Gay District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, right, steps back on the sidewalk after lighting the annual Castro Hanukkah menorah in Jane Warner Plaza Monday, December 11. Mandelman was joined by, from left, Cantor Sharon Bernstein and Rabbi Mychal Copeland from Congregation Sha'ar Zahav, San Francisco's LGBTQ synagogue, and gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco). The two lawmakers, who are both Jewish, also gave remarks. Wiener said that "no matter how dark things are and how much despair we have, there is always hope. There is always light."
Wiener has been outspoken in recent weeks about rising antisemitism in the U.S. amid the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. The assembled crowd also sang traditional Hanukkah music.
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