Letter to the Editor: Emanuel Fialkow

To the Editor,

Turning Controversy into a Teaching Moment
In response to the recent criticism surrounding the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival and its decision to retain a college student juror who has expressed anti-Israel views; many in the Jewish community are understandably troubled. Emotions are raw. The instinct to protest, to demand removal, boycott, or to express outrage is natural. But reframing this situation would suggest that this moment presents us with a far more powerful opportunity: not to whine, not to cancel, not to retreat — but to educate.
Jews are a people whose greatest weapon has always been learning. When confronted with ignorance, Jews have historically responded with scholarship, dialogue, and moral clarity. If this young student harbors misguided or one-sided views about Israel, what better setting than a Jewish film festival — surrounded by Jewish stories, history, art, and lived experience — for him to encounter the depth and humanity to which he may never have been exposed?
College students are, by definition, still forming their worldviews. They are impressionable. Many are influenced by social media narratives, campus activism, and oversimplified slogans. Condemning him outright may reinforce whatever caricature he already holds about the Jewish community. Engaging him thoughtfully, however, could reshape his perspective for a lifetime.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. reminded us that “darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” He also spoke clearly about the moral legitimacy of Israel and the deep bonds between the Black and Jewish communities. His vision was rooted in dialogue and shared humanity. If we claim his legacy in Atlanta, his city, we must live it. That means choosing light over outrage.
Jews are not without allies in the Black community who have consistently stood with the Jewish people and the State of Israel. The late Congressman John Lewis understood deeply the connection between the struggle for civil rights in America and the Jewish experience of persecution and resilience. Their voices remind us that alliances are built not through purity tests, but through sustained relationships.
Even in the cultural sphere, figures like Tyler Perry have demonstrated meaningful solidarity with the Jewish community here in Atlanta, especially during times of rising antisemitism. These examples show that bridge-building is not naïve; it is necessary and effective.
So rather than demanding this student’s removal, imagine inviting him to coffee with Holocaust survivors or Oct. 7 survivors. Imagine pairing him with Israeli filmmakers whose work reflects complexity rather than caricature. Imagine thoughtful panels where he can ask hard questions and receive substantive answers. Education is not weakness. It is confidence in the Jewish story.
If Jews truly believe in the power of their narrative — history, democracy, diversity within Israel itself — then Jews should not fear exposure. It should be welcomed. The Jewish state is not perfect, but it is vibrant, pluralistic, innovative, and resilient. Let him see that. Let him wrestle with real people rather than abstract slogans.
We often lament that younger generations are drifting away. Here is a young person, however critical, who is nonetheless present at a Jewish institution. That is not a threat; it is an opening.
Atlanta has long been a city where Black-Jewish cooperation achieved historic progress. We dishonor that legacy if we respond to disagreement with exclusion rather than engagement. The stronger path — the more Jewish path — is to teach, to model dignity, and to demonstrate the ethical seriousness of our tradition.
Let us show this student — and the broader community — that our best response to criticism is not insecurity but education; not outrage but outreach. If even one mind is broadened, one stereotype dismantled, one relationship built, the decision to engage rather than expel will have been worthwhile.

Emanuel Fialkow, member of the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust, Georgia Regional Transportation Authority, and Chair of the Sandy Springs Police Foundation