Alma Hernandez (AZ): ‘There’s a Line Where Anti-Semitism Crosses With Anti-Zionism’

“The rise of hate attacks against Jews in our country is appalling. It’s not only the shootings and stabbings but the fact that in my synagogue we have to have a police officer during Shabbat services. We’re living in a time where we feel so unsafe to be Jewish in our community that we have to pay a law enforcement officer to stand outside of our shul. That for me is the most frustrating thing of all. You can’t even live a normal life when you feel that you’re constantly having to watch your back.”

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Alma Hernandez (AZ): ‘No One Should Be Above the Law’

Alma Hernandez (26), a Democrat from Tucson, AZ, is the first Jewish Mexican-American woman elected to the Arizona State House. Her brother is also a state representative in South Tucson, and her sister is on the school board. She grew up in a nonobservant intermarried family. She connected to Judaism as a teenager, has held leadership positions in several Jewish organizations and recently became a bat mitzvah. We are providing the unfiltered opinions of voters interviewed for this project. Those views are based on their understanding and perception of facts and information from a range of sources. In some cases, that information may be misleading or incorrect. How does your Judaism affect your political views? I am very proud of my Jewish roots and I have tried to include that in every aspect of my life, including politics and policy....

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