Sound the Alarm for the Affordable Care Act

JCUA is one of the organizations endorsing this campaign…

Submitted by Lauren Pranske
Campaign for Better Health Care 

“Sound the Alarm for Health Care Justice” is an interfaith effort coordinated by the Faith Caucus of the Campaign for Better Health Care to create an informed discourse and raise awareness on the issues facing the health care system in Illinois.

We recognize a need for a just health care system that does not exclude and discriminate against the poorest of society.

What is “Sound the Alarm?”

Congregations of all faiths join together in prayer or meditation and call for the creation of an affordable and quality healthcare system for all. The Affordable Care Act is a huge step forward to add coverage to over 30 million people across the country and the call for full implementation needs to be sounded.

JCUA’s Submits Testimony to City Council Raising Concern on Proposed Ordinance Tightening Protest Regulations

On Tuesday January 17, 2012, JCUA  submitted a testimony to Mayor Rahm Emanuel regarding its proposed ordinance for tightening protest regulations.

 

JEWISH COUNCIL ON URBAN AFFAIRS

January 17, 2012

Testimony by Jane Ramsey on Mayor Emanuel proposed changes to the city’s parade ordinance governing protests and marches.

 

The Jewish Council on Urban Affairs, founded nearly 50 years ago, to tackle poverty, racism and anti-Semitism in partnership with Chicago’s diverse communities, calls upon the Mayor and the City Council to ensure that Chicago residents’ rights to peaceful protest are protected.   As a democracy and a City that cherishes the expression and hearing of many voices on important matters impacting our communities and everyday lives, it is crucial that citizens’ rights to gather peacefully and to protest not be infringed upon as the City plans for the gathering of the G8.  We urge the Mayor and the City Council to ensure that, in submitting new ordinances regarding this event or any others, that no infringements, such as increases in fines for resisting arrest, size of placards, or limitations regarding permit requests for gatherings and parades are included and that the laws regarding such gatherings and parades that have been in place for many years are undisturbed.

As we showcase Chicago with opportunities such as the meeting of the G8, let us ensure that we highlight the greatness of our City, especially its embrace of its commitment to democracy and its citizens’ rights to public expression.

JCUA Leaders Go to D.C., Meet with Congressional Leaders and White House Staff

By Jane Ramsey, Executive Director, JCUA
And Irene Lehrer Sandalow, Director of Strategy and Jewish Affairs, JCUA

Ten JCUA leaders traveled to Washington, D.C. on July 28 to meet with congressional leaders and members of the White House administration as part of a two-day trip organized by the Jewish Social Justice Roundtable, a group of 21 nonprofit organizations promoting economic and social justice as a core tenet of Jewish life.

Included in the JCUA delegation were:  Rabbi Bruce Elder, Steve and Gerry Keen, Nikki Stein, Ira Azulay, Rabbi Joshua Salter, Leah Shefsky, Rabbi Michael Siegel, Irene Lehrer Sandalow and Jane Ramsey.

JCUA delegation*

That Thursday JCUA, the National Council of Jewish Women, and the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism coordinated meetings with congressional leaders and 40 Roundtable members. The meetings began with Reva Price, advisor to Rep. Nancy Pelosi. Price has a long history working in the Jewish community and provided us with an insider’s perspective on how to advance social justice issues on our agenda.

She shared the importance of the faith community in influencing the immigration debate, overcoming people’s fear of the “stranger,” and combating xenophobia. To win on immigration, Price encouraged us to create alliances with conservatives and the business community. She also explained that traditional advocacy tactics work and that calling and meeting with our congressional leaders makes a difference. “Take it to the public!” said Price, quoting Lincoln.

6210 Fairfield Becomes Symbol of Community Reclamation

By Judy Levey
Community Development Manager, JCUA

In the midst of an ongoing economic crisis that is displacing families and destabilizing communities, Jews and Muslims are reimagining what we can accomplish when we come together based on our shared commitment to social justice. Putting that energy to work locally, together we are tackling the foreclosure crisis that is devastating communities across the nation.

A young community member standings in front of photos of foreclosed homes in the area

This is a story of how we can go beyond interfaith dialogue to collaborative action, and how you can get involved.

Since 2009, residents near the intersection of Fairfield and 63^rd Street have grown increasingly distressed about an abandoned house in their neighborhood.  With over 5,500 foreclosures in the 60629 area code on Chicago’s Southwest Side between 2006-2010, there are scores of houses that are creating danger zones and wreaking havoc on neighborhood stability.

