The Mezuzah Test

In his book The Case of Democracy, Natan Sharansky proposed a threshold test for a free society, called ‘The Public Square Test’: “If a person cannot walk into the middle of the town square and express his or her views without fear of arrest, imprisonment, or physical harm, then that person is living in a fear society, not a free society. We cannot rest until every person living in a 'fear society' has finally won their freedom.” In 2023, amidst a rising wave of antisemitic incidents, Jewish communities worldwide face a common challenge: Can they express their Jewish identity in public without fearing harm?