Last Thursday’s attack on Temple Israel has elevated feelings of unease among the Jewish community. But it has also revealed that where there is respect and a desire to understand, our common bond of humanity can forge ties more powerful that the forces that seek to divide us. Those are the thoughts of Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit, who is Jewish. WEMU's Caroline MacGregor had a chance to catch up with him following last week’s attack.
Caroline MacGregor: You're listening to 89.1 WEMU. I'm Caroline MacGregor. And today, my guest is Eli Savit. He's the prosecuting attorney for Washtenaw County. And we're discussing the recent attack on Temple Israel and just some of the problems that have arisen as a result. But in light of what's going on overseas, the attack on Iran by Israel and America, the fear is that there may be more incidents regarding anti-Semitism. In the US. But as you expressed today, people have coexisted peacefully for some time, especially in the Detroit area, but here in Southeast Michigan, Washington or county. And it did catch my eye because you mentioned that one of the first people to reach out to you after Thursday's horrible attack were your Palestinian friends. Tell me what this says to you and the message that we all should keep in mind that we're all human beings. We want to live peacefully, as you stated, but it is good to keep perspective here, isn't it?
Eli Savit: It is. And, you know, the Thursday attack on Temple Israel was a horrific act of anti-Semitism, and it can't be condemned roundly enough. But the other thing to bear in mind is that here in Michigan, here in the United States, we have coexisted and not just coexisted, but maintained deep bonds. Peacefully and affectionately between various communities, the Jewish, Muslim and Arab communities. We all share this Michigan community and I think the fact that, you know, the first people that happened to reach out to me just to check on me to see how I was doing after Thursday's anti-Semitic attack happened to be some Palestinian friends of mine just demonstrated that we all are human beings first, we're Michiganders first, were Just the case that minority groups in Michigan, whether they're Palestinian, Muslim, Jewish, Arab, we know, all of us, unfortunately, what it is like to fear violence. Just for being in communal spaces, for being who we are, and absolutely nobody wants to live in a world where this kind of stuff. Can happen, where we see the type of anti-Semitic attacks, like we saw on Thursday. So, you know, there's been a lot of national media around the fact that in Southeast Michigan, we have large Jewish communities, large Muslim communities, large Arab communities. But I think it's just important to bear in mind that we all live together, we all work together. We not just peacefully coexist, but we're friends, we're neighbors, we're coworkers. You know, we are all Michiganders, Americans, and human beings above all first, and I think that's what's important to bear in mind.
Caroline MacGregor: And, the sad thing is that it can take just one incident or one attack, you know, I mean, it's obviously a very serious attack, but to, again, grow mistrust between our neighbors and ourselves. How can people help to continue to create those bonds where we can co-exist peacefully together in spite of what or despite what's going on overseas? Because we are living in very scary times right now.
Eli Savit: I think that it starts by having conversations and showing up for one another. You know, I had previously been scheduled to attend an Iftar dinner on Friday night in Dearborn, actually, and I went to Iftar the day after the temporal Israel attack. And every speaker that got up, the first thing they said, Or one of the first things they said was to roundly condemn the anti-Semitic attack on Temple Israel, to express solidarity with their Jewish neighbors. And I think that was important. I think it's important for us to be in these shared spaces. Because it is true that the actions of one individual, of course, do not reflect a broader community, whether that's a Muslim person, an Arab person, a Jewish person. And, you know, I've had so many conversations over the past several years. And look, you now, not everybody is going to agree on foreign policy, on what's happening overseas. There are differences of opinion on that. But I think what everybody really, to a person that I've talked to, no matter who they are, agrees with, is that we all want safety and security and dignity and compassion here at home. In Michigan, nobody that I have talked to has expressed anything other than horror and condemnation for the attempted murder of preschoolers. And I think it's important to remain in conversation, not to build walls between communities because there really is more that unites us than divides us, especially when we're talking about what's happening here at home.
Caroline MacGregor: Thank you for that. But the truth is the US initiated a war against Iran. A lot of countries are being drawn into this war overseas. This is Israel and the US basically attacking Iran like we've never seen before, whatever the given reasons. There are those who live here in southeast Michigan who have relatives in the region, in various countries in Middle East who are impacted by this. I suppose the fear is that this will raise a lot of, it's going to add to those wounds that you talked about in your message that you relayed on Facebook. A lot of people are very, very upset about this war and that it could instigate more attacks.
Eli Savit: You know, I am somebody that deeply opposes this war with Iran. I do not believe that the United States should have attacked a sovereign nation without congressional authorization. We seem to have absolutely no end game in mind here from my observation. Like I said, it was a war that does not meet the legal standards internationally or domestically for what qualifies to start a war. Certainly no congressional authorization, no imminent threat, nothing like that. And there have been so many lives lost. I think the count is over 2,000 lives have been lost in Iran and in Lebanon, as well as over a dozen now American service members. And I oppose it. And I think many of us here in Southeast Michigan oppose it and also There is a lot of grief, a lot of pain from people that may have loved ones, may have relatives who are in the regions, may even have lost loved ones and relatives. But at the end of the day, that certainly does not give license to launch attacks on Jewish community spaces. Jewish. Residents of Michigan, because, you know, Jewish people are not responsible for the decisions made by Donald Trump, and Benjamin Netanyahu. You know, I say this as a Jewish American, I oppose both of those leaders and what they are doing. So yes, there is a lot of pain, there is a lot of grief, there's a lot of anger over what is happening in the Middle East. And also, I think, at least here locally, from the conversations that I have had, There is universal and I really mean universal appreciation for the fact that just as not everybody that lives in the United States supports this war that has been undertaken and instigated by the United States. So too, is it the case that not every Jewish person in the United States or no Jewish person United States is responsible for that and in any event, an act of violence against preschoolers is but not just anti-Semitic but is unacceptable and I Really think that despite the grief despite the pain Despite how people are feeling about what's happening abroad again from from my conversations our neighbors here our American neighbors here all Firmly believe that and that's what I think it's important to bear in mind here You know if I could snap my fingers I think if a lot of us could snap fingers and stop the war. Uh, abroad we would, but we can't do that. And what's important is to recognize our neighbors, humanity here, to recognize that we are all Americans, we're all Michiganders, we all shared this community and all of us want to be able to worship freely, to send our kids to school in the morning, uh, and know that they're going to come home safe in the afternoon. That's what all of want here more than anything.
Caroline MacGregor: Well thank you. You know, it is that lack of control I think that people are feeling and it's certainly the grief that gives way to anger. But as you've stated, it's nurturing those bonds that we have here and respecting each other as human beings in spite of what our politicians do.
Eli Savit: Absolutely, absolutely. You know, this is a trying time. And again, the the grief and the pain that so many of us have experienced in a variety of communities since 2023. It's, it's very real. But we all live here, we all want peace. Here, we, you know, all want to live together here and go about our lives. And I think that's what's important to bear in mind. And it's important to keep those ties strong between communities here in southeast Michigan.
Caroline MacGregor: Well thank you for sharing your views and we really appreciate you joining us today.
Eli Savit: Thank you so much for having me.
Caroline MacGregor: You've been listening to my conversation with Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit and this is 89.1 WEMU FM Ypsilanti, your community NPR station.
