Ayelet Raymond. Photo: Instagram

This Passover, as Miss Israel, I found myself in Times Square surrounded by protesters holding signs that read “No Kings.”

I came for a peaceful pro-Israel photoshoot, wearing my Star of David crown — the first ever designed by a beauty queen — but the moment I stepped into the crowd, everything changed.

I suddenly found myself surrounded by hundreds of anti-Israel protesters. People looked at me — at my crown, at my Miss Israel sash — and warned me to be careful showing Jewish symbols. I felt it too. The tension was real. It became a question of safety — do I leave, or do I stay?

I was born in Jerusalem, but have lived in the US for many years. And I will always be so proud to be an Israeli and a Jew.

In that moment, I asked myself: Ma Nishtana — what is different this year in New York, as antisemitism rises more than it ever has before?

Looking around, I thought about the Passover story, where there are two sources of power: Pharaoh and God.

Pharaoh had control, authority, and power over the Jewish people, but his power had limits. He could not stand against God.

In my early education in Jerusalem, in a Bait Yaakov school, I learned a simple truth — God is the King of all kings. That belief has carried the Jewish people through history.

That moment became my lesson of Passover in modern life.

The Jewish people did not leave Egypt when they felt safe or ready. They left with faith. They stepped into the unknown — vulnerable, exposed — and still moved toward freedom.

And here we are in 2026, at a time when antisemitism is rising in New York and all over the world, when being visibly Jewish brings tension.

So I made a choice — not to hide, but to be visibly Jewish without fear, wearing my Star of David crown in one of the most public places in the world.

From Jerusalem, where I was raised, to Times Square, where I stood that day, we end the Passover Seder each year with the words: “L’Shana Haba’ah B’Yerushalayim Habnuya” — Next year in the rebuilt Jerusalem.

We do this because Jewish identity has never depended on comfort — it has always depended on the choice to stand tall for our beliefs and our faith.

Ayelet Raymond is Miss Israel, Miss World Influencer, and Miss World International — the social media personality @KosherBarbie, and a proud voice for Israel.