Blog

Making Sure That Children Count

Children represent an incredibly important part of the country, for they are one-quarter of the population. Beyond the numbers, children will be our next generation of workers and leaders. The share of federal funding directed towards children has declined and today amounts to under 8 percent of the overall budget. In 2013, over 14.7 million children in the US were poor in 2013, and the majority of those children lived in families with working parents. 1 in 5 children in the US are currently living in poverty and 1.3 million school children are homeless. This high child’s poverty rate costs our country half a trillion dollars every year in lost productivity as well as in extra health and criminal justice costs; money that could better be spent on creating or implementing programs that could truly benefit these children and set them on a path towards progress.

Shining a Light Through Our Sorrow: Two Years After Newtown

December 14, 2014 marks the second anniversary of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. In 2012, 20 school children and 6 teachers were shot in the single deadliest shooting since Virginia Tech in 2007.  After the Newtown shooting, the Reform Movement once again joined with the interfaith community and renewed our long-standing efforts to support gun violence prevention legislation, and provide resources and prayer services for our communities for healing. We worked tirelessly on the Manchin-Toomey bipartisan bill that proposed universal background checks for gun purchasing we were deeply saddened when Congress failed to pass that important legislation.

It’s Time for Moral Action on Immigration from the President

I always find the week after elections to be a breath of fresh air. In the weeks (and months) before an election, we’re bombarded with political advertisements on TV and constantly confronted by friends who want us to help out their candidate. Reading the news offers no respite: NPR is saturated with stories of the campaign trail, and the New York Times is taken over by polling analysis. When the elections end, much of that bombardment subsides: I can catch up on the news stories I missed and the friendships I put aside for politics.

A Step in the Right Direction for Criminal Justice Reform in California

Tuesday night was a big night for criminal justice reform advocates. Criminal justice reform has become a rare point of bipartisanship among some Democrats and Republicans, and a number of successful ballot initiatives across the country show that voters care about reforming the system too. The initiatives passed embrace the notion of “Smart on Crime,” a replacement for the old idea that being “tough on crime” was the best way to make communities safer. Attorney General Eric Holder explained that “by targeting the most serious offenses, prosecuting the most dangerous criminals, directing assistance to crime ‘hot spots,’ and pursuing new ways to promote public safety, deterrence, efficiency, and fairness – we can become both smarter and tougher on crime.”

Israel Update: New Terror Attacks, and a Legal Battle over Jerusalem

The past two weeks have been scary ones for Israelis and Jerusalem residents, as three separate attacks on light rail stations have left three people dead and injured a dozen more. On October 23, a Palestinian man drove his car through a light rail station near Ammunition Hill in Jerusalem, killing a three-month-old infant who was also an American citizen, as well as an Ecuadorean woman. And just this Wednesday, a van rammed into another light rail station in Jerusalem, killing a border patrol agent and wounding two others. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack. Later that night, another van rammed into a three IDF soldiers in the West Bank, sending them to the hospital. The attacks come in the wake of tensions over the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Temple Mount in East Jerusalem. Right-wing Israeli activist Yehuda Glick was shot there last week, prompting Israeli authorities to close Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in Islam, for a day. This in turn sparked riots near Al-Aqsa and the Temple Mount (which exists essentially on the same site), and has created diplomatic tension between Israel and Jordan.

Jacobs Camp Welcomes Kids of Active Duty Service Members

By Ellen Alexander The URJ Henry S. Jacobs Camp is proud to offer a Camper Incentive Program for Jewish Military Families on Active Duty.  Jacobs Camp is nestled in the beautiful state of Mississippi and has served over 10,000 Jewish children primarily from the Deep South- Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and the Florida Panhandle since opening its gates in 1970.  Jacobs Camp is the only camp within the URJ Camping system that offers a military incentive to all Jewish active duty families from across the United States and beyond.

Election Day Yields Mixed Results for Reproductive Rights

With the Election Day results in, the door is now open for serious threats to reproductive rights and health in the Volunteer State. Voters approved Amendment One by a margin of 53-47%, erasing language in the state constitution that defines abortion as a fundamental right. The state legislature now has the authority to “enact, amend, or repeal statutes regarding abortion, including, but not limited to, circumstances of pregnancy resulting from rape or incest or when necessary to save the life of the mother.” Though the Amendment does not immediately change any abortion laws in Tennessee, lawmakers have already announced their intention to advance abortion restrictions when the legislative session begins in January. These could include dangerous and restrictive policies like the building regulations and physician admitting privileges in Texas (Targeted Regulation of Abortion Provider laws, known as TRAP laws), the mandatory 72-hour waiting period in Missouri, or the 20-week bans that limit abortion access in nine states. And, as Amendment One dictates, the legislature would not be required to include exceptions for cases of rape, incest, or where the mother’s life is in danger.

Midterms 2014: What the Election Means for Jewish Social Justice

With a few days' distance from the 2014 midterm elections, we are beginning to put the results of this election in context -- for what it means for Congress, state legislatures, state laws and of course our work to advance social justice in the United States. The day after the election, Rachel Laser, Deputy Director of the Religious Action Center released a statement welcoming the resounding success of three key state ballot initiatives and noting our long history of working successfully with members on both sides of the aisle to advance shared priorities. We look forward to another exciting chapter in Washington, D.C. and in the states. On Thursday, Rachel Laser moderated a conversation between RAC Director Rabbi David Saperstein, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights Executive Vice President and Director of Policy Nancy Zirkin and RAC Senior Advisor Michael Horowitz. To watch the exciting conversation, visit our Election Day resources page, or watch it here: [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwBlxf9xu3c[/embed]

Using Our Tax System To Help the Most Vulnerable Among Us

As we look forward to Congress coming back for one last session in 2014, we need to think about future actions that Congress can take to pass policies that can positively impact Americans and can ameliorate economic inequality. One potential measure is the Earned Income Tax Credit, a refundable credit. Since the EITC only benefits individuals in the workforce, the antipoverty measure is seen as helping encourage people to work and to participate in the workforce. This federal credit applies to low and moderate income workers by encouraging work, offsetting federal income and payroll taxes, and ultimately increasing family income. The EITC increases as a low-income workers’ income level rises and is slowly phased out, meaning that a worker can eventually earn too much to be able to qualify for this.