HILLEL
Hillel Students Take a Stand On Social Justice
By Jordan Fisher ‘08
"Pursuing Justice and Transforming Communities." were the goals of the 16th annual Charlotte B. and Jack J. Spitzer B'nai B'rith Hillel Forum on Public Policy. Three hundred and seventy Jewish students from one hundred and thirty six college 
campuses nation-wide descended on Washington, D.C. on the weekend of February 27th during Trinity Days to do just that. Seven students from Trinity College Hillel attended the conference; Cheryl Gerber ’07, Andrew Horowitz ’06, Julie Hirsh ’08, Jordan Fisher ’08, Adam Fine ’08, Emily Pearl ’07 and Dana Simmons ’06. Lisa Kassow, Hillel director, and Julie Sarke, Jewish Campus Service Corp Fellow (JCSC) accompanied them. Together the group learned about Judaism's obligation to social justice (tzedek in Hebrew) and community building worldwide. The forum was an opportunity for Hillel students and staff from all over the United States and Canada to share innovative ideas, attend cutting-edge workshops, and hear from leaders in the fields of politics and social justice. This year's keynote speakers included Senators Hillary Clinton (D-NY), John McCain (R-AZ), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), and Gideon Yago, documentary filmmaker and reporter for MTV.
Cheryl Gerber '07 was impressed with Avraham Infeld, President of the International Hillel Foundation, and his strong commitment to tzedek. He asked students what they need from the international Hillel foundation in order to do more social action programming. Infeld said that he doesn't think a Hillel coalition against hunger will solve world hunger, but that everyone needs to fight it. Students can to help the world as much as possible and prevent the situation from worsening for future generations. Infeld's primary goal is to increase social action programming and awareness through Hillel. Gerber commented, “I learned that all schools, no matter how big or small, have the same goals for Jewish life on our campuses and often face the same dilemmas when executing programming. We all share Infeld's passion for tzedek and try to convey its importance through our work at Hillel.”
Julie Hirsh '08 was impressed with the stand that the American Jewish community is taking in support of GLBTQ rights. She said, "I think Jews have taken a big step forward and should be recognized in their advocacy of gay rights as human rights. Certainly we should all come to a consensus that hate crimes and prejudiced actions against people of gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender orientation are simply unacceptable and a violation of basic human rights. However, American Jews have taken quite a step by reaching out to GLBTQ Jews as fellow members of our community.’ The Spitzer forum also featured seminars that emphasized proper recognition of GLBTQ rights when formulating appropriate policy for sex education.
Dana Simmons '05 was inspired by a presentation that gave new meaning to her as a Jew of color. "Yavilah McCoy, founder and director of the AYECHA Resource Organization, has inspired me to pursue social activism and has ignited my inert Jewish soul. Yavilah McCoy's organization provides training and educational resources for building greater sensitivity toward difference in the Jewish community and her speech at the Spitzer Forum on Public Policy and Social Action has impacted my life greatly. Before listening to her speech, I was uncomfortable about going to the conference because I didn't feel Jewish enough to go. I felt this way because not only am I biracial, both Antiguan and Russian Jew, but also because I grew up as a Christian, and didn't know that my father was Russian Jew until I was eleven years old. Since then, I have been torn racially and religiously and have been in search of finding my Jewish soul."
Students and staff from the Spitzer Forum and Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA) and the Coalition On The Environment and Jewish Life (COEJL) lobbied their state legislators about numerous pressing issues on Capitol Hill. Andrew Horowitz '06 was impressed by our Connecticut legislators’ attention to the lobbyists. "On the last day of the conference, we went to Capitol Hill to lobby our congressmen and senators on issues that are important to the Jewish community, including support for Medicaid, stem cell research, action against the Darfur genocide in Sudan, and pushing the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. While our meetings were with the staff of the congressmen and senators, not the officials themselves, we did meet Joe Lieberman briefly. Our trip to Capitol Hill gave us an inside view of the legislative process as we pushed important issues."
The conference was an amazing opportunity for the Hillel students and staff to learn about social justice and public policy. Everyone came back from the conference with a more developed awareness of the Jewish response to important issues facing the world today and excited to implement new social justice programs at Trinity College. Several