In a powerful act of interreligious solidarity, several Baltimore-based rabbis joined dozens of other Jewish faith leaders from Maryland, Washington, D.C. and Virginai in signing an open letter calling for the immediate release of Dr. Badar Khan Suri. Dr. Suri, a Muslim and Indian citizen who is a postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown University, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on March 17th while returning home from a Ramadan celebration. After nearly two months in custody and a transfer to a Texas detention facility, a federal judge ordered his release and return to Virginia on May 14. However, deportation proceedings are ongoing.
For these Jewish clergy, signing the letter was a deeply moral and spiritual act rooted in Judaism’s enduring commitment to justice. They also voiced concern about the misuse of antisemitism as a rationale for targeting Muslims. “We reject the false premise that the Trump administration’s detainments and deportations of university students are being carried out for the purpose of Jewish safety,” the letter states. the letter was a collaboration among a collective of people that included Jews United for Justice and T’rua: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights.
We reached out to four rabbis who signed the letter—Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin, Rabbi Tyler Dratch, Rabbi Andy Gordon, and Rabbi Ariana Katz. They share not only a signature on a public appeal but also deep personal and professional connections to the Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies (ICJS). Their collective action reflects years of theological engagement and meaningful interfaith relationships.
A Matter of Conscience
The letter denounced Dr. Suri’s detention—and the broader immigration policies of the Trump administration—as a threat to pluralism, democracy, and civil liberties. For Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin, president of the Baltimore Board of Rabbis, these actions pose an urgent threat.
“When our democracy is under assault, when our systems of justice and due process are being threatened, we are all threatened,” she said. The obligation to speak out, she explained, comes from both history and moral clarity.
“We know what happens when no one speaks out. We know what it is like to feel—and be—alone and vulnerable,” she said.
Defending Shared Freedoms
For Rabbi Andy Gordon of Bolton Street Synagogue, the letter was a natural outgrowth of Jewish values and civic responsibility.
“As a rabbi and a religious leader, I believe it’s important for our Jewish community to stand together and protect the rights of all in our country,” he said.
He linked the struggle for justice to core democratic principles.
“Freedom of Religion, Free Speech, and Democracy protect not only our community but other religious and minority communities as well,” he said. “It is our responsibility to stand with our neighbors when their constitutional rights are under threat—because when their rights are taken away, ours could be next.”
To Rabbi Gordon, this solidarity is not an act of charity—it is a shared defense of mutual dignity and safety.
A Warning from History
Rabbi Tyler Dratch of Beth Am Synagogue saw a troubling authoritarianism in Dr. Suri’s detention. “It seemed that the administration was trying to use fear and shock value to dictate what kind of speech is acceptable in the United States,” he said.
He stressed that the letter drew on essential Jewish teachings—especially the commandments to love the stranger and to love one’s neighbor as oneself. Rabbi Dratch warned against letting those values be co-opted. “We absolutely must not tolerate antisemitism,” he said. “And we also must not allow antisemitism to be weaponized by the Trump administration to deport people it sees as undesirable.”
For Dratch, the moment calls for spiritual clarity and communal unity. “When people of other faiths are targeted, we have a responsibility to stand with them,” he said. “When we stand together, that’s what makes us strong.”
A Radical Commitment to Justice
Rabbi Ariana Katz, founding rabbi of Hinenu: The Baltimore Justice Shtiebl, approached the situation with fierce moral clarity.
“The disappearance of anyone in this country by our government is a chilling, dystopian development,” she said. “As an activist, as a Jew, as a queer person, and as a religious leader, it’s my obligation to say: this is not okay. This is not normal. This is not in line with our religious values.”
Katz criticized what she called the cynical use of Jewish safety to justify oppressive policies.
“Antisemitism is being used as a shield for a deeply antisemitic, white nationalist president,” she said. “It is all the more the responsibility of the Jewish community not to take the bait.”
Her commitment to justice is grounded in lived experience—through protest, prayer, interfaith organizing, and sacred community. “Each opportunity to raise our voices against horror deepens our relationship with the people we do it with,” she said. “We build trust by showing up. And then showing up again.”
Interreligious, Interconnected
All four rabbis see their endorsement of the letter as an extension of their commitment to interreligious solidarity. For Rabbi Dratch, that unity is precisely what makes this action so threatening to those in power.
“There are people in this administration who understand how powerful that unity is—and that’s exactly why they’re trying to divide us,” he said. “They know that when people of faith come together for justice, free speech, and community safety, we have real power.”
Rabbi Katz echoed that belief, noting that her dearest partnerships have been forged through interfaith organizing and collective risk.
“To be at the intersection of progressive values, marginalized identities, and faith is so necessary—and so under-resourced,” she said. “My relationships are stronger because of this work.”
Reflecting on the moment’s gravity, Rabbi Cardin sees a beacon of hope.
“We are living in tumultuous, potentially treacherous times. History will judge us by our actions or inactions,” she said. “The character of our country depends on what we do and say now. Let us be fully engaged in making the future our children—and this country—deserve.”