For the first time since the 1990s, Labor Day in America falls on Rosh Hashanah 5782! This is an opportunity to focus our attention on the issues of workers rights and economic justice. As we begin to emerge from the pandemic, these issues demand our attention.
That’s why we have put together a short collection of teachings and texts for Rabbis and other community members to use in sermons, handouts, or actions. Read the full guide here.
A Statement by the New England Jewish Labor Committee calling for the Removal of President Trump from Office
A Statement by the New England Jewish Labor Committee calling for the Removal of President Trump from Office
Donald Trump must be removed from office immediately. The Jewish community has a particular responsibility to join the chorus of Americans who care deeply about democracy and ending white supremacy in saying so. What the nation and the world witnessed on January 6 was an attack on democracy, incited by the President and his allies, made by a white supremacist and anti-semitic mob. Our own history teaches us that no one should remain silent in the face of such attacks. Events are moving swiftly, and Congress is currently debating impeachment, so we should be clear about the general principles at stake.
The Jewish Labor Committee was formed in the 1930s as a response to the rise of fascism in Europe. Our core mission in those early days was to support the anti-Nazi movement, aid victims of Nazism, support Jewish labor institutions in European countries, and – critically – to combat anti-semitism and other effects of fascism upon American life. We must acknowledge that this mission is still relevant today. It is chilling beyond words that one member of the mob wore a "Camp Auschwitz" shirt, and another brandished the Confederate flag – inside the Capitol.
The Jewish community must condemn not only this anti-semitism and white supremacy, but the leaders who made them believe they would be safe to take these actions. From the white supremacists in Charlottesville shouting “Jews will not replace us” through the January 6 mob, it is clear that anti-semitism is a key component of this white supremacist, anti-democratic thuggery. And it is clear that Donald Trump has only encouraged this violence. If we care about combating fascism, protecting democracy, and about the fate of the Jewish people, we must call for the removal of Donald Trump from office immediately.
The Jewish people thrive in healthy, pluralistic democracies. An attempt, no matter how doomed to failure, by a powerful political leader to declare baselessly that a free and fair election was a fraud, and retain power through violence by might of a mob rather than the will of the people – in short, to subvert democracy – must be rebuked in the clearest of terms by the Jewish community.
The only way to begin to heal is to hold those responsible for this attack accountable. If our country is to be united once more, it must be united around our shared democratic ideals and upholding our Constitution. We must say that any elected official who attacks the core tenets of our Constitution, including the peaceful transfer of power, will not remain our leader. This President cannot remain in office to ride out the rest of his term, however brief. He should not have power for one day more.
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Jewish Labor Committee Tisha B'Av Memorial Service
Today is Tisha B'Av, a day of mourning. On Tuesday, the Jewish Labor Committee took time to honor those workers who have died from COVID-19 with a moving memorial.
We are grateful to all those of you who were able to make the event. For those of you who were unable to make it, you can watch the full memorial here:
We are grateful to Sara Nelson of the Association of Flight Attendants and Jean Ross, RN, of National Nurses United. They are true leaders of the labor movement and they urged us not only to mourn those lost, but also used this as an opportunity to take action for the living.
We are also especially grateful for the participation of Mona Darby, a poultry processing worker and member of RWDSU, and Gladys Betancourt, an apartment cleaner represented by Local 32BJ for sharing their powerful stories.
And of course, we are grateful to Rabbi Barbara Penzner of Hillel B'Nai Torah in Boston who is Co-Chair of the New England Jewish Labor Committee for speaking beautifully about Tisha B'Av and leading us in a Kaddish and to Stuart Appelbaum, President of RWDSU and of the Jewish Labor Committee for his powerful remarks.
Together, we will mourn for those we have lost, and fight like hell for the living.
The Jewish Labor Committee Tisha B'Av Memorial to Workers Who Died from COVID-19
Please join us on July 28th at 4pm for a national Jewish Labor Committee event in honor of those workers who have died from COVID-19. See the flyer below and register here.
Tisha B'Av is a day traditionally set aside to reflect on historical catastrophes that occurred on this date. The Jewish Labor Committee will host an online event to mourn the many frontline workers we have lost this year, and to honor those who have been put to the test by the COVID-19 crisis. We continue to fight for safer workspaces and a just reopening/recovery.
Thank you again, Tom Flynn and Josh Zakim!
We were so sorry to cancel the 2020 Labor Seder this Spring. But we are grateful to all our honorees, especially to Tom Flynn and Josh Zakim. Now that summer is here, we just wanted to say “thank you,” once again, and made this short video from some friends and colleagues.
Thank you for all you do for workers, especially in this time of crisis. Since the COVID-19 crisis hit, the New England Jewish Labor Committee has been hard at work, fighting for frontline workers and a safe – and just – reopening. We are all in this together.
You can download the full Labor Seder Haggadah with all the well wishes here.
Below are just a few:
New England Jewish Labor Committee Statement on Black Lives Matter
Below is a statement from the New England Jewish Labor Committee:
As the the New England Jewish Labor Committee, we stand unequivocally on the side of all marginalized people. Especially in this moment, we stand in solidarity with the Black and brown populations of the United States, too long killed with impunity and subject to economic, environmental, housing, and healthcare violence by a system built to devalue their lives. We unequivocally support the Black Lives Matter movement and the protestors creating the 2020 Black Lives Matter uprising against police killing, brutality, and oppression.
The recent horrific killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Rayshard Brooks and others - may their memories be a blessing - are just the tip of the iceberg. These acts are just a few examples of White Supremacy, a centuries-old system of violence that has stolen the labor and the lives of Black people and divided the working classes so as to protect the unearned, and therefore stolen, wealth of the capitalists.
As a Jewish organization, we urge our fellow Jews to connect the entirety of your synagogue or Jewish communal organization with black-led organizations and other organizations fighting for racial and economic justice. We also urge our members to donate to the Massachusetts Bail Fund.
As a labor organization, we must and will work towards ending the extreme disparities of wealth between white and non-white working people. The New England JLC has joined Black and Latinx activists to fight for the safety of essential and frontline workers by pushing for a reopening process that puts workers' health and safety first. We will resist layoffs of essential workers in the name of austerity, such as the mass layoffs in Brookline Public Schools. We will work with other labor organizations as they strive to eliminate racism in the workplace and our society.
The fight for economic justice is intertwined with the fight for racial justice. Right-wing zealots, including President Trump, attempt to deflect a discussion of racial and economic justice into a conversation about looting. We believe that real examples of "looting" include the $700 million stolen from Massachusetts low-wage workers annually. Real looting is the $434 billion gained by billionaires during the pandemic. Real looting is the median net-worth in Boston being $8 for Black households versus $247,500 for white households.
Through continued learning and practicing teshuvah (turning or repentance), we will engage the Jewish and Labor communities in support of the Black Lives Matter movement and in support of the struggle for a more just economic society.
In solidarity with Black Lives Matter,
The New England Jewish Labor Committee Board and Ari Fertig, Executive Director