Chew by Choice: The Postville Raid and Magen Tzedek

Gadi Capela

By Gadi Capela
JCUA Rabbinic Fellow

On May 12, 2008, the U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raided AgriProcessors Inc., the kosher slaughterhouse and meat packing plant in Postville, Iowa.  Nearly 400 undocumented immigrant workers, mostly from Mexico and Guatemala, were arrested in what became the largest raid of a workplace in U.S. history until then.

Most of those who were arrested were convicted for document fraud and identity theft. Correspondingly, several AgriProcessors employees and managers were convicted for conspiracy to harbor undocumented immigrants.

But there was more.

AgriProcessors Inc. (photo: The Gazette)

AgriProcessors was  paying substandard wages and offering minimal safety instruction and health care to its 800 employees, and was hurting the animals and the environment. As a result, the Conservative movement reacted with a new initiative called Magen Tzedek.

By invoking the verse from Deuteronomy, “You shall not abuse a needy and destitute laborer, whether a fellow countryman or a stranger,” Rabbi Morris Allen advocated for an ethical certification for kosher food in addition to the current kosher slaughtering certification.

Magen Tzedek was founded on the principle that we are what we eat. It is an ethical seal signifying that kosher food has been prepared with the highest standard of integrity and care, including employee wages and benefits, health and safety, animal welfare, corporate transparency and environmental impact.

Magen Tzedek demonstrates that ritual and ethical commandments have an equal place at our tables.

To learn more about Magen Tzedek, join us for lunch with Gadi Capela on Tuesday, July 5 at noon at the JCUA office, 610 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 500. The event is free, but you need to RSVP on our website.

Illinois at Risk of Biggest Gambling Expansion in More Than Two Decades

[JCUA is a member of the Task Force to Oppose Casino Gambling in Chicago, a group that has existed for 20 years– opposing every attempt to bring gambling to the city.]

On Monday, May 30, in a vote of 65-50, the Illinois House approved legislation that puts Chicago, and the rest of the state at risk of the biggest gambling expansion in more than two decades.

The bill may be up for a vote today (May 31) in the Senate. If passed, the bill goes to Gov. Pat Quinn who has shown support for bringing a casino to the city.

Please call your state senators now (217-782-2000) and let them know how detrimental the legislation would be to Illinois.

Rep. Lou Lang (D-Skokie), the bill’s sponsor, said a gambling expansion would “be a dramatic help for the economic engine of Illinois” by creating new jobs and revenue when the stark truth is that having a casino would increase gambling addictions, crime and loss of income.

SB 744 would do the following and much more:

• Creates the Chicago Casino Development Authority to promote and maintain a casino in the City of Chicago
• Legalizes slot machines at airports in Chicago
• Legalizes 4 additional casinos in Danville, Rockford, Park City, and the South Suburbs
• Legalizes slot machines and video gambling machines at 6 racetracks

Call your senators now (217-782-2000) and ask them to vote NO to SB 744.

Community Organizations Take Action to Reclaim Neighborhood

 

For Immediate Release

Jewish Council on Urban Affairs, Chicago  |  www.jcua.org
Media:  Katherine Randall  |  katherine@jcua.org

CHICAGO — Residents, local religious and school leadership and community organizations are holding an action to announce progress and plans for reclaiming the abandoned, vandalized property at 6210 S. Fairfield in Marquette Park, a neighborhood that has seen more than 5,500 foreclosures since 2006.

Collective pressure from JCUA, the Inner-City Muslim Action Network (IMAN) and the Southwest Organizing Project (SWOP) has recently led to the boarding up and securing of the building. On Thursday, May 19, community members will demonstrate their commitment to reclaiming their neighborhood and reviving the property by painting a mural on the house, creating a community garden in the backyard, and engaging in festivities on the lawn and down the block.

A news conference on the project will be held at 3:00 p.m. at the 6210 S. Fairfield house with community activities to follow until 5:00 p.m.

“This project is all about taking collective action against a place which has been the source of much fear, intimidation and pain for over a year,” said IMAN Executive Director Rami Nashashibi.

Nashashibi, Father Tony Pizzo and JCUA Executive Director Jane Ramsey will lead an interfaith prayer service to demonstrate the depth of commitment and unity on this issue. Invited legislators include: Sen. Jacqueline Collins (D-Chicago), Cook County Commissioner Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, and Ald. Toni Foulkes (15^th).

“The impact of bank foreclosures on area properties has been truly devastating,” said Judy Levey, JCUA community development manager. “Working together we can build the momentum necessary to fix this problem.”

