Religious Action Center :: RACBlog

Equal Amusement For All

2010-03-11T19:33:08Z

Take a look at this interesting piece from the Sunday Washington Post on an "amusement park with a unique mission: to create a play space for individuals with special needs." Morgan's Wonderland, named for founder Gordon Hartman's daughter, is in San Antonio, Texas, already a travel destination for its other attractions.

Hartman's goal in financing and building Morgan's Wonderland was to provide children with disabilities with an "opportunity to do things they've never done before, like ride in a swing or a carousel or sit with their family in a train." When it opens, the park will have accessible rides and have special resources for children with both physical and intellectual disabilities and their parents, many of whom haven't ever had the chance to enjoy family trips to fun parks because of a lack of accessibility.

I just can't imagine a better way to help kids who frequently feel alienated or different to have a wonderful, quintessentially childhood experience than to let them ride swings and rides at an amusement park. Check out the article and contact me at 202.387.2800 or at slehman@rac.org to find out more about what the Reform Movement and others do to establish equality of opportunity for all Americans, regardless of disability.

Jews Responding to the Earthquake in Haiti

2010-03-11T16:32:18Z

Temple Rodef Shalom in Falls Church, Virginia is looking beyond the headlines in thinking about how best to form their communal response to the recent earthquake in Haiti. This week, TRS's senior rabbi, Amy Schwartzman, shares a guest post about the connection her congregation is building with Haiti. Rabbi Schwartzman currently serves the President of the Rabbinic Alumni Association of HUC-JIR and has been recognized nationally for her social justice work. This post first appeared on A Blog of Continuing Jewish Learning and is republished with permission from HUC-JIR.

When we arrived at the Haitian embassy to meet the Ambassador and his wife, there was little to indicate the devastation and loss of life that the earthquake had left in its wake. Apparently weeks before hundreds of people stopped by the tiny embassy, trying to leave donations or find out if families and friends were known to be alive. But now it was silent. No passers-by, just a sign on the door to say that they could not accept any goods in kind. The building is dwarfed by the surrounding embassies. They are grand and imposing. Perhaps this slim and modest building is appropriate for the poorest country in the Americas. Inside the furniture is classically European but the art is spectacularly Haitian - it left me a bit confused until I met the Ambassador and his wife.

His Excellency Raymond Joseph, Ambassador to the United States from the Republic of Haiti, is a joyful, intelligent, sharp amalgam of Haitian culture and the ways of the west. Born and raised in Cayes, Haiti, he is mostly known as a journalist. In the 1960's he was a radio personality. In the 70's and 80's he was at the Wall Street Journal in New York as a financial writer and co-founded the Haiti-Observateur, the first crusading commercial Haitian weekly. In 1990 Mr. Joseph was called to be Haiti's Charge d'Affaires in Washington and his own country's representative at the Organization of American States. After helping with the first democratic elections in December of 1990, he returned to the Haiti Observateur where he remained until he was called to Washington in 2004 as the Ambassador.

Cantor Tracey Scher, Rabbi Amy Schwartzman, Mrs. Lola Possion-Joseph, Ambassador Raymond Joseph, Rabbi Jeffrey Saxe, Cantor Michael Shochet

You can imagine what a wealth of experiences this man brings to a meeting. Members of the Temple Rodef Shalom clergy sat down with the Ambassador and his equally engaging and articulate wife, Lola Poisson-Joseph, to discuss how we might embark on a joint venture to help repair Haiti. While the weight of his nation and its deep tragedy sat on his shoulders, the Ambassador regaled us with stories that connect Haiti with the Jewish people. He talked about Haiti's vote to support the creation of the State of Israel. He told stories about welcoming Jewish refugees after WWII. He shared his knowledge of Torah and his love of Hebrew! Finally, we spoke about creating a project to restore a community in his country.

Lola Posson-Joseph, a social activist and artist, has a relationship with a town outside of Port-au-Prince called Petit-Guave. She had been working on building a shelter there for the poor members of the community. She painted a splendid picture of this town, its history and its citizens. It is filled with a rich culture and teaming with human potential. We agreed that our goal would be to rebuild at least one central institution of Petit-Guave - the shelter, the only school or the 300 year old church, which also functions as a community center.

On February 16th the Ambassador and his wife came to Temple Rodef Shalom to participate in a service of solidarity and hope for Haiti. The Ambassador updated the congregation about the relief efforts. Mrs. Poisson-Joseph talked about Petit-Guave and helped us to imagine how we might help. The day of our service, there were no pictures in the paper about Haiti. Support efforts by doctors and builders and emergency workers were still under way but for many, in our safe and comfortable homes, the story of the earthquake has passed. Some have moved onto other issues in the world. Those who came to our service affirmed that Haiti, and its need for our support, is still very much alive. As former President Bill Clinton recently wrote: "Haiti can surely move beyond its troubled history and this lethal earthquake to emerge a stronger, more secure nation. But that can't be done with government support alone. Ordinary citizens must fill the gaps."

