Jewish Community Homeland Security Primer distributed to law enforcement agencies
Recently, DHS distributed the primer to all fifty state representatives and posted the document as a resource for training and education.
“We feel that this document is a very useful product for law enforcement as it relates homeland security and building better partnerships with our communities,” said Bart Johnson, head of the Association.
Threat response exercise
A month ago, on 4 September, DHS hosted more than righty top Jewish leaders for an exercise designed to prepare Jewish communities for potential security threats. The event, which was the first of its kind for a faith-based community, was coordinated by the Secure Community Network (SCN), an initiative funded by the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) to address matters of communal safety and security.
Senior leadership from Jewish Federations and other Jewish organizations discussed security preparedness with DHS secretary Janet Napolitano and other high-level officials of the DHS, FBI, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and State Department, as well as representatives of several major metropolitan police forces. Staff members for Representative Peter King (R-New York), chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security, also participated.
“Today’s meeting served as a very important dialogue between the people on the ground across the country and the law enforcement authorities in Washington who are charged with keeping us safe,” said Stephen Hoffman, president of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland. “The event also demonstrated the importance of the Jewish community combining its organizational resources to best serve the interests of the Jewish people.”
During the program, Jewish leaders took part in exercises simulating international incidents and domestic terror attacks, and were briefed on security plans, policies, best practices and strategies for information-sharing between government agencies and the Jewish community. The group also worked towards developing a comprehensive toolkit to provide Federations, synagogues, schools, JCCs, and other Jewish agencies with the ability to conduct similar security simulations at their facilities. SCN expects to release this toolkit in the coming weeks.
“We are deeply indebted to the Department of Homeland Security and the other federal agencies who have made possible today’s unprecedented ‘table top’ exercise. National and international events underscore the urgency of providing secure environments in our communal institutions,” said Malcolm Hoenlein, executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.
“The information, advice and direction provided by the experts assembled for this most important program will help improve the safety and preparedness of those present and their constituents across the country. SCN through its partnership and close working relationship with DHS, the FBI and other agencies is providing a lifesaving service that is a model for all communities to emulate.”
Paul Goldenberg, national director of SCN, said, “Current threats and recent overseas events require that we equip ourselves with the knowledge and capability to safeguard our facilities. Today’s exercise delivered a valuable and remarkable experience that will pay dividends towards enhancing our levels of security, preparedness and resiliency within our organizations and communities.”
The event was part of a larger effort to ensure the safety of the Jewish community in advance of the Jewish High Holidays.
