Civil Rights
Background
Narrowly construed, civil rights are the non-political rights of citizenry. In the United States those rights guaranteed by the by the 13th and 14th amendments to the Constitution. More broadly, however, civil rights refer to all those rights that allow a citizen to fully participate in civic society; the struggle for civil rights is a the struggle to achieve equality of opportunity for all, regardless of race, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation or disability.
In the twentieth century, men and women fought for equal access to voting booths and worked to eliminate discrimination in the housing market, the work place and in government services. Forty years after the signing of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965, the United States has done much to erase legal discrimination, but the legacy of racial inequality has yet to be erased. From ensuring the rights of Native Americans to fighting for the rights of gays and lesbians to marry, the struggle for civil rights in the twentieth-first century has grown to include a more diverse America and a greater variety of issues. Nevertheless, it seems clear that even as we work to extend civil rights protections, we must vigilantly guard those rights earned in earlier decades of struggle.
The Reform Movement works on a variety of civil rights issues including GLBT rights, hate crimes legislation, the death penalty and other criminal justice reforms, and Native American rights. Our policies and advocacy also address the affirmative action debate, disability rights and legislative protections from religious discrimination in the workplace.
As Jews, we are intimately acquainted with the effects of bigotry. Our ancestors knew both the continuing indignities of second-class citizenship and the constant fear of xenophobic violence. Our history teaches us that discrimination against any members of a community threatens the security of the entire community.
Jews and the Civil Rights Movement
American Jews played a significant role in the founding and funding of some of the most important civil rights organizations, including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR), the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and the Student Nonviolent Coordination Committee (SNCC).In 1909, Henry Moscowitz joined W.E.B. DuBois and other civil rights leaders to found the NAACP. Kivie Kaplan, a vice-chairman of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (now the Union for Reform Judaism), served as the national president of the NAACP from 1966 to 1975.Arnie Aronson worked with A. Philip Randoph and Roy Wilkins to found the LCCR.
From 1910 to 1940, over 2,000 primary and secondary schools and twenty black colleges, including Howard, Dillard and Fisk universities, were erected in whole or in part by contributions from Jewish philanthropist Julius Rosenwald. At the height of the so-called “Rosenwald schools,” nearly forty percent of southern blacks were educated at one of these institutions.
During the Civil Rights Movement, Jewish activists represented a disproportionate number of whites involved in the struggle. Jews made up half of the young people who participated in the Mississippi Freedom Summer in 1964. Leaders of the Reform Movement were arrested with Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in St. Augustine, Florida, in 1964 after a challenge to racial segregation in public accommodations. Most famously, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel marched arm-in-arm with Dr. King in his 1965 March on Selma.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 were drafted in the conference room of Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, under the aegis of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, which for decades was located in the Center. The Jewish community has continued its support of civil rights laws addressing persistent discrimination in voting, housing and employment against not only women and people of color but also in the gay and lesbian community and the disabled community. Rabbi David Saperstein, director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, is currently the only non-African-American member of the NAACP board.
The Civil Rights Leadership Award
In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the Religious Action Center awards the Civil Rights Leadership Award to outstanding leaders in the black and Jewish communities. The tribute to Dr. King was established in 1988 to honor individuals who have toiled to ensure racial justice in American society and worked to strengthen intergroup relations. Past recipients of the Civil Rights Leadership Award have included former Representative Kweisi Mfume, Peter Edelman, Dr. Benjamin Hooks, Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, Albert Vorspan, Dr. Dorothy Height, Judith Lichtman and Hyman Bookbinder. The 2005 recipients were Hilary Shelton, Director of the NAACP Washington Bureau, and Theodore Bikel, Broadway star and civil rights activist.
Current Civil Rights Issues
Some of the gravest issues facing the civil rights community today are concerns about the rights of minorities. From the right to vote to the racial profiling, we continue the fight for equality for all individuals and communities.
Voting Rights Act of 1965 Reauthorization
Background
An important civil rights issue facing our nation right now is the reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act (VRA) of 1965. The VRA, which was drafted in the library of the Religious Action Center, is widely viewed as the nation’s most effective piece of civil rights legislation.
