The Miracle of Jewish Independence Today
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Sam Yebri is a dedicated civic leader in LA fighting for Jews and Israel.
In June of 2024, a group of pro-Palestinian protestors showed up to the Jewish community of Pico-Robertson, Los Angeles, shouting vulgarities at Jews, blocking a synagogue entrance, and wearing keffiyehs. They were there to stop people from purchasing Israeli real estate at an event inside the synagogue, and the protests soon turned violent. Some people got injured, the police showed up in riot gear, and President Biden put out a statement that he was “appalled by the scenes” of what happened.
One of the community leaders who swiftly got the information about the protests out to his fellow Jews was Sam Yebri, a workers’ rights attorney who ran for City Council in the Pico-Robertson district in 2022. To his over 10,000 followers on his Instagram – which he dedicates to fighting antisemitism as well as crime throughout his beloved LA – he posted videos and pictures of the mayhem.
He told the LA Times, “There’s a reason why these protesters chose Pico-Robertson for their actions: They knew they would be striking at the heart of Jewish America.”
Sam dearly loves his city – and his Jewish community. Pre-Oct. 7, he was already heavily involved in different Jewish organizations including the special needs organization ETTA, where he’s president of the board, as well as the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles and American Israel Public Affairs Committee. Now, he’s ramped up his support for his people and Israel, posting daily on social media and promoting local events to give back to the world’s only Jewish state.
“The Jewish community cannot be afraid to wield its strengths to protect ourselves,” he said. “We are vulnerable. If we don’t do it, no one else will.”
Sam is an immigrant from Iran. He and his family left their hometown of Tehran because of the antisemitism that was happening following the 1979 Islamic Revolution, which also brought about violence throughout the country. They waited in Rome for several months before they were granted their visas and refugee status, and then stayed in New York where they had family, before moving to the Westwood neighborhood in LA. It's known as “Tehrangeles” due to the large number of Persians who emigrated there.
“Being an immigrant certainly informed my upbringing, because I learned the value of hard work, love of this country, and not taking anything for granted,” Sam said.
Sam was born in Tehran
He watched his parents as they worked long hours, coming from Iran with nothing to eventually become successful dentists and achieve the American dream.
While Sam didn’t experience antisemitism as a child, when he went to Yale University, he saw it firsthand. He was a junior when 9/11 happened, and Amiri Baraka, an African American poet, got up on stage at Yale and recited a poem that blamed Jews for 9/11. In it, Baraka, poet laureate of New Jersey at the time, said, “Who know why five Israelis was filming the explosion, and cracking they sides at the notion.”
“Seeing people whom I viewed as friends and classmates stand up and cheer him on was shocking,” said Sam, a husband and father of four. “It was my first experience of seeing people blame Jews for anything that went wrong. I wrote an email to my parents that I felt like this would be a searing memory, and for my entire life, it has been.”
Another time, Sam, who was president of the pro-Israel group at Yale, set up an event to host Ehud Barak, the former prime minister of Israel. The protestors came out.
“It was during the beginning stages of the BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) movement,” he said. “By today’s standards, the protests would be tame, but at the time, they were extremely hostile not only towards the speaker and Israel, but also towards Jews.”
Sam, who attended USC for law school, has been disappointed by the antisemitism he’s seen at his alma mater. He believes that Jewish students should fight back.
“Federal law is clear that universities and colleges have to protect students from any form of discrimination or violence,” he said. “Going through the courts is an important way to ensure the protection of Jewish students on campus.”
As someone who is politically active, Sam encourages his fellow Jews to also get involved.
“We need to lobby every elected official to do everything they can to protect vulnerable Jewish institutions, fund police patrols, and ban violent protests near synagogues and schools,” he said. “We also must prosecute individuals who commit hate crimes and use social media platforms to get the word out.”
Sam and Leah Yebri with their kids
Sam advocates for informing elected officials about Israel and its true history, instead of seeing it through the lens of a David and Goliath story, where Israel is wrongly framed as Goliath.
“Israel, in fact, is in a very dangerous neighborhood in the Middle East and faces existential threats every day, including Iran, which is on the verge of having a nuclear weapon. It’s incumbent on every member of the Jewish community to educate their elected officials. Democracy is not just a participatory sport, but a contact sport. Make sure you are actively recruiting, supporting, and championing candidates that you believe in. When you find a candidate or an issue you’re passionate about, there’s no better way to advance it than to tell a friend, knock on doors, and make phone calls. That’s how elections are won and how policy gets made.”
