Nonprofit trains Queens seniors to be social media keyboard warriors against Jew-hatred
Sami Steigmann, an 86-year-old Holocaust survivor, uses Facebook but aspires to reach and educate younger audiences via platforms like Instagram and TikTok, he told JNS at an event in Queens on Thursday night.As JNS sat with Steigmann in the front row at Congregation Etz Hayim, a Conservative synagogue in Hollis Hills, a woman, who appeared to be in her 60s, who was sitting next to him, chimed in and offered to teach him how to post on Instagram.It was just the sort of interaction that the nonprofit, IMPACT, which hosted the gathering of some 60 people on Thursday evening at Congregation Etz Hayim, a Conservative synagogue in the Hollis Hills neighborhood of Queens, hopes to encourage.“Not everyone can go to a rally,” Aaron Herman, co-founder and CEO of the nonprofit, told JNS. “Not everyone can go out in the streets, but they can go from their couch.”“This group right here…
IMPACT, a nonprofit organization, recently trained approximately 60 Queens seniors and younger adults in Hollis Hills on how to combat antisemitism and defend Israel through social media. The program, held at Congregation Etz Hayim, equipped participants with skills in using platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, as well as tools like ChatGPT, to create and distribute digital content. Aaron Herman, IMPACT co-founder, stated, “Not everyone can go out in the streets, but they can go from their couch.” Holocaust survivor Sami Steigmann, 86, emphasized the importance of education, saying, “The Holocaust must be taught forever and ever.” The training comes amid a rise in antisemitic incidents in Queens, including synagogue vandalism and attacks with motor oil. Participants like Arlene Schlesinger, 74, expressed a desire to be more active, urging, “Stop being quiet.”
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