WHEREAS, September 6th through the 11th of 2020 is Black Jewish Unity Week recognized by the American Jewish Committee and the National Urban League in Philadelphia; and
WHEREAS, Throughout our nation’s history, Black and Jewish communities have formed partnerships to fight against racial injustice; and
WHEREAS, Black and Jewish people have worked, marched, bled and even died together to expand civil rights and advance fundamental freedoms for all Americans; and
WHEREAS, While not all congregants were attuned to the urgency of the Civil Rights Movement, many Jewish leaders took a stand against racial inequality. Notably, a Rabbi who arrived in 1939 from Germany, Joachim Prinz, gave a speech at the March on Washington in 1963; and
WHEREAS, As describe in the LA Times, “
Jews made up perhaps half of white Freedom Riders. They were prominent among the founders and early funders of the NAACP. A history of the civil rights movement would be incomplete without mentioning Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman, who were lynched, along with their fellow Freedom Rider, James Chaney, in Mississippi in 1964. They were true heroes, martyrs even”
; and
WHEREAS, The Civil Rights Movement was led by Black Americans and the Jewish people are proud of their role in supporting their allies both then and now
; and
WHEREAS, A shared, though different, history of oppression based on identity has united the Jewish and Black communities and it is essential for that partnership to continue. The Black Jewish Unity Week and its events aim to do just that and look to the future of this essential collaboration; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, that the City Council of Philadelphia, Hereby recognizes
the American Jewish Committee and the National Urban League’s Black Jewish Unity Week and the ongoing efforts to partner and work together in creating a more equitable future.
End