Contact: Max Rosenblum or Claire Shimberg
202.387.2800 | news@rac.org
Washington, D.C., August 17, 2015 – Upon the news of the passing of legendary civil rights leader Julian Bond, a longtime friend of the Reform Movement and founding member of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), Rabbi Jonah Dov Pesner, Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, issued the following statement:
We are deeply saddened by the loss of Julian Bond, who dedicated his life and career to fighting for civil rights and justice, not only for African-Americans but for all people. From his courage and leadership during the Civil Rights Movement to his service in the Georgia Legislature, his tireless efforts to achieve equality made him an inspiration to all who share his vision for a more just world.
Julian Bond embodied the very values that we as Reform Jews hold so deeply—the values that brought about the founding of the RAC more than 50 years ago. His life’s work reminds us that we are all created b’tzelem Elohim, in the image of God. As we remember his life and achievements, and join, as a Movement, the NAACP’s current America’s Journey for Justice, we honor his memory by continuing to fight for racial justice and full equality for all people. May his memory be for a blessing.
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The Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism is the Washington office of the Union for Reform Judaism, whose nearly 900 congregations across North America encompass 1.5 million Reform Jews, and the Central Conference of American Rabbis, whose membership includes more than 2,000 Reform rabbis. Visit www.rac.org for more.
