A Word From Social Justice Coordinator Jason Taper
Shalom y'all! Social Justice is more important now than ever. I'm sharing opportunities to organize and respond from home.
It occurred to me that not everyone knows what Tzaddik means. As a former NFTY and BBYO kid, I am used to using Hebrew names for things and assuming people will figure it out. But that's just such a missed opportunity!
A Tzaddik is, simply put, a righteous person. It's someone who is upstanding and stands for Tzedek, or justice. Hasids use the word to refer to their one specific Rebbe, but I think anyone who embodies Jewish values can absolutely be a Tzaddik.
There's a tendency to see social justice leaders, as somehow more than human, or as getting beyond those base human impulses. But I think there's nothing more human than the pursuit of justice. We feel pain seeing new names of those killed by racist systems every day. We feel frustration when those we care about seem to fight against our basic values, no matter what they are. We may even feel helpless when we see the voices and votes of others unceremoniously suppressed. Social justice work requires the emotional heavy lifting of empathy.
But that same humanity also makes us better at what we do! We feel joy when our undocumented brothers and sisters breathe a SCOTUS-induced sigh of relief. We feel hope when the first inklings of policy change trickle in, even if the victories aren't the ones we asked for. And we feel solidarity with every other Tzaddik next to us, whether in person at a protest or virtually on a phone bank or Zoom advocacy meeting. Or even, dare I say, between multiple congregations reading a long-winded email.
So what's a Tzaddik? It's who we are when we are at our most human, our most open, our most together. Hopefully some of the actions here will help you be even more of a Tzaddik.
Regardless of shul affiliation, the point of contact for every initiative listed would be happy to have your help. And if you simply want to ask how best to be an ally, or how we got here, please reply to this email, fill out the form above, or call me. My email is jason.austinsocialjustice@gmail.com, and my number is 469-834-9987. Thank you!
Forward, Jason Taper, Social Justice Coordinator
100% Voting at Our Temples: July Runoffs
Social Justice Opportunity: Calling Our Community to Vote Temple Beth Shalom Contact: Sandy Dochen | smdochen@gmail.com Congregation Beth Israel Contacts: Mindy Lee |mindyem@gmail.com, Liz Mitlak | mitlakej@gmail.com
Texans have the opportunity to vote in the July 14 runoff election for a variety of state and local offices. Early voting is available June 29-July 10. Those who are disabled, over the age of 65 or will be out of the county on election day are eligible to apply for a mail in ballot. If you intend to apply for a mail in ballot, we encourage you to download and send in a vote by mail application. The application must be received by July 2 to receive a ballot by mail.
Early voting is strongly encouraged to avoid long lines on election day as the county clerk’s office has reported being overwhelmed by the number of mail in ballot applications received by the office. If you plan to vote by mail, you can download the application here for Travis County and here for all other counties. Find additional information on voting by mail in Travis County on the county clerk website.
Congregation Beth Israel and Temple Beth Shalom will be holding phone banks to connect with community members to get out the vote in the July election. It is critical that everyone has equal access to the ballot for the July runoff election. Both congregations are looking for volunteers to help phone-bank to make GOTV (get-out-the-vote) calls. If you are interested, please reach out to your shul's contact or fill out the form at the top of this email.
As we get closer to the November election, Reform Jews will participate in widespread voter engagement efforts and to challenge voter suppression tactics as part of the Reform Jewish Movement’s Civic Engagement Campaign:Every Congregation, Every Vote. This is a nonpartisan effort to strengthen our democracy by encouraging everyone to participate in the U.S. election and ensuring that Reform Jewish values are represented in the public square.
Social Justice Opportunity: Civic Engagement Coalition Working Groups RAC-TX is working on 3 major nonpartisan issues to ensure that our democracy is strong and our elections are free and fair. The groups are:
Voter Education: Using this toolkit, the RAC's goal is to empower every congregation's members to achieve 100% voting. This includes using the TX Empower App, a tool for tracking contacts and engaging voters within your congregation and social network. Think of it as digital Jewish Geography for civic engagement.
Religious Freedom in Elections: RAC-TX is in conversation with Texas Civil Rights Project and others about how to raise a religious voice for mail voting and other election protection measures.
Fighting Voter Suppression: RAC-TX is partnering with Reclaim Our Vote, a nonpartisan group whose mission is to counteract the effects of voter suppression on communities of color. Reclaim Our Vote offers regular training for their voter outreach tools like phone banking and postcards to engage marginalized voters.
