By the end of January, more than 3.5 million people will have seen a hot pink billboard strategically placed on I-85 northbound leaving Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport that reads, “If you think turbulence is scary, try wearing a Jewish star.”
The clever message by New York-based nonprofit JewBelong is meant to draw attention to antisemitism, which has “skyrocketed” according to the Anti Defamation League. Jewish people make up 1.8% of the U.S. population, but are targets of 60% of religious hate crimes, the organization stated.
JewBelong Cofounder Archie Gottesman is determined to bring awareness to the masses with compelling messaging like a billboard that once stood above Briarcliff Road at North Decatur Road that read, “If Atlanta is too busy to hate, why is there a swastika at my kid’s school?”
“Billboards are powerful because no matter what you read or what your algorithm feeds you, at some point everybody gets in their car or walks down the street and will see the billboards,” said Gottesman.
People often ask Gottesman, “Why billboards?” The answer is that 98% of the population is not Jewish. “They may not be antisemitic, but they are susceptible” to believing tropes or antisemitic narratives. Rather than hope that antisemitism goes away, it’s important to get in the game and make it clear: Antisemitism is bad for America, she said.
“Even though I’m painfully aware of antisemitism, most people are not,” she said.
The ADL has reported a sharp increase in antisemitism since Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas brutally attacked Israel, sparking a war that’s been ongoing for 14 months.
In metro Atlanta, residential sidewalks have been littered with anti-Jewish, anti-LGBTQ flyers; property at Georgia Tech and Emory University was graffitied with swastikas and anti-Israel messages; and Israeli-owned businesses like Ali’s Cookies have experienced violent and threatening acts of hate.
There were also local antisemitic acts that flew under the radar. Tucker City Council members received antisemitic mailers from a known hate group; a small group associated with North Georgia Active Club, a white supremacist group, held a meetup at Sweetwater Creek State Park; and several antisemitic calls were made to the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta.
JewBelong has had a presence in metro Atlanta since a local donor approached Gottesman in 2022. The first signature hot pink billboard was erected that year on Peachtree Road just north of Piedmont Hospital, a few days before 60,000 runners were scheduled to run by it on the Peachtree Road Race course.
The “turbulence” billboard will be in Atlanta through at least Jan. 26, and it has been duplicated near airports in Chicago, Denver, Miami and Phoenix.
JewBelong provides online and printable resources for holidays, lifecycle events, interfaith relationships, and more.