“Lo taamod al dam rayecha; Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor.” (Leviticus 19:16)

לֹא תַעֲמֹד עַל דַּם רֵעֶךָ

Like the rest of our community, we were horrified by the murder of George Floyd and by the systemic violence against people of color that this act represents.

As individuals, we feel called to speak out, to not stand idly by the blood of our neighbor. To speak out so people of color know that we see this injustice and we see their pain, and that we stand with them. To speak out because silence is complicity.

As educators, we feel called to educate ourselves and others about racism and white privilege — in our society and in our community.

The best way we can learn is to amplify and listen to voices of people of color — including Jews of color. The Jews of Color Field Building Initiative, and Be’chol Lashon are two good institutional sources of information. We are also sharing these anti-racism resources from the national Jewish Teen Education and Engagement Collaborative. And these Resources for Embracing Diversity in Our Jewish Communities from the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism. We will continue to share resources with you in the coming weeks, and we encourage others to do the same through Edulist.

May our teaching contribute to a more just world.