When doing our work, when putting in our effort, we must be optimistic about the future as well.
“As Jews, we can’t live without hope,” Sam said. “From one perspective, things have never been better for the Jewish people. If we had told our great grandparents there were Jewish students being bullied at Harvard, they would have said, ‘That’s amazing – there are Jews at Harvard?’ Or if we had said we have Israel and America supports it, they would have been astonished.”
Though antisemitism is frightening, the Jewish people are suffering, and Israel is constantly being attacked, Sam refuses to let it get him down – or stop him from doing his important work.
“As a people, we need to look for blessings in these dark moments,” he said. “For all the darkness that October 7 has brought, there is a flicker of light. So many Jews from so many different backgrounds and walks of life are coming together to explore and embrace their Judaism in deeper ways. As a Jewish community, we should use this opportunity to talk not just about the horrors of Oct. 7, but also about the beauty of Judaism. That’s what it’s all about.”
I don't understand any form of hatred of one or another country. We have no choice about where we are born, or who our parents might be. Anti-Semites must learn to put themselves in the shoes of a Jew to see how it feels.
That's my answer to any form of hatred.
In our time we need people like Rabbi Meir Kahane(obm) to make organizations and stand up to anti semitic bullies, plus people from the shul in california should sue everybody that was involved in this nob of haters, also they were transpassing on shul's property, the shul needs private security guards, and maybe guard dogs to protect the people in the shul from this ever happening again G_d Forbid
The country that wants to G_d forbid destroy Israel, America and western and Judeo-christian values is Iran that used to be called Persia, first the Iranians and others are targeting Jews and Israel and then like the time of the Holocaust they went after everyone else, like Benjamin Netaynau said to congress" the so callef protesters are useful idiots" but in the end people that are with Israel will realize that it is the whole world is in danger not just Jews and Israel if Iran(Persia) makes G_d forbid a atomic bomb, infortunately no one is getting this fact except Jews and Israel when will people woke up to the real facts
16 attacks on journalists at Pico-Robertson.
The vast majority of the aggressions against members of the press were at the hands of men the journalists described as pro-Israeli counterprotesters. However, individuals from both sides — including a rabbi and security volunteers from the Jewish community — attempted to intervene and prevent the violence from escalating.
Los Angeles Police Department officers, however, did little to mitigate the attacks, multiple journalists told the Tracker. A photojournalist who asked to remain anonymous, citing fears of harassment, said the inaction of the police was jarring.
“You would think that no matter how corrupt or inept or apathetic a cop might be, if they see... someone getting beat up by a swarm of people, they would stop it,,they didn't.
How about we Jews stand up for America? End the ADL, for ex., which defends Soros (who funds BLM & pro-Pal protests); writes CRT lessons for schools; trains our police in DEI & Counter-Terrorism; helped the FBI find Jan 6ers; defends Mayorkas (DHS) & his open borders; & writes our hate speech (censorship) laws.
WE DO NOTHING to stop our own who have destroyed America; & then we expect citizens to "fight antisemitism" for us? Or demand they go to war with Iran while more & more of citizens can't afford their bills; & our vets are out on the street?
I know, I know: Any who don't obey are "antisemites"🙄.
To the antiSemite say: Why do you harm your own soul by operating against God?
Who's god?
YES!
The first critical step to over coming antiSemitism is to not allowing yourself to fall into the paralyzing pattern of victimhood.
Hate has always been with us. God never told us to relax our guard. It was always meant for us to be pro-active about our safety.
It has never been about winning people over.
It is about remaining steadfast in faith irrespective of what people do around you, and to you.
It would make them happy to derail you.
There will be the ignorant; aggressors, intimidators, harassers, stalkers, defamers, murderers, libelers, slanderers, thieves, haters, the irrational, bully people; and, we must learn to deal appropriately with all of them.
There is only one way forward: With God, faith, and by being your best version always.
Endure to the end.
The antiSemite desires to take over your head space.
This is where the greatest war gets waged.
AntiSemitism is first and foremost psychological warfare.
It is time to kick them and fear to the curb; develop broad shoulders, and a thick-hided back; and, ensure God only is allowed to occupy your head space.
It is a choice, and you must make it to gain back your confidence that you can remain steadfast and endure to the end; and, to see the way to go.
Stay safe. Be well.
excellent article and inspiring to be more involved