SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — For over 20 years, Nick Glassman has been proud of his last name. He comes from a family who, for generations, has been proud of its Jewish heritage. But recently, he decided it was time for a change, and not a small one.
“I made the decision to go into my Uber and change my last name from Glassman to my middle name which is Battano, which is Italian, which is Catholic as well,” Glassman said.
Glassman is a student at Syracuse University and said he decided to change his last name in his rideshare profile, and in some of his online accounts for his own safety after hearing about anti-Semitic incidents not just in Central New York and on campus, but globally.
“I definitely, like after I did it, I kind of sat there for a moment. I was like, wow, like, I really just like, hid my last name,” Glassman said.
According to the Anti-Defamation League, anti-Semitic incidents have skyrocketed across the United States since Hamas launched its attack on Israel last fall. Numbers show a nearly 400% increase nationwide from October to December, compared to the same period the year before.. Over 70% of these hateful acts are directly tied to the war.
“It’s scary when geopolitical conflicts lead to hate and prejudice. And like, I just didn’t want to run that risk,” Glassman said.
Glassman said he’ll continue to hide this part of his Jewish identity for as long as it takes, until he feels it’s safe enough to once again publicly embrace the religion his family has for so long, been proud of.