Rep. Weinstein calls for increases to security funding for non-profits

COLUMBUS – State Representative Casey Weinstein (D-Hudson) is calling for an increase in state security funding for non-profits after more than 50 Jewish Community Centers, including the Jewish Community Centers of Akron and Youngstown, received bomb threats over the weekend.

“My heart is heavy knowing that we are once again under threat,” said Rep. Weinstein. “We have been fortunate that the violence threatened against us here in Ohio has not resulted in bloodshed, but we must stay vigilant.”

Anti-Semitism has been on the rise over the past several years, with a dramatic increase in physical attacks occurring in 2018, including the mass shooting at the Tree of Life Shooting in Pittsburgh. A planned attack on a Toledo-area synagogue was thwarted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation later that same year. A man who threatened a similar attack on the Jewish Community Center of Youngstown was arrested by local police in August of 2019.

“I am grateful that we were able to get my amendment increasing the amount of money available to non-profits for target hardening added to the 2020-2021 state budget,” added Rep. Weinstein. “But we must do even more in the face of rising threats here in Ohio and across the country.”

“Our community is grateful for the support of our local, state and federal government agencies and elected officials for their leadership on funding needs for non-profits at risk of attack,” said Todd Polikoff, CEO of the Jewish Community Board of Akron. “This latest threat showcases, once again, that the need for this support is active, pressing and ever increasing.”