Work So Far: The RAC officially launched theEvery Voice, Every Vote: the Reform Movement’s 2020 Civic Engagement Campaign on May 7. Throughout the year, Reform Jews like us fight injustice by talking directly to our nation’s leaders. Our goal is not the success of one party, but the empowerment of our own community and ensuring that public policies reflect our Jewish values.
To that end, RAC-TX joined the Texas Voter Protection Coalition and held met with Travis County election officials, who informed our civic engagement strategy.
Student Civic Engagement Trainings
June 29, July 28, and August 23
These trainings, designed for voters and youth activists (ages 14-29), will frame the larger civic engagement campaign and then split into one session for high school students and one for young voters in college, graduate school, and beyond.
Contact: Larkin Tackett | 512.657.9383 |larkin.tackett@gmail.com Ongoing Actions: The Anti-Poverty Action Team met with City of Austin staff about aligned efforts and narrowed options for how to define poverty and opportunity. The team continues house meetings to learn with members of the Capital IDEA, Family Independence Initiative, and LifeWorks.
Partnering with other Austin organizations (LifeWorks, Community First! Village, and Capital IDEA) to conduct house meetings to understand issues and identify leaders of families impacted by poverty.
Jewish tradition is filled with commandments to help the poorest among us: feed the hungry, clothe the naked, care for the widow and orphan. When we organize to place working class voices at the center of how our community morally responds to poverty, we not only improve the advocacy we undertake, but fundamentally empower those who the Torah compels us to uplift.
Advocates for Social Justice Reform (Criminal Justice)
Contact: Bob Batlan | bobbatlan1@gmail.com Email Bob for a Zoom invitation and/or to join our mailing list.
Recent Work: Meetings with Chief Public Defender, Travis County Sheriff, other state and county officials, judges and nonprofit leaders and other county officials to improve Indigent Defense.
"Justice, justice, you shall pursue." A just system of laws is ingrained from Leviticus through King David through every contradicting comment in the Talmud. Even an eye for an eye is blind to whose eye is taken, so we organize for a criminal justice system that is truly fair and impartial.
Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS)
Contacts: Nancy Wolf | nwolf1000@gmail.com; Russ Apfel | russapfel@yahoo.com
Ongoing Actions: Request for Comment by July 15
The Federal Government has proposed changes which would completely obliterate the asylum program as we know it. Submit comments here to voice your opposition and slow the process, and learn more here. Work So Far: During our Jews for Refugees assembly held on February 2, 2020 we were privileged to have many non-profits attend. HIAS, our partner in this endeavor, put together a flyer entitled "What Should we Do Next?" with opportunities to get involved. Our shared histories and current circumstances reveal how we are all dependent on one another.
Emergency Assistance Fund - monetary donations for rent/utility assistance, food security, technology devices, and internet access
Babies, babies and more babies! We had two families welcome a new member into their family. We need diapers (size 2), wipes and formula.
Feed a family [from home] - We'll supply the grocery list, all you have to do is go online, order groceries and set up delivery through Amazon, Instacart or other delivery service.
ESL Teachers [from home] - Learning English is a top priority to help our clients acclimate into their new communities. We are looking for ESL teachers to help with online lessons.
Youth Mentor Program: matching community members with refugee youth ages 15-24 for the purpose of education support, career guidance, cultural learning and friendship. Spanish, Dari and Pashto speaking members especially needed. Also, we would love to connect with specialists in the medical field, law and engineering/tech. If interested, contact Chloe at cscarborough@rstx.org or Marissa at mmelnikov@rstx.org.
Needed for VOCA Program (Victims of Crime Act Program- formerly the STEP program for survivors of trafficking): Any type of gift cards, especially for groceries.
Our own people’s history as “strangers” reminds us of the many struggles faced by immigrants today, and we affirm our commitment to create the same opportunities for today’s refugees that were so valuable to our own community when we fled our gravest dangers.
Ongoing Action: Supporting Hilda and Iván in Sanctuary
Work So Far: protecting Hilda Ramirez and her son Iván, who are Guatemalan asylum seekers, from ICE detention and deportation to certain danger, for 4 years
“The stranger who resides with you shall be to you as one of your citizens; you shall love them as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” So we show our love and solidarity with Hilda and Iván whenever we can.
And if there's anything you're involved in that's not on this list, let me know, and it will be! Here's the blurb format:
Committee or Nonprofit Name Upcoming Event/Action: When: Where: Contact: (name, email, phone # optional) Work so far:
Stay home and safe, Jason
Temple Beth Shalom 7300 Hart Lane Austin, TX 78731
