Who is Shirley Vermillion? Cancellation of menorah lighting ceremony in Williamsburg sparks backlash

The menorah lighting ceremony in Williamsburg, Virginia, which was scheduled to take place on December 10, 2023, has been canceled. The ceremony, which was a part of 2023's Hanukkah celebration, was canceled amid the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict. Shirley Vermillion, the founder of the 2nd Sundays Art and Music Festival, was the person who made the move to cancel the ceremony. It is worth noting that the ceremony was part of the festival where the menorah was supposed to take place.

In a statement issued to Newsweek, Shirley Vermillion justified the step by saying:

“The concern is of folks feeling like we are siding with a group [Jews/Israel] over the other [Muslims/Palestinians] ... not a direction we ever decide to head.”

As soon as news of the menorah lighting being canceled went viral on social media, Vermillion faced immense backlash from netizens. Some people even claimed that they believe her decision may be considered antisemitic.

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Everything you need to know about Shirley Vermillion the woman who canceled the Williamsburg menorah lighting

Shirley Vermillion's now-scrubbed Facebook bio was shared on X, formerly Twitter, the account @StopAntisemites. According to the bio, Shirley is the founder and president at LoveLight Placemaking, a non-profit overseeing community-building events. As mentioned earlier, she is also the managing director of the 2nd Sundays Williamsburg Art and Music Festival.

Vermillion is a registered dental hygienist by profession at Norge Dental Center in Williamsburg and works with Dr. Timothy Johnston. She has previously worked at the Fraker Greenlake Dental Center in the same role.

An alumna of the Virginia Commonwealth University, Shirley was previously in charge of medical records at Northwest Eye Center. Although she is a Williamsburg resident now, Vermillion is originally from Farnham, Virginia.

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Shirley Vermillion under fire on social media for canceling menorah lighting in Williamsburg

For 2023, the Jewish festival of lights, Hanukkah will be commemorated from December 7, 2023, to December 15, 2023. As part of the festival, the holy ceremony was scheduled to take place at the 2nd Sundays Art and Music Festival in Williamsburg on December 10, 2023. A menorah is a candle holder that has nine branches and is used during Hanukkah.

However, Shirley Vermillion canceled the holy ceremony in the wake of the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, stating she did not want to choose sides. She told the Daily Press that the menorah lighting “seemed very inappropriate” given the current sociopolitical and religious scenario.

Vermillion added that though the 2nd Sundays Festival was inclusive to all religions and cultures, the board wanted to avoid any religious [Jewish] affiliations. She also explained that previously, Christians and other communities were not allowed to perform at the festival, despite frequent requests.

Since the news of the menorah lighting cancelation surfaced online, social media users put Vermillion under fire for her alleged antisemitic move. They were responding to the tweet shared by the X account @StopAntisemites.

The cancelation of menorah lighting was also condemned by various organizations including the United Jewish Community of the Virginia Peninsula.

"We should be very clear: it is antisemitic to hold Jews collectively responsible for Israel's policies and actions and to require a political litmus test for Jews' participation in community events that have nothing to do with Israel. Those standards would never be applied to another community," the organization's press release stated.

The statement also claimed that the 2nd Sundays festival organizers reportedly offered to restart the menorah lighting only if the event was allegedly held under a banner seeking a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. It also mentioned how the menorah lighting would have been presided over by a local community rabbi and “had nothing to do with Israel or the conflict.”

It is worth noting that Williamsburg is not the only place where menorah lighting has been canceled. In the Canadian town of Moncton, a decision was made by the mayor’s office not to exhibit a menorah outside the city hall during Hanukkah. This has reportedly happened for the first time in two decades. The move also earned criticism from the Jewish community in the country and online, calling it both “unfair” and antisemitic.