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Remembering Our Roots, Fighting for Our Future
Rabbi Stephanie M. Alexander received her undergraduate degree from Tulane University, and ordination from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion.
Two Years Later: Remembering Parkland, Continuing to Heal
Not enough time has passed for us to fully heal from what we, as the communal collective, experienced. We may be able to understand and process the grief more fully, and recognize the signs of post-traumatic stress, but it doesn’t lessen the effects of either.
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.
This Tishah B'Av, Act as if There is No God
Tishah B'Av is a day of mourning, commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples. In recent years, it's also a day to mourn other tragedies that have darkened Jewish history - the Romans putting down the Bar Kochba revolt, mass murders of Jewish communities during the Crusades, expulsions from England, France, and Spain in the Middle Ages, and the Holocaust.
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.
Traliant Compliance Training Classes Now Available
As part of our ongoing efforts to create safe, respectful, and equitable workplaces, the URJ requires all staff to regularly participate in sexual harassment prevention training classes, provided by Traliant Compliance Training. Now, through the Reform Movement Marketplace, the URJ is making Traliant Compliance Training classes available to our affiliated congregations at a reduced cost.
Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie
President Emeritus
Body
Installed as president in June 1996, Rabbi Yoffie led the Reform Movement in exciting new directions, moving congregational life toward greater attention to Torah study and adult literacy. He spearheaded a major expansion of the URJ's summer camping program.
What a Trip to Israel Taught Two Faithful Progressives
Last week, we traveled together to Israel and the Palestinian territories with a remarkable group of Black civil rights leaders and Reform Jewish leaders, including those who sit at the intersection of being Black and Jewish. We imagined that there would likely be bumps along the way, and there were. However, our group knew one another from our ongoing social justice and racial equity work in the United States, so there was a reservoir of goodwill and commonality that served us well.
Advocacy 101: Lessons from the Daughters of Zelophehad
We know from years of policy advocacy, though, that those phone calls - those seemingly small asks - do matter. The staff members who answer the phones in Congressional offices keep a tally of who calls and on what topic, and they report back to their colleagues and, ultimately, to the senator or representative who want to know what their constituents care about.
A Letter to My Charlottesville Congregation
I write this as the Sines vs. Kessler trial commences. This long-awaited lawsuit seeks to hold the organizers of the deadly 2017 Unite the Right rally accountable for their actions. Bone-chilling evidence will be presented in this trial that will make us realize how close we came to experiencing an even greater tragedy than the death of Heather Heyer and the wounding of so many others.