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| Berman Jewish Policy Archive @ NYU Wagner | Newsletter
July 2010 | |
Dear Friends,
On July 1, President Obama spoke at American University, calling on Congress to take steps toward a system of comprehensive immigration reform. On July 6, the
Justice Department filed suit against the State of Arizona, challenging a controversial law
which aims to crack down on illegal immigrants, but which also, according to
the Justice Department and other critics, runs afoul of civil liberties
concerns. Immigration issues have even entered the debate surrounding the
nomination of Solicitor General Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court.
As we noted on the BJPA Blog, immigration issues
carry a special resonance for American Jews. President Obama even mentioned as much in his July 1 speech. This month, the BJPA@ NYU Wagner is highlighting our
broad array of resources related to the timely and controversial issue of
immigration in America.
Many documents relate to the late 19th
and early 20th century wave of European Jewish immigration cited by
the President. An article from 1916 describes the services provided to
immigrant girls by the Council of Jewish Women. Not all such aid was provided
under explicitly Jewish auspices; a 1915 article from the Bulletin of the
National Conference of Jewish Charities describes the League of Foreign-Born Citizens, a "non-racial, non-sectarian organization" working on behalf of
immigrants.
Other documents from the early 20th
century reveal a varied picture of Jewish immigration to America.
Geographically, not only New York dealt with
significant numbers of Jewish immigrants; articles from the Journal of Jewish Communal Service reveal robust educational programs
teaching immigrants English and civics in Baltimore and Terre Haute,
and settlement work in Columbus and Seattle. More recently, dozens of documents describe the acculturation process of Soviet Jews across America, and the services offered (or in some cases, not offered) by Jewish communities to help them through this process.
Of
course, not all 20th century Jewish immigrants were Ashkenazim. Writing in 1913, Maurice B. Hester writes of the special problems facing Ladino-speaking Sephardim
arriving in Cincinnati from Turkey, and finding an American Jewish social
services field accustomed to serving Ashkenazic clients. In 1981, Edith Weiner discusses services provided by the Chicago
Jewish community to its population of Jewish Iranian immigrants. In 1996,
Gloria Zicht similarly describes the resettlement of Syrian Jews in New York.
Contemporary American Jewish sources examine this
legacy of Jewish immigration to America
when discussing modern, non-Jewish immigration issues. Writing for CLAL in
2001, Libby Garland juxtaposes quotes from the 1920s and 1930s which are
hostile to immigrants with similar quotes of a more recent vintage ("Tracking Dangerous Aliens Among Us, Then and Now"). Lawrence H. Fuchs argues ("Jewish Attitudes Toward Contemporary Immigration Policy") that, while the American
Jewish immigrant experience does play a role in American Jewish views on
immigration, these views also have roots in historical events far older than
the arrival of Jews in America,
including the Egyptian and Babylonian exiles.
Whatever the origins of American Jewish
pro-immigration views, they have manifested powerfully in Jewish action and
advocacy. The New York Association for New Americans (NYANA), founded in 1949 to resettle Jewish displaced persons, worked in the 1980s to resettle
non-Jewish Indochinese refugees. The Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS), founded in 1881 to assist Jewish refugees around the world, now assists refugees and immigrants of all backgrounds and advocates in Congress for fair and effective policies affecting refugees
and immigrants. Within the past few years, Jewish groups such
as the Massachusetts Board of Rabbis and the AJC have advocated protecting and
assisting various kinds for immigrants, regardless of legal residency status.
As public discourse about immigration issues
continues to develop, we hope you will take advantage of these and other immigration-related publications available at the BJPA @ NYU Wagner.
With best wishes,
Steven
Prof. Steven M. Cohen
Director, Berman Jewish Policy Archive @ NYU Wagner |
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NEW REPORT
First Annual Report to The Avi Chai Foundation on the Progress of its Decision to Spend Down
The Avi Chai Foundation is in the process of spending down its assets with the intent
of closing the foundation. As such, the Avi Chai Trustees initiated a series of reports as a service to the entire foundation and
nonprofit community. It grew out of their desire to learn what the
"best practices" in spending-down are, based on the experience other
foundations have had in sunsetting themselves. In this first report, attention is
focused primarily on Avi Chai's programmatic initiatives in North
America, secondarily on those in Israel,
and not at all on those in the former Soviet
Union. To read the full report, click HERE. |
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| NEW TOOLS ON BJPA.ORG:
Bookshelf & Bibliography
The bookshelf allows users to keep a personalized list of BJPA articles to make it easier to return to items of interest. The bibliography function allows users to generate multiple lists of citations, organize them, and share them with others.
Simply register for a bjpa.org account to access these tools. |
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BJPA is funded by the Mandell L. and Madeleine H. Berman Foundation and the Charles H. Revson Foundation. | |
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