Hanukkah 1999

December 3, 1999

Source: The San Francisco Chronicle

On December 3, 1999, The San Francisco Chronicle reported on the events happening in the San Francisco Area to celebrate Hanukkah. A 22-foot menorah in Union Square will be lit for up to four hours each day, with a rock concert to be held in Union Square on Sunday, December 5th. Rabbi Yosef Langer, an Orthodox rabbi, invited the rock musicians and will lead a drum circle, where members of the crowd will be asked to participate. Langer, once dubbed the 'Rock 'n' Roll Rabbi' for his affinity for the Grateful Dead, stated: 'This is an opportunity to be proud...to let your soul walk in front of you...You have to step it up a pace." The lighting of the menorah in Union Square dates back to 1974, which was the first public menorah lighting outside of Israel. Some view the Hanukkah celebration through the events of hate crimes against Jews that have happened in the past year. Rabbi Doug Kahn, who heads the San Francisco-based Jewish Community Relations Council, stated: "I think about the real meaning of Hanukkah even more after events like (Sacramento and Los Angeles) and about the determination and the unwillingness to allow those who would seek to destroy us to obtain victory." Other celebrations in the San Francisco area include a Hanukkah-Kwanzaa event at the Jewish Community Center in San Francisco, a performance by a singing group from the Israeli Defense Forces at the Israeli Consulate, and events geared toward gay and lesbian Jews at Sha'ar Zahav synagogue.