Light and laughter will overcome the darkness this Chanukah

The government’s recent announcements, including up to £10 million in emergency security funding, a review into public order legislation, and a review into NHS antisemitism have been welcome, but they are not enough.

We cannot keep waiting for review after review while our community feels under siege today. We need action now.

Across society, a pattern of capitulation and double standards is becoming impossible to ignore. West Midlands Police relied on false intelligence to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters from Villa Park, yet fans of the Swiss team BSC Young Boys, who have an extensive record of hooliganism, faced no such exclusion.

Jewish artists like Oi Va Voi have been cancelled simply because some of their members are Israeli – behaviour that would be widely condemned as xenophobic were they from any other country.

Within the NHS, doctors have praised Hamas and spread conspiracy theories about ‘Jewish supremacy’ while regulators fail to act. On campus, a former UCL academic taught ancient antisemitic blood libels as fact.

And public figures, from the Archbishop of York to Pep Guardiola, continue to repeat baseless accusations of genocide against the world’s only Jewish state.

And yet, in the face of hatred, our community continues to stand tall. British Jews are not going anywhere. We remain proud of who we are, proud of our values, and proud to celebrate those values in the heart of the capital.

Chanukah has always been about light overcoming darkness. From the Seleucid Empire’s persecution of the Jews of Judea to Hamas’s massacre on October 7th, the Jewish people have continuously refused to bow to fear, choosing instead to bring light, share it, and spread it.

ChanukahLIVE! will be a celebration of our everlasting resilience, as Trafalgar Square is filled with live music, dancing, laughter and doughnuts.

And this isn’t just a Jewish event. Londoners of all faiths and none, who uphold the values of decency, tolerance and respect, are welcome to join the celebration.

Because when allies show up, when they sing with us, dance with us, or simply stand beside our community, it sends a message that echoes far beyond Trafalgar Square.

It tells Britain’s Jews that we are not isolated. It tells those who seek to intimidate us that they will fail. And it tells our children that they can grow up Jewish and British without compromising either identity.

This Chanukah, at 5pm on Tuesday 16th December, come to Trafalgar Square. Bring your family, bring your friends, bring your voice. Stand with us, celebrate with us, and help us bring light to the centre of London at a moment when the country sorely needs it.