Jewish communities must harness their “superpower” of community to transform the lives of refugees and asylum seekers, leaders urged at a landmark conference in London on Sunday.
Timed ahead of Refugee Week (16-23 June), which this year carries the theme ‘Community is a Superpower’, the “Strangers to Neighbours” event, organised by HIAS+JCORE, brought together activists, rabbis and refugee support organisers to explore the Jewish imperative to act.
Opening the conference at JW3, Rabbi David Mason, director of HIAS+JCORE, said: “It is our vision that through this conference, the Jewish communities should be at the centre of transforming refugees and those seeking asylum from being outsiders to being our neighbours and friends.” Highlighting the Jewish value of partnership, he added: “We are so much stronger together.”
Jewish communities’ deep-rooted connection to refugee experiences was also noted by Angela Eagle MP, Minister for Border Security and Asylum, who praised their historical and ongoing role. “This country is compassionate and sensitive to the plight of those fleeing persecution and conflict… With a properly managed system, we can continue to help the world’s most vulnerable people,” she said in a special video message.
Across a series of sessions, speakers showed how synagogues are already turning values into action. Jill Prager of Kingston, Surbiton and District Synagogue shared how her small community launched an asylum drop-in centre supporting Ukrainian refugees. “I can’t turn my back on them,” she said, recalling seeing newly arrived refugees sitting silently in a local café. “I knew the community would be behind us, and they were.”
Anna Becker from the Liberal Jewish Synagogue spoke about their centre supporting over 150 asylum-seeking families every two months. “The biggest barrier for people seeking asylum is feeling like they have a community they belong to. That sense of belonging is so impactful,” she said.
Rabbi David Mason, Director of HIAS+JCORE
Personal stories showed the human impact of these initiatives. One refugee grandmother, initially isolated and struggling, was connected to craft sessions and now “looks completely different… She’s happy, and it’s given her a new walk of life,” Prager said. Others have gone on to volunteer themselves, creating a cycle of empowerment.
Looking to the future, HIAS+JCORE launched a new partnership with City of Sanctuary to create official “Synagogues of Sanctuary”, places actively embedding welcome, learning, and advocacy into communal life. Sian Summers-Rees, CEO of City of Sanctuary, said the aim was to celebrate existing projects while helping synagogues go further: “We are building a wider movement of welcome.”
Schonfield urged communities to seize the moment: ‘Community is our superpower. It’s time to show it.”
HIAS+JCORE are now encouraging Jewish communities nationwide to mark Refugee Week and join the growing network of Synagogues of Sanctuary.
