Join JFREJ for two exciting sessions at CBE's Shavuot Across Brooklyn.
Anti-Semitism on the Left
10 PM, Location TBD
The study of Torah leads many Jews to work toward freedom and justice for all people, whether that's standing with Black Lives Matter, the Women's March, the LGBT Rights movement, or others. Join Rabbi Rachel Timoner of CBE, Audrey Sasson of Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, and Rabbi Josh Weinberg of the Association of Reform Zionists of America, as we bring different perspectives to these questions: How do we respond when movements for justice include anti-Semitic voices, are indifferent to anti-Semitism, or ignore the voices of Jews? When is anti-Zionism anti-Semitism? How should we understand the relationship between the struggle for Black liberation, the prevalence of white supremacy, and the ongoing threat of anti-Semitism? This will be followed by a second session looking at the Movement for Black Lives Platform through the lens of Torah.
Shavuot for Black Lives
11 PM, Location TBD
We can understand Revelation as that flash we feel when we know something is true, that we have encountered something that will shake us up and push us on into a new world. That is the aim of the Vision for Black Lives policy platform. To get us all to engage with what Black liberation could look like, what changes it demands, what new world is possible if we transform this world into one that truly cherishes Black lives.
When the Vision For Black Lives was released in 2016, many members of our community had strong reactions to the way that Israel was characterized in the document, and many of us never read it in its entirety. Jews of Color in our community called on all of us to remain committed to the Movement For Black Lives, to racial justice, and by extension, to Black Jews no matter what.
Shavuot is a holiday of revelation. We receive and study texts that challenge and inspire us, directing us towards building a world rooted in justice and liberation. This year, we invite you to join Jews for Racial & Economic Justice in studying the Vision for Black Lives. Our Shavuot for Black Lives study will focus on the reparations and invest/divest portions of the platform.