About JCUA (www.jcua.org)

The mission of the Chicago-based Jewish Council on Urban Affairs is to combat poverty, racism and anti-Semitism in partnership with diverse communities. Guided by prophetic Jewish principles, JCUA pursues social and economic justice for our most vulnerable neighborhoods by promoting a vision of empowering communities from within. Since 1964, JCUA has assisted groups in low-income and minority communities, built coalitions with diverse groups, advocated on issues of poverty and racism and mobilized a Jewish constituency to create a more just city and nation.

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“Venceremos”: JCUA “Together in the Struggle” with Chicago Street Vendors

By Holly Krig
Community Initiatives Organizer, JCUA

This morning members of the Street Vendors Association (AVA, La Asociación de Vendedores Ambulantes), with the help of JCUA, organized a protest outside the municipal courts, 400 W Superior, to raise their voices against ongoing harassment by Chicago police officers.

Chicago street vendors protest police harassment

The vendors, who sell freshly-prepared ethnic foods, are predominately low-income immigrant Latino women challenged by balancing several low-wage/day labor jobs and hectic childcare schedules.

Under a Chicago peddling ordinance that prohibits the selling of cut or prepared foods, vendors face fines between $50 and $200, which are a large percentage of their average yearly income of $6,000 to $10,000.

In addition to the fines, many vendors have had their food tossed out by police who threaten to call immigration and ask to see their “papers.”

JCUA has been working with AVA for about a year and a half now on the group’s long-term vision of winning a comprehensive ordinance from the city that will protect the right of vendors to sell ethnic food.

The group is also pushing for a kitchen cooperative where vendors can come together to learn about their rights and health and safety regulations. Another goal of the group is to continue to organize in support of other vendors and immigrant workers across the country.

Last week the street vendors organized a march down 26^th Street in protest of the recent increase in fines and food tossing.

The march was organized shortly after 56-year-old street vendor, Alicia Alarcon, was shot and wounded by a stray bullet while selling elotes in her Little Village neighborhood—a business she started after losing her job as a factory worker.

Learn more about JCUA’s worker justice work

Around the Nation, a Rebirth of Jewish Social Justice

The below article was originally published in The Jewish Daily Forward and was co-written by Jewish Funds for Justice President and CEO Simon Greer and Board Co-Chair Amy B. Dean. The New York-based Jewish Funds for Justice is a partner organization of JCUA.

By Amy B. Dean and Simon Greer

Abraham Joshua Heschel, one of the most pre-eminent rabbis and theologians of the 20th century, was a Jewish leader who insisted that our faith be linked to the struggle for social justice in America.

In the Fight: Abraham Joshua Heschel (center left) joins with Martin Luther King in 1968, at one of many joint appearances. Getty Images

He lived this conviction by actively supporting causes such as the Civil Rights Movement and serving as an adviser to the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. “In the realm of the spirit,” he said, “only he who is a pioneer is able to be an heir. The wages of spiritual plagiarism is the loss of integrity… Authentic faith is more than an echo of a tradition. It is a creative situation, an event.”

This statement identifies one of the central tasks of modern Judaism — the need to ground religious practice in a legacy of Torah study, observance and ritual, and to perpetuate tradition by adapting to contemporary times.

Chicago Leaders Stand Together Against Peter King Hearings

March 11, 2011– Chicago leaders gathered to share their concerns about the controversial congressional hearings being led by Rep. Peter King on the supposed radicalization of American Muslims. Below are statements of several leaders on the issue.

Jane Ramsey

Jane Ramsey, executive director of the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs

The Jewish Council on Urban Affairs will remain vigilant with our friends from the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago and many other Muslim organizations with which we work and partner. It has been our joy to work together over the number of years to create a better Chicago and to create a better nation.

Azam Nizamuddin

Azam Nizamuddin, chair of Interfaith Coordinating Committee for the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago

Our concern is while our nation is in the midst of one of the worst economic periods since the Great Depression, while our local, state and federal governments are unable to balance their budgets, Congressman King is engaging in Islamophobia merely for political posturing… We are concerned that the hearings are not really seriously engaging in these issues but are really more or less trying to foment fear and misunderstanding of a religious minority.

Asaf Bar-Tura

Asaf Bar-Tura, coordinator of JCUA’s Jewish-Muslim Community Building Initiative

In these 10 years of the Jewish-Muslim Community Building Initiative, our Muslim counterparts have been true partners on the journey towards a more healthy, strong and diverse democracy in America. As communities of faith, we share a commitment to civically engaging our members and we all face various challenges. But to single out one community is not only an insult to all of us, but it is dangerous to all of us. We call on our elected officials to carry out the task of ensuring national security with determination and with sensitivity, but not with misguided media spectacles.