Table of Contents - Action Items * RAC-TX Legislative Research Team * Anti-Poverty House Meeting: 12/16 * Advocates for Social Justice Reform: Every Monday * Refugee Fund Donation Request * Refugee Food Deliveries
A Word From Social Justice Coordinator Jason Taper
Whew! What an election cycle. Time for a well-deserved break, right?
Temple Beth Shalom and Congregation Beth Israel put in some amazing work at breakneck speeds leading up to this election. You deserve to rest! Many of you preserved the integrity of our democracy as poll workers or election protection volunteers with the Texas Civil Rights Project. Many of you made nonpartisan calls across our community through RAC-TX and the tireless efforts led by Sandy Dochen and Liz Mitlak in particular. Even more than that, you used your voice to empower the voiceless, engaging those who have felt the full force of voter suppression through postcards and calls with Reclaim Our Vote. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. Take that deserved rest, because the only way our movements are sustainable is if we do our part in a way that lets us sustain ourselves.
But once we are back at 100% energy, I am sorry to say, we can’t go “back to normal.” We can’t switch off, declare “mission accomplished.” Because poverty, hatred, and sickness still exist. We cannot burn out, or walk away, because white supremacists certainly don’t. The situation we are in now did not come out of nowhere -- there is a direct line from plantation slavery to Jim Crow to “Jews will not replace us.” Those who do not share our Jewish values of welcoming the stranger, healing the sick, and feeding the hungry will continue to oppose actions and policies that provide for the least among us, with all the power they can. None of this is new, and right now is not an anomaly. The Jews have seen it all before.
But what happens over the next 4, 8, 20 years is up to us. It is now our job to get even louder, and demand a response to the pandemic and recession that leaves no one behind. Because frankly, there are a lot of folks who have been left behind for a long time, who need our voices to join theirs. Let’s keep showing up until everyone has housing, healthcare, a living wage, and a livable planet. And THEN we can relax.
And as always, regardless of shul affiliation, the point of contact for every initiative listed would be happy to have your help. And if you simply want to ask how best to be an ally, or how we got here, please reply to this email, fill out the form above, or call me. My email is jason.austinsocialjustice@gmail.com, and my number is 469-834-9987. Thank you! L'shalom, Jason Taper, Social Justice Coordinator
Ongoing Action: Research Team RAC-TX is gearing up for the 87th session of the Texas Legislature! Before it convenes, in person or virtually, this January, we are conducting research meetings to determine what our legislative agenda will be. We're talking to experts from across the state on issues like education, criminal justice reform, voting rights, gerrymandering, and Medicaid expansion. Join us and have a say in what Texas Reform Jews advocate for! Contact Rabbi David Segal for details, at DSegal@rac.org.
Work So Far: The RAC officially launched theEvery Voice, Every Vote: the Reform Movement’s 2020 Civic Engagement Campaign. Throughout the year, Reform Jews like us fight injustice by talking directly to our nation’s leaders. Our goal is not the success of one party, but the empowerment of our own community and ensuring that public policies reflect our Jewish values. We turned out our own congregants to close to 100% voting, and partnered with Reclaim Our Vote, a nonpartisan group whose mission is to counteract the effects of voter suppression on communities of color.
CBI Social Action Committee Watch this space! Our post-election advocacy and community-building efforts only continue to grow.
Work So Far:
Congregation Beth Israel Social Action Committee is thrilled to have completed our Chavruaction Circle pilot program. The circles will continue as we develop a plan to expand the opportunity to explore anti-racism topics together and create a long-term initiative to build an anti-racist culture in our CBI and our local community.
CBI launched our 2020 Civic Engagement Campaign in partnership with the Religious Action Center (RAC) and RAC-TX's national non-partisan campaign,Every Voice, Every Vote. Learn more about CBI's civic engagement campaign, goals and ways to get involved onCBI's website.
Ongoing Actions: The Anti-Poverty Action Team is researching the recent agreement between Travis County and Tesla to improve contractor wages. We also work with Workforce Solutions to connect people to jobs.
Upcoming Event: Anti-Poverty House Meeting When: Dec. 16, 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m. Contact Larkin for details.
Work So Far: * Meeting with Texas Senator Judith Zaffirini and Travis County Commissioner Margaret Gomez about a potential Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone around the new Tesla Gigafactory to make investments in education, job training, and other community needs in Del Valle * Education about strategies highlighted in NY Times, Tamarack Institute (Canada), andCentral Iowa * Partnering with other Austin organizations (LifeWorks, Community First! Village, and Capital IDEA) to conduct house meetings to understand issues and identify leaders of families impacted by poverty.
Jewish tradition is filled with commandments to help the poorest among us: feed the hungry, clothe the naked, care for the widow and orphan. When we organize to place working class voices at the center of how our community morally responds to poverty, we not only improve the advocacy we undertake, but fundamentally empower those who the Torah compels us to uplift.
