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Jews Should Support Our Local NAACP

08/20/2019 05:29:17 PM

Aug20

Rabbi Bonnie Margulis

During rabbinic school, I was privileged to be a legislative assistant at the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (RAC) in Washington, DC. At our orientation, we were given a tour of the RAC building. The highlight of the tour was the RAC conference room, where we were told that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 were drafted at that very conference room table, as the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights was a tenant of the RAC building.

As it turned out, practically every person who walked into the RAC was given this same information. It became something of a joke among us legislative assistants, as we started repeating this information in chorus every time one of us had to give the tour. But as much as we joked, we were all very proud to know of our movement’s part in the struggle for civil rights.

Jews and African Americans have a long history of shared struggles for equality and an end to racism and antisemitism. The NAACP's first two presidents, Joel and Arthur Spingarn, were Jewish. Jewish philanthropist Julius  Rosenwald helped found over 2000 schools and 20 colleges for black students. At their height, more than 40 percent of black students in the South were educated at “Rosenwald” schools. The Urban League also had Jews among its founders.

Rabbi Abraham Joshua  Heschel marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., famously saying he felt he was “praying with his feet.” Perhaps less well-known is Rabbi Joachim Prinz, who helped organize the 1963 March on Washington and gave the last speech just before Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream’ speech.

The summer I worked at the RAC, in 1989, marked the 25th anniversary of the murders of civil rights workers James Chaney, Michael Schwerner, and Andrew Goodman—an African American young man and two young Jewish men. One of my fellow legislative assistants worked on an event to commemorate their sacrifice for civil rights. I’m ashamed to say I had not heard of them before, but I learned that Jews were disproportionately represented among the young people who went to the South during the Freedom Summer of 1964, making up about half the volunteers.

Today the fight against systemic racism continues, and Jews continue to be on the forefront as allies of people of color, as well as women, people with disabilities, and the LGBTQ+ communities. We recognize that Dr. King’s words, written so long ago, are still so true today: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”

Maintaining the connection between the Jewish and African American communities is a goal we need to pursue, especially in these days when national figures and “leaders” use racist language to divide us.

Accordingly, I would like to extend an invitation to each of you, as Jews who care about justice and equality for all, to show your support for Dane County’s communities of color by joining the Dane County NAACP (naacpofdaneco.org) and attending the annual NAACP Freedom Fund Dinner on Saturday, September 28—one day before erev Rosh Hashanah. What better way to enter the Days of Repentance than by committing yourself to work for racial justice and equality?

As a member of the Dane County NAACP Executive Committee, I look forward to welcoming you to our branch and seeing you at the Freedom Fund Dinner!

March 29, 2024 19 Adar II 5784