Social Justice News

Take Action Now!
Want to make a difference but not sure how? These one-time actions are a great place to start. 

1/14-2/18: The Path to Racial Equity (sponsors include ADL & Shalom Austin)
•    Six free virtual programs examining racial inequity in Austin
•    Learn more and register here

1/30, 8:00 PM: Austin Sanctuary Network Benefit Concert with Carrie Newcomer
•    Join us for an evening of transcendent music by singer-songwriter Carrie Newcomer, and part of the proceeds ( from this link specifically ) will benefit asylum-seekers Hilda and Ivan Ramirez and Alirio Gamez who are fighting their deportations back to the countries where they fled violence.

2/16, 7:00 PM + 2/17 12:00 PM: RAC-TX Issue Selection Webinar 
•    RAC-TX, the Reform Jewish Movement’s statewide advocacy group, is fighting for voting rights during the current Texas legislative session. Join one of these training sessions for upcoming meetings with lawmakers.
o     Tuesday February 16 at 7:00 pm CST
o     Wednesday February 17 at 12:00 pm CST

Week of 2/20 + Week of 3/22: MLK Continued Conversations with Be’Chol Lashon
•    Conversations on diversity, equity, + inclusion as individuals + community
•     RSVP here.
•    If you are interested in watching the videos from the first session on implicit bias, they are available to view below:
o     Implicit Bias
o     Why We're Awkward

3/4: Refugee Services of Texas Kick-Off 
•    Save the date for A Night at the Drive-in! If you or your business is interested in sponsorship or in donating auction items, contact Development Director Ashley Faye.

3/7, 3:30-5:00 PM: Shalom Supper 
•    Save the date! Sponsored by the Austin Jewish Community in partnership with HIAS (in celebration of Refugee Shabbat) and Refugee Services of Texas. Learn about Refugee and Asylum news and share food and music with two immigrant families living in Austin.


Refugee Actions Now 
•    Food Deliveries for Refugees: Anyone interested in providing food to a family on a weekly basis (directly or through a donation) can contact Cathy Campbell.
•    Donations to Refugee Fund: Anyone who can contribute (from either congregation) can give to the Temple Beth Shalom Refugee Task Force Fund on the Temple Beth Shalom website or contact Russ Apfel.
•    Letters to Congress for Refugee Rights: Join HIAS in welcoming the new Congress via letters demanding refugee and asylee rights, here. 
•    BONUS: If you would like to participate in a virtual meeting with new members of Congress, please contact Nancy Wolf at nwolf1000@gmail.com or 512-917-3731. Talking points and training will be provided.


Join a Movement!
Change happens person by person. Our community social justice leaders would love to talk to you about how we can make it happen, together.  

Religious Action Center - Texas (RAC-TX)
•    Email Rabbi David Segal, Liz Mitlak (CBI), or Sandy Dochen (TBS) to get involved, or learn more about our main issue, Democracy Protection, here.
•    Advocate for our Jewish values at a statewide level with other Reform congregations.

HIAS Jews for Refugees
•    Check with Russ Apfel and Cathy Campbell for updates on the TBS Refugee Task Force, Austin Sanctuary Network, and Refugee activities at CBI. They work closely with Ahmed Abbas, the Asylum Caseworker at RST. For more info about HIAS contact Nancy Wolf or click here.
•    HIAS is a national Jewish organization that fights for a world in which refugees find welcome, safety, and freedom.

Advocates for Social Justice Reform
•    Email Bob Batlan at asjraustin@gmail.com to join or learn more here.
•    Next Meeting: 1/25 10:00 AM
•    ASJR is a local advocacy group focusing on issues surrounding criminal justice reform, especially indigent defense, or representation of the poorest defendants.

Texas Anti-Poverty Project
•    Email Larkin Tackett at larkin.tackett@gmail.com to join or learn more here.
•    Next Meeting: 1/27 10:30 AM
•    Advocate for living wages in Austin and across Texas.


A Word from Your Social Justice Coordinator

Thank you so much to everyone who attended MLK Shabbat, whether services, discussion, or both. The work of moving our community farther along the spectrum of anti-racism has kicked off with force and celebration, but it has only just begun. We will have continued conversations with Lindsey Newman of Be’chol Lashon, and continue to learn and discuss in order to strengthen our community further.
I was particularly struck, though, by an MLK quote during Erev Shabbat services. I’d heard it before, having read the Letter from Birmingham Jail previously, but in the context of Shabbat, the words resonated differently, powerfully. I reproduce it here:
 
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I must make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. First, I must confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of direct action"; who paternalistically believes he can set the timetable for another man's freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait for a "more convenient season." Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection.

I had hoped that the white moderate would understand that law and order exist for the purpose of establishing justice and that when they fail in this purpose they become the dangerously structured dams that block the flow of social progress. I had hoped that the white moderate would understand that the present tension in the South is a necessary phase of the transition from an obnoxious negative peace, in which the Negro passively accepted his unjust plight, to a substantive and positive peace, in which all men will respect the dignity and worth of human personality. Actually, we who engage in nonviolent direct action are not the creators of tension. We merely bring to the surface the hidden tension that is already alive. We bring it out in the open, where it can be seen and dealt with. Like a boil that can never be cured so long as it is covered up but must be opened with all its ugliness to the natural medicines of air and light, injustice must be exposed, with all the tension its exposure creates, to the light of human conscience and the air of national opinion before it can be cured.
 
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Nonviolent direct action, like the racial justice protests of last year or ongoing social justice organizing within our communities, has been defamed as creating division. In truth, it is only through forcing the difficult conversations, now, that division can be overcome. Let’s choose the difficult path of fighting for justice so we can truly live in peace.
And as always, 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!
 
L'shalom,
Jason Taper, Social Justice Coordinator