When the sun sets on Friday, many of New York’s roughly one million Jews will observe Rosh Hashana, the first of the Jewish High Holy Days that mark the start of the New Year.
But as they fill synagogues and homes for services and prayers, more of the city’s Jewish houses of worship will boost spending to increase security.
Over the last three years, Jewish institutions across New York City have added millions more to their budgets for security protections amid an increase in antisemitic attacks, rabbis and Jewish community leaders say. They have paid to hire more private security guards, increase the number of safety trainings at synagogues and schools, update their security cameras and fortify their buildings. They are also relying on more volunteer security guards at temples and encouraging those who attend services to be especially watchful.
Their efforts have come into focus ahead of the 10-day period of somber introspection that takes place between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, the holiest holiday in Judaism. But community leaders say that they have been more worried about security since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks in Israel and subsequent protests of how Israel has responded during the resulting war. Leaders say they also saw an uptick in violence against Jewish New Yorkers and threats against their houses of worship.
“These are congregations and leaders who have been dealing with a heightened threat environment for a few years now,” said Hindy Poupko, the senior vice president of the UJA-Federation of New York, a Jewish philanthropy network. “There is indeed a heightened level of vigilance, and we are also facing a congregational community that is prepared.”
During a news conference on Wednesday with the Police Department, Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Police Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch said that no credible threats against any Jewish houses of worship had been reported ahead of the holiday weekend. But they added that police officers would be at synagogues and other Jewish institutions across all five boroughs during the high holidays.
New York City, which is home to the country’s largest Jewish population, has seen an increase in violent incidents targeting Jewish gathering places or individuals over the past few years.
Ms. Tisch said at the news conference that antisemitic hate crimes are up 9 percent so far this year. According to the Police Department’s hate crimes dashboard, more than half of confirmed hate crimes this year have targeted Jewish New Yorkers. In early August, a man was arrested and charged with a hate crime after he was accused of striking two people during Shabbat services at Central Synagogue in Midtown. In May, a handful of synagogues and Jewish community centers in Forest Hills, Queens, were vandalized with antisemitic graffiti.
The Community Security Initiative, a program sponsored by the UJA-Federation and Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, found in a preliminary assessment that security expenses at synagogues in the city have increased by 300 percent since before Oct. 7. Leaders at smaller community centers and temples that are largely funded by donors and members said they have had to rearrange their budgets to keep up with increasing security costs, which they added could have potential long-term effects on key programs and community initiatives.
“Whenever there’s a program, a Hebrew school or services, you need to have armed guards,” said Rabbi Mendy Kotlarsky, who leads Merkos 302, a national organization that supports Chabad. “There’s also local volunteers, but even local volunteers means training and coordination, and there’s costs associated with that.”
On Tuesday, Gov. Kathy Hochul said that her office had allocated $70 million this year to an annual grant program that funds security measures at houses of worship and community and nonprofit organizations at risk of being targeted by hate crimes — three times the amount her office awarded when she took office in 2021. The grants, which are not meant only for Jewish organizations, can be for up to $250,000.
Ms. Hochul said her office will also add state troopers to the increased security at synagogues across the state during the week of the High Holy Days. Before announcing the additional grant funds, the governor had been meeting with faith and community leaders.
The grants will help pay for updates to security technologies, adding cameras and alarm systems, training security personnel and increasing cybersecurity. On the federal level, Jewish groups are lobbying Congress to triple the budget for a national program offering grants to nonprofit organizations, which would bring it to $1 billion for the 2027 fiscal year.
Rabbi Zev Wineberg, who leads Chabad Long Island City with his wife, Rivka Wineberg, said that while he understands the concerns, he and other leaders have been careful to ensure that any perceived threat would not deter their communities from attending services as they normally would.
“People come to shul on Rosh Hashana with the focus of connecting to community, connecting to God, and we just feel like we have to make sure there shouldn’t be anything else on their mind,” he said.
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