At a conference during the annual youth leadership retreat of the Jewish Federations, attendees were advised to avoid the word “Zionism” as part of a lecture on how to create effective messaging, an anonymous source told an Israel-based outlet.

Matthew Berger, executive director of the Federation’s “Project Halo,” recommended avoiding the word “Zionism” Tuesday in a slide presentation that also showed an image of the Star of David. He also recommended focusing on diversity and the “common enemy.”

“My jaw kind of hit the floor for a second,” the anonymous attendee said.

“Where does it end if we’re not even using ‘Zionism’ in our conversations?” he asked. “Should we stop using the word ‘antisemitism?’ Should we stop using the word ‘Jewish?’

The Federation pushed back in a statement to the same outlet.

“Jewish Federations of North America are proudly Zionist, and unapologetically shout our Zionist views and the incredible work we do to support Israel from the rooftops every single day,” said Niv Elis, the Federation’s associate vice president for external communications.

“This slide was part of a discussion about what data shows to be effective messaging in today’s polarized political environment and should not be taken to imply anything else,” he added.

“Established in 1963, National Young Leadership Cabinet is Jewish Federations’ premier five-year leadership program for volunteer leaders aged 30-45,” the Jewish Federations website states. “It’s designed to empower the Jewish community’s emerging global leaders and philanthropists.”

According to the attendee, it costs $5,000 to attend the National Young Leadership Cabinet, which took place in Minneapolis this week.

Berger previously directed the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism, and an online bio states that “he has been instrumental in the unveiling of the $25 million omnichannel #StandUpToJewishHate Campaign that has launched a movement to use the Blue Square as a unifying symbol of support for Jews in America.” Robert Kraft founded the Blue Square Alliance Against Hate in 2019 and is famous for his philanthropy in the Jewish community.

Reflecting on the advice to avoid the word “Zionism,” the anonymous attendee said it made him feel sad.

“It made me very sad,” he said. “The better way of approaching it would have been equipping us with facts and stories and how to handle people with aggression, as opposed to just being the empathetic people.”

“That’s constantly the narrative that we’re told,” he added. “We’re not able to stick up for ourselves and what we believe in, because we constantly need to be making sure everyone’s not getting angry at us.”