We are those ordinary citizens and our Jewish tradition and commitment to tikkun olam calls us to not only offer comfort to the people of Haiti but to offer our resources, our creativity, our time and our energy to restore this nation. As our rabbis taught - "it is not for us to complete the task, but neither are we free to refrain from engaging with it." (Pirke Avot 2:21)

Church in Petite Guave before the earthquake

Let All Who are Hungry Come and Eat

2010-03-11T15:47:13Z

Believe it or not, the impetus for the creation of the National School Lunch Program in 1946 was that malnourishment was rendering large numbers of young men ineligible to join the military. When President Truman signed the 1946 National School Lunch Act, the preface said that the creation of the program was a "measure of national security, to safeguard the health and well-being of the Nation's children." (Can you imagine anyone saying that today?). Today, Child Nutrition Programs are a crucial financial safety net for over 31 million students who receive breakfast, lunch, and an afterschool snack during the school year, as well as during the summer. These programs all fall under the Child Nutrition Reauthorization Bill, which is coming before Congress this year to be reviewed and refunded.

The depth and breadth of hunger in the United States can be easily conveyed by statistics: 17.6 million food insecure households, making up 49.1 million people. A record of nearly 38 million people relied on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, formerly known as food stamps, at last count. These numbers are even starker for children: the food insecurity rate for households with children is nearly double the overall average. Feeding America, which operates more than 200 food banks and soup kitchens across the country, found that 38% of those they served were children under age 18, and four out of five food insecure families served have children under 18.

Child nutrition programs ease the burden on these families by assuring children at least one healthy meal a day. But these are more than nutrition programs: Studies show that school meals have a positive effect not only on hunger but also on classroom behavior, test scores and school attendance. School meals also support better nutrition, and address the problem of childhood obesity and related health problems. They are a multi-front anti-poverty tool, and must be robustly re-funded when Congress reauthorizes them this year. Urge your Members of Congress to support increased funding for child nutrition programs by sending an e-mail through the RAC's Chai impact action center, or host a Child Nutrition Seder to raise awareness about childhood hunger in America. As we say each year in the Seder, "Let all who are hungry come and eat!"

Conversion Legislation Pending in Israel

2010-03-09T22:43:28Z

Today, the URJ released a statement calling on the Knesset to reject a piece of legislation that would alter the Law of Return such that converts to Judaism would not be eligible for Israeli citizenship. This would be the first time that the state of Israel makes an official distinction between one who is born a Jew and a righteous convert.

Further, the legislation would place legal authority over conversion in Israel in the hands of the Chief Rabbinate, making it more challenging for progressive rabbis to perform conversions.

Finally, there have been recent negotiations between the sponsor of this legislation, MK David Rotem, and the ultra-Orthodox parties which could result in provisions blocking Reform and Conservative conversions in Israel.

As this situation unfolds, we will provide further news updates and ways to get involved in the issue. The full statement is available below.

Reform Jewish Movement Calls on Knesset to Reject Conversion Legislation

For 2,000 years, Judaism has treated Jews-by-choice the same as Jews-by-birth. We are taught "as soon as a convert emerges from the mikvah (ritual bath) she or he is Jewish for all purposes." (Talmud, Yevamot 47b)

For 62 years, since its founding, the State of Israel, through the Law of Return, has welcomed Jews from around the world as citizens in the world's only Jewish state.

Today, legislation before the Knesset - a bill sponsored by MK David Rotem of Yisrael Beitenu that addresses both the authority of the Chief Rabbinate and matters of conversion - threatens both of those sacred principles.

This legislation will certainly reopen one of the most divisive battles in the Jewish community. The proposed legislation will lead to a situation in which Jews-by-choice would be treated differently and denied recognition as Jews under the Law of Return, in direct contradiction of Israeli Supreme Court rulings. Additionally, it may lead to the delegitimization of all non-orthodox conversions performed outside of the State of Israel.

Our concern is neither partisan nor denominational, but emanates from true love of Medinat Yisrael and Klal Yisrael (the State and people of Israel). With the unity of the Jewish people foremost in our thoughts and prayers, we urge the government and the Knesset to affirm core principles of that unity when enacting any legislation. We call upon Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman to withstand the pressures of a small segment of the political spectrum and to do what is best for all Jewish people everywhere.
The Reform Movement calls upon the State of Israel to treat all religious streams of Judaism fairly and equally, a cause that is far from realization. We call upon the Knesset to reject this partisan attack on the majority of American Jews. Finally, we call upon the Israeli people to join with us in an effort to help Israel live up to its promise as a Jewish and democratic State.