Photo by Michael Duke

Solidarity Service for Israel Attended by More Than 1000 People

Date: January 20, 2009

An estimated 1200 or more people attended a solidarity service for Israel, planned and carried out by a large number of Houston Jewish organizations, including the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) at Congregation Beth Yeshurun. 

Rabbis from nearly every congregation in Houston sat together on the pulpit, joined by community leaders, elected officials, and lay leaders of the agencies and institutions that organized the service, including the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston, the American Jewish Committee, and the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee.   Other lay supporters of those organizations and other Jewish institutions such as Hadassah worked as media relations, security and logistics volunteers.  Houston's Jewish community presented a unified picture of support for Israel, and ADL was proud to be part of it.

"This is an example of how well Houston's Jewish institutions work together, and of what we can accomplish together," said Martin B. Cominsky, ADL's Southwest Regional Director.   "While we had been meeting and working on addressing the situation in Gaza since the incursion began," he added, "the service was put together in about 48 hours.  I am really proud of everybody involved in such a dignified, vibrant show of support of Israel."

Presenters at the service included rabbis, cantors, Israeli Consul General Asher Yarden, Pastor Martin Nicholas of Sugar Land's First United Methodist Church, Houston City Council Member Anne Clutterbuck, and Texas State Representative Ana Hernandez (D-Houston).  

Former Mickey Leland intern Darryl Blackburn (now a petroleum engineering major at the University of Oklahoma) inspired the crowd to cheers with his story about his trip to Israel as a Mickey Leland intern, how it helped him realize the struggles Israelis dealt with every day, and how it made him a supporter of Israel.  The crowd reacted with applause and shouts of approval when Blackburn declared, loudly and proudly "I am a Zionist!"

The rally received media coverage from most of Houston's major media outlets, including network TV stations, KTRH radio, and the Houston Chronicle.   Participants said they were glad to be a part of such an orderly, reasonable show of support for Israel.