A back-and-forth between a rabbi and the organizer of a local arts and culture festival in Williamsburg, Virginia over a proposed menorah lighting spilled into public view over the weekend, igniting accusations of antisemitism after the organizer expressed hesitation that staging the ceremony would be seen as taking a stance on the Israel-Hamas war.
Rabbi Mendy Heber of Chabad Williamsburg’s exchange with Shirley Vermillion, the founder of the monthly festival, had left him feeling like he’d been delivered a “kick in the gut,” he told the Virginia Gazette.
He’d approached her with the idea to host a 30-minute lighting ceremony on Dec. 10, the next time the festival—which, every month from March to December, plays host to more than 150 artisans, performers, and food vendors—will be held. But Vermillion turned him down.
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“We are about Peace, Love & light…” she wrote in a private message shared with Norfolk station WAVY.com and The Washington Post. “don’t want to make it seem we’re choosing a side — supporting the killing/bombing of thousands of men, women & children.”
Vermillion counter-proposed that the festival’s board would be willing to host the lighting if “we could get an Islamic group to participate at the same time,” or failing that, “if you’d do it under a cease fire banner.”
In reply, Heber pointed out that it would be a religious, rather than political, ceremony. “This would not have anything to do with Israel! Nothing to do with Zionism. Everything to do with adding light in the world.” Speaking to the Gazette later, he characterized Vermillion’s propositions as “a political litmus test” for American Jews, calling it “just discriminatory, ugly and un-American.”
He told the Post in a Monday interview that Chabad Williamsburg had sold challah at the festival since May, and that he’d enjoyed a “wonderful” relationship with organizers “until now.”
“We would have been perfectly fine with the response: ‘Rabbi, scheduling it’s not going to work,’ regardless of your reasoning,” he said. “But to give me a reason that I need to take a political stance in order to move forward and confirm the details of the event is shocking and disturbing.”
Vermillion explained to the Gazette on Sunday that the lighting ceremony had “seemed very inappropriate” given the ongoing conflict in Gaza. “The concern is of folks feeling like we are siding with a group over the other,” she said.
The Gazette initially reported that the ceremony had been “canceled due to Israel-Hamas conflict,” a framing that both Heber and Vermillion disputed. Vermillion noted to the Gazette and the Post that the lighting had never been formally agreed upon or scheduled, and that Heber’s last-minute proposal would not have worked logistically.
She also said that the festival had previously denied performance requests from Christian groups, wanting to avoid any whiff of religious affiliation.
In a statement to WTKR, LoveLight Placemaking, the nonprofit that programs and organizes the festival, elaborated, “In 14 years this street festival has never had a religious program as one of its events. This is not a discriminatory act but one based on the objectives of the organization and the sincere desire to make this monthly event a place where all people can come together to enjoy MUSIC and ART.”
The organization also stated, “We respect and love our Jewish community members and wish them a very happy Hanukkah. But we standby [sic] our mission to create a safe place for all to gather and enjoy art and music and chose not to showcase religious ceremonies of any faith as part of our programming.”
Nevertheless, as the report of the lighting’s “cancellation” circulated online, the festival began drawing heated flak from Virginia lawmakers, among them Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin. “Singling out the Jewish community by canceling this Hanukkah celebration is absurd and antisemitic,” he tweeted. “The event organizers should immediately reconsider their actions and move forward with the menorah lighting.”
Vermillion told the Post on Monday that she was planning to talk to police about “some threats that I need to document” in the wake of the controversy. A spokesperson for the city manager’s office told the newspaper that the city was aware of “messages that could be construed as threatening sent to the event and event organizer,” but that it was “a private matter in which the City of Williamsburg” was not involved. It was not immediately clear if a police investigation would be opened.
Meanwhile, Heber has since found a more willing host for the ceremony. The lighting will now be held in the Sunken Garden on William & Mary’s campus on Thursday—the first night of Hanukkah.
“We’re going to make this Hanukkah bigger and brighter than ever,” Heber told the Gazette. “That is how we respond to darkness.”