Prior to the Civil War, African Americans were almost completely disenfranchised. Even after enactment of the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution, in 1870, which gave all men, regardless of race, color, or previous condition of servitude the right to vote, many states continued to enforce various methods to prevent people of color from voting, including literacy tests, poll taxes, the disenfranchisement of former inmates, intimidation, threats, and even violence. Until 1965, federal laws did not challenge the authority of states and localities to establish and administer their own voting requirements.
The VRA sought to fix these problems and effectively remove all voting barriers for African Americans, Asian Americans, Latino Americans, and Native Americans. For the first time in American history, all adults were able to register and vote. It empowered minority communities to have a greater voice in the election of local, state, and federal office holders.
Legislation
Among other provisions, the VRA prohibits discrimination based on race, and requires certain jurisdictions to provide bilingual assistance to voters whose first language is not English. Section 5 of the Act requires federal "pre-clearance" before specific jurisdictions with a history of restricting minority voting rights can make changes in their current voting practices or procedures. It also grants Department of Justice the authority to appoint federal observers to monitor elections to ensure that they are conducted in a fair manner. These key provisions are set to expire in 2007 if they are not reauthorized by Congress.
Discriminatory Profiling
Background
Discriminatory police profiling is a significant factor contributing to the disproportionate prosecution and punishment of minorities. Police utilize profiling to determine which drivers should be stopped and searched. This method of law enforcement has been criticized for focusing on minorities, who are targeted based on race, ethnicity, and sexual preference, as criminal suspects.
In April 2005, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) released a report describing findings of clear and significant racial disparities in the rate at which motorists are searched by local law enforcement. Further, the report demonstrates that while black and Hispanic drivers were more likely than whites to be searched by law enforcement during traffic stops, they were less likely to be harboring contraband. This disparity in “hit rates” is a strong indication of the presence of racial bias in the activities of these officers. The report also found a troubling overall increase in the use of force by law enforcement, with some indication that the increase was greater among encounters involving African-Americans. This BJS study confirms that profiling by federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies is widespread, and that, despite the efforts of some states and local law enforcement agencies to address this problem, federal legislation is necessary.
Reform Jewish Movement Resolutions
Both the CCAR and the Union have adopted several resolutions relating to the issue of civil rights.
Union of Reform Judaism
Central Conference of American Rabbis
Jewish Values and Civil Rights
Judaism teaches respect for the fundamental rights of others is each person's duty to God. "What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor" (Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat 31a). Equality in the Jewish tradition is based on the concept that all of God's children are "created in the image of God" (Genesis 1:27). From that flows the biblical injunction "You shall have one law for the stranger and the citizen alike: for I Adonai am your God" (Leviticus 24:22).
Publications and Resources
- RAC photo essay/travelogue on Freedom Ride 1999 During the summer of 1999 the Chaney, Goodman, Schwerner Unity Coalition, the Religious Action Center and the NAACP sponsored Freedom Ride 1999 to commemorate the 35th anniversary of Freedom Summer and to honor the memories of Andrew Goodman, Michael Schwerner, James Earl Chaney, the three young men killed that summer by white extremists. Goodman and Schwerner were both Jewish, while Chaney was a Black.
- A Common Roadto Freedom
Edited by Leonard Fein and Rabbi David Saperstein
Designed with Black/Jewish seders in mind, the heralded Black/Jewish Passover hagaddah is rich in new songs, ancient and contemporary writings, and reflections by Jewish and African American leaders. Scores of synagogues, communities and college campuses have held Black/Jewish seders during the Passover season using A Common Road to Freedom. $5.00/copy; $4.50/copy for orders of 25+. Shipping costs: $3.00 for the first 10 copies; $1.00 for each additional 5 copies. To order please call the RAC at 202.387.2800.
- A Common Roadto Justice
Edited by Rabbi Lynne F. Landsberg and Rabbi David Saperstein
Published by the Marjorie Kovler Institute for Black Jewish Relations, co-sponsored by the URJ and the NAACP, A Common Road to Justice is a programming manual for Black/Jewish relations. The manual includes extensive background information on the history of Black/Jewish relations, several creative and helpful programming suggestions, sample liturgies and model sermons, as well as a list of additional resources. $7.95/copy. To order please call the RAC at 202.387.2800.
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