Dear Friends,

As we move into this holiday weekend, celebrating our Country's freedoms, we cannot avert our eyes to the destructive acts of hatred in our midst and to the call for justice that is our heritage: Tzedek tzedek tirdof-  Justice, justice you shall pursue! (Deut. 16:20)

The recent burning of 8! African-American Churches following the horrible shootings in Charelston screams out to us,  of the legacy of racial hatred that still lives in our land. We can pray, and we must- but we must also act to repair, to invest, to declare with actions that we will not tolerate this.

Please take a look at this effort below to help rebuild the African American Churches that were recently burned, engulfed in the flames of hatred. Let us shape this world by our hands, into a world of justice, founded on love and the recognition of the Divine spark that resides in all humanity.

And then, may we  celebrate true freedom for all.
Shabbat Shalom,
Kaya

  

   

 

On Tuesday in South Carolina the Mount Zion African Methodist Episcopal Church burned to the ground. It was the eighth southern Black church to burn in ten days.

Coming in the wake of the massacre at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church two weeks ago, our hearts are raw and heavy. But our responsibility could not be more clear. As Jews we must push back against this retrograde racism and violence with all of our might.

As author and activist Adrienne Maree Brown said in response to the violence, when flames of violent white supremacy spread, "we have to be an ocean." We can leave no doubt that Black Lives Matter and that this racist terrorism must end.

That's why we're asking you to donate to an interfaith effort to rebuild the churches destroyed in the past weeks. As Rabbi Susan Talve explains, "Our young activists remind us to 'love and support each other!' We will continue to rebuild every church with our love and support  and the good in us, in all of us, will win." Please donate to this important project now.
 

 

  

 

 

With grief and rage over the Emanuel AME murders and the burning churches - and the ongoing racial violence at the hands of police and vigilantes nationwide - we will continue to organize against racism as a diverse and powerful Jewish community. We are inspired by the strengths of all of our ancestors and we're committed to staying in the fight, with you, for the long haul.

We know that oppression takes many forms, from police violence to economic injustice. Today, the action that we can take is rebuilding what we've lost. But tomorrow we get to build something new - a more just future for all of us.

  

Please Donate to the Interfaith Rebuild The Churches Fund Today.  

 

Thank you for being with us in this moment of tragedy, and for the struggles ahead.

Onward,

Marjorie
Executive Director
Jews for Racial & Economic Justice

P.S. For more about how JFREJ organizes against racial injustice, read my recent in-depth interview with Truthout.org
Seeds
Rimon, the Hebrew word for pomegranate, is symbolic of our mission to disperse the seeds of Jewish spirituality to transform and raise consciousness for the sake of healing and repairing our world. Rimon offers interfaith programming that honors spiritual diversity and recognizes our common bond as one humanity seeking connection with the Divine.

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