I want to show you what Keshet experienced at Pride this year in cities across the nation.

At just about every turn along every march route, we were met with cheers, applause, even shouts of gratitude. Hundreds of thousands of people made it clear: our proudly Jewish contingents were not only welcome, but celebrated.

That is what the vast majority of moments felt like for Keshet staff and community members of all ages at nearly 100 Pride events this year.

And, there were also painful moments, especially this past weekend. As the leading national organization uniquely positioned at the intersection of Jewish and LGBTQ+ identity, we are not afraid to name those moments and condemn them.

On Friday evening, Sen. Scott Wiener was accosted by a group of people while attempting to join San Francisco’s Trans March, experiencing antisemitic invectives and physical intimidation that went much further than vehement protests of his policy decisions. It was a disturbing snapshot of the antisemitism that is on the rise globally. I was appalled to see the videos.

Later that same evening, a group of motorists menacingly circled and drove into crowds at the Trans March, harassing attendees. In a separate incident at the march, police officers escalated a nonviolent situation into a violent one, brutally assaulting marchers. It was a shocking continuation of the cruelty and animus our trans and nonbinary community members are facing, from the White House and the Supreme Court, to the streets of San Francisco’s Transgender District. My heart raced as I texted our Bay Area staff members to check that they were safe.

Some of you may be wondering why I am acknowledging all of these moments in the same email.

As LGBTQ+ Jews, we do not have the luxury of focusing on only one of them at a time: we live it all, and thus, we must hold it all, simultaneously, always. This is the truth of what our communities experienced this past weekend. And as hard as it is, I think there is profound holiness to the elasticity of our hearts, to our capacity and responsibility to hold it all.

This is not about equating or hierarchizing pain. This is about noticing the patterns of dehumanization and vitriol that are not leading us any closer to the world of safety and belonging that every single one of us deserves.

I am also appalled by many of the responses I am seeing to what happened to Sen. Scott Wiener. Some people are refusing to acknowledge that antisemitism played any role. Others are using this incident as an opportunity to project false, harmful generalizations onto the entire trans community.

I have even seen fellow Jews call for the Jewish community to abandon the LGBTQ+ community and our shared fight for equality.

This is not the way.

Our tradition teaches us that we are all created B’tzelem Elohim, in the image of the Divine. This concept appears in the very first chapter of the first book of our Torah, precisely because it is the fundamental principle upon which all others rest.

The charge behind this teaching is clear: we must never lose sight of each other’s sacred humanity. Every single one of us is needed in the fight for equality and dignity, in the building of that better world.

Yes, these painful moments remind us of how much work lies ahead for us.

And, they were surrounded by vibrant glimpses of what becomes possible because of that work.

Watch the video again. Take in the beaming faces of LGBTQ+ Jewish teens experiencing their first-ever Pride march. Let the resounding cheers of the spectators sink in. Notice the colors, the Stars of David, the loud, proud Jewishness and queerness of it all.

One of my favorite things to do at Pride is to ask Keshet youth how they are feeling at the moment. Here are some of the responses I received yesterday:

“They’re so happy to see us. I feel like I could cry.”

“I feel like God is shining down on us.”

“This is amazing. I wish every day was like this.”

One day, it will be. Every day that we lean into connection and community, every day that we choose to honor the humanity in each other, every day that we show up as our full authentic selves, we get a little bit closer to that day.