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Reform Movement Horrified by Fort Hood Shooting
Rachel Laser: "The Talmud teaches us, 'He who takes one life it is as though he has destroyed the universe.' The loss of so many lives is not just devastating - it is unacceptable.
Response to shooting in Kansas City: A Modern Plague of Violence
Tonight at our Seder tables teeming with life, we pause with heavy hearts as we grieve with the families of those killed yesterday in the shootings that took place in a Jewish Community Center and a nearby Jewish senior living community in Overland Park, Kansas.
Reform Movement Horrified by Fort Hood Shooting
In response to yesterday's tragic shooting at Fort Hood in Killeen, TX, Rachel Laser, Deputy Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, issued the following statement:
Meet the 2021-2022 Eisendrath Legislative Assistants
We are excited to dive into our work as the 2021-2022 Eisendrath Legislative Assistants! We bring a diverse set of interests and experiences to the RAC but share a deep commitment to the pursuit for a more just, compassionate, and equitable world. We are proud to represent and join the Reform Movement and its values in this crucial moment in history.
Position of the Reform Movement on Sudan and Darfur
The Reform Jewish Movement has been quite vocal on the issue of universal human rights.
Reform Movement Urges Co-Sponsorship of Safe Schools and Non-Discrimination Legislation
Rabbi David Saperstein: "As Jews, our tradition and history teach us that we should not stand by as others suffer- we envision a government which 'to bigotry gives no sanction, to persecution no assistance' (George Washington, in a letter to Moses Seixas, 1790).
Hate Crimes Continued to Rise in 2020: Will the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act Give Us Hope for the Future?
In late August, the FBI released its annual compilation of hate crimes statistics, summarizing all hate crimes reported to the FBI in 2020. The data is alarming and only tells part of the story, as an increasing number of law enforcement agencies did not report data to the FBI. A new law will strengthen hate crimes data collection, reporting, and response measures, giving us hope that future statistics will be more accurate.
Legislative Update on Criminal Justice
Sentencing Reform As part of a growing tough-on-crime attitude in the 1980s, legislators at the state and federal levels passed a myriad of new laws imposing harsh mandatory minimum sentences for a variety of crimes, most notably for nonviolent drug offenses.
Position of the Reform Movement on Mental Health
Mental health is an important issue for the Reform Movement. In 2001, the URJ passed a resolution titled, "Establishing a Comprehensive System of Care for Persons with Mental Illness.” The resolution urges the URJ to address mental health issues that exist in many arenas of society.