Advocates for Social Justice Reform (Equal Justice Initiative)
Contact: Bob Batlan | bobbatlan1@gmail.com Email Bob for a Zoom invitation and/or to join our mailing list. Ongoing Work: We start by meeting one on one with government officials, community leaders, a diverse group of fellow advocates, and people impacted by the legal justice system. We learn about strengths and weaknesses of current approaches. We focus on developing positive relationships with all so they will work with us to make improvements to complex problems. Our approach has been successful, and we are considered a key voice for positive change.
Current areas of focus:
• Assure successful startup of the Travis County Public Defender Office • Improve quality and accountability of indigent defense • Obtain a grant in support of legal representation at first court appearance • Improve how accused are treated pretrial • Partner to implement Participatory Defense
Recent Meetings: • Betty Blackwell – President of the Board of Capital Area Public Defender Service • Roger Jefferies – Travis County Justice and Public Safety Executive • Jose Garza – Candidate for Travis County District Attorney • Adeola Ogunkeyede – Travis County Chief Public Defender • Bradley Hargis - Executive Director Capital Area Private Defender Service • Public Defender Office Staff
"Justice, justice, you shall pursue." A just system of laws is ingrained from Leviticus through King David through every contradicting comment in the Talmud. Even an eye for an eye is blind to whose eye is taken, so we organize for a criminal justice system that is truly fair and impartial.
Refugee, Asylee, and Immigrant Action
Both Congregation Beth Israel and Temple Beth Shalom have been active in working to support organizations that provide support and services to refugees, asylees and immigrants. Our main partners are Refugee Services of Texas (RST), Austin Sanctuary Network (ASN) and HIAS (formerly Hebrew Immigrant Assistance Society).
Temple Beth Shalom and Congregation Beth Israel have both sponsored several Welcome Teams through RST to help settle new refugees in Austin. In the last year, very few refugees have come to Austin due to policies of the federal government and we have re-focused on efforts towards asylees. We pushed RST and provided significant financial support for them to start an asylee program called ASAP with funding for a caseworker. Ahmed Abbas is the caseworker and was a speaker at the Austin Jews for Refugees Assemble that we hosted last year with HIAS. We have connected RST with ASN which is supporting 25+ families with weekly food deliveries, rent assistance, computers, winter clothing and legal assistance. We have raised over $14k which has been spent to support these activities. Our Winter Clothing Drive has provided clothes to more than 70 people. We provide food to 25 families each week and have given 20 computers to these families. Along with funds from RST and the City of Austin RISE fund we have helped these families stay in their homes.
We need more help with food deliveries. Anyone interested in providing food to a family on a weekly basis (directly or through a donation) can contact Cathy Campbell (cathybquilter@gmail.com).
We have used most of funds and anyone who can contribute (from either congregation) can give to the TBS Refugee Task Force Fund on the TBS website or contact Russ Apfel (russapfel@yahoo.com).
The HIAS Welcome Campaign is an action network uniting congregations across the United States in response to the largest refugee crisis in human history. Based in our Jewish values and history, Welcome Campaign congregations raise awareness, advocate for and welcome and assist refugees into their local communities.
So: SPEAK UP! Sign a petition to join HIAS in supporting refugees in a new Administration. Sign a petition calling on the Department of Homeland Security to respect the human rights of asylum seekers during the time of COVID-19. For more info about HIAS contact Nancy Wolf (nwolf1000@gmail.com).
Check with Russ and Cathy for updates on the TBS Refugee Task Force, Austin Sanctuary Network, and Refugee activities at CBI. They work closely with Ahmed Abbas, the Asylum Caseworker at RST.
We really could use either delivery helpers and/or grocery purchaser helpers for the food delivery each week. Please contact Cathy Campbell.
Ongoing Action: Online Volunteer Orientation and Training Contact Lynn Burdick, RST's volunteer coordinator, to learn how to get involved with RST online volunteering!
iACT - Refugee Youth Mentors Needed IACT's iLEARN Refugee Youth Program is currently seeking new mentors for refugee teens. Mentors work with a high-school-aged refugee for the school year. Mentors are asked to virtually meet with their student every week to help with homework, answer questions, and help with transition into American culture.
If you are interested in becoming a mentor for refugee youth, please contact Refugee Youth Program Coordinator Maggie Wagner at: mwagner@interfaithtexas.org
And if there's anything you're involved in that's not on this list, let me know, and it will be! Here's the blurb format:
Committee or Nonprofit Name Upcoming Event/Action: When: Where: Contact: (name, email, phone # optional) Work so far:
Stay home and safe, Jason
Temple Beth Shalom 7300 Hart Lane Austin, TX 78731
