Mike Azria
American Jews still reeling from the Oct. 7 massacre in Israel are showing their pride around their necks and on their fingers.
Many Jews previously silent about their religion now feel compelled to flash their bling featuring the Star of David; the Hebrew word chai, meaning “life,” and the phrase “bring them home.”
The Hamas attack “made me feel like I needed to show people who I am because it’s not overt,” said Monica Hopenwasser, 52, a Los Angeles art educator whose grandparents were Holocaust survivors. She bought a “chai” necklace after Oct. 7, and wears two beaded Star of David bracelets her sister made.
“It is important to me to wear it and to show my Jewish identity in these horrible times,” she said.
Dora, a rabbi’s wife who works in education in Manhattan, has been wearing her silver six-point star necklace since the massacre.
“I am part of a community that’s grieving and angry — justifiably angry — about what happened,” said Dora, 42, who asked that her last name be withheld.
Bareket Fine Jewelry’s sales of Judaica jewelry increased a whopping 450% in the two months following Oct. 7 compared to the same time the year prior, according to Danielle Lourie Rothstein, director of marketing.
After the holiday season, sales died down but still the company is seeing a 50% year-over-year increase in 2024.
Rachie Shnay, who has a Judaica jewelry line called The Mazel Collection, said she too has seen a surge in sales post-Oct. 7.
“Everyone wants to be loud and proud,” Shnay said. “Many who have never thought of wearing a Jewish star feel the intense urge to have it on them at all times.”
Before Oct. 7, a Manhattan therapist, 51, who asked that her name not be used, said she was “secure” in her Judaism and didn’t feel the need to make it known. “Now I feel like I need to have Jewish pride,” she said. She dons a necklace with a pendant in the shape of Israel as well as a ring with the Star of David.
Still, others hide their religious pride in the wake of surging antisemitism in the Big Apple. Nearly half of Jewish respondents reported feeling New York is unsafe for them, according to a new study.