 30s.
He told the JC: “Ninety years ago my grandparents were fighting against hatred in the Battle of Cable Street.
“I see nearly a century later we are here again having to deal with this same hate in our streets.
"It is time for us all to come out and show everybody that we are, A: not afraid, and, B: that this hate cannot continue.
“We did it then in the 1936; we can do it again, now.
“We can stop the hate today as we stopped it back then.”
Over a dozen national Jewish bodies, including the United Synagogue (US), the Board of Deputies, the Jewish Leadership Council (JLC) and Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA), had jointly organised the rally.
Another attendee, Jade, also found echoes of the battle against Sir Oswald Mosley’s Blackshirts in the challenge facing the Jewish community and Britain today.
She said: “This is the 21st century Cable Street.”
Jade is stridently defiant in refusing to concede to hate and fear. “Everybody keeps telling me to hide, to be careful, but I refuse to hide. If we don't stand up now, we risk the same thing happening again that happened in the 1930s.”
The crowd included a sizable contingent of Iranian dissidents who despise the Tehran regime and regularly show solidarity with Britain’s Jewish community and Israel.
Effusively welcoming their presence, Jade said: “I stand with the British Jewish community. I stand with the Iranians who are against the Islamic Revolutionary Guard [IRGC].
“It is so important for us to be here today, but it's even more important for non-Jewish allies to come and stand with us to show that they care. There has not been enough in the past.”
The rally took place with Jews experiencing a level of threat that is unprecedented in modern history, after repeated attacks accompanied by widespread antisemitism on social media and even among council candidates at last week’s election.
But those gathered outside Downing Street had a simple refusal to be intimated by the hate.
Pointing to the slogan on his T-Shirt, “Jewish and proud – never afraid”, Jonathan exclaimed: “Look what it says.
“I'm here supporting my community who are fed up of a feeling that we are not part of a community despite the fact we have all grown up here and have lived here all our lives.
“We have contributed a hell of a lot to this country. We are proud to be Jewish and we are proud to be British.”
A series of speakers led the event. Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis had opened the rally with a strong call for action, particularly against the threat of Iran on British soil.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch was greeted warmly, and her call to stand against Islamist extremism was echoed by leading British Muslim Fiyaz Mughal and former extremism tsar Lord Walney.
Labour minister Pat McFadden faced prolonged booing from some sections of the crowd, but pressed on, pledging the government’s commitment to bring in new laws to tackle antisemitism.
In between the speeches, musicians on stage were joined in song by the crowd, their chorus of voices echoing across Whitehall.
Debbie, who had come down to London from Leeds for the rally, told the JC: “The atmosphere was amazing. It was so positive and heartwarming.”
She particularly welcomed the way in which some speakers had spoken out about the need to confront Islamist extremism, saying: “This is something the Labour government has been unwilling to voice.”
Despite the grim necessity for the rally, the mood was surprisingly ebullient, with the crowd perhaps heartened by the sense of solidarity and allyship.
But that cheery mood on the day didn’t translate into optimism for Rosalind, who looks back to the last decade and the problem of antisemitism in the Labour party under Jeremy Corbyn.
“I don't think it's the turning point,” she said, downplaying her expectations of the results from the rally and the speeches.
“This country has been going downhill not just in the last two-and-a-half years, but for a lot, lot longer, starting with Corbynism.
“The recent stuff to do with Israel is just an excuse for more antisemitism.
“The Labour people have not turned up at any of the rallies so far. So, I don't think this one is going to make any difference.”
But still she explained she had felt compelled to join: “I just couldn't not be here today, so I got on the train and here I am.”
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