NEW YORK — The sister of a rabbi killed in last week’s mass shooting at a Hanukkah celebration in Sydney says her family will continue to live openly as Jews, even as antisemitic violence rises both abroad and in New York.
Join our WhatsApp groupSubscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
Chani Schlanger Drizin, speaking to the New York Post, said she is determined to honor the memory of her brother, Rabbi Eli Schlanger, by refusing to let fear dictate how her family lives.
“We’re not hiding, and we’re not afraid,” Drizin said while observing shiva for her brother at her home in Crown Heights, a Brooklyn neighborhood that has experienced repeated antisemitic incidents in recent years.
Schlanger was helping organize the public Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach when gunmen opened fire, killing 15 people. Family members say he was shot while trying to protect another attendee. He is survived by his wife and five children.
Drizin said the family’s grief has been compounded by reports of antisemitic attacks closer to home in New York, but she insisted that withdrawing from public Jewish life is not an option.
“We’re still going to light the menorah in public and continue our lives,” she said. “That’s how we honor him.”
Friends described Schlanger as a person defined by joy, faith and service to others. Drizin said carrying forward those values is now part of her family’s mission.
“They may try to intimidate us,” she said, “but we’ll come out stronger and keep going.”
Tonight I paid a shiva visit to Chani, sister of Rabbi Eli Schlanger’ ז״ל. He was murdered in the terror attack last week in Sydney. Chani and her family live in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.
She said she has a message she wants people to hear: “My brother dedicated his life to…
— Mark D. Levine (@MarkLevineNYC) December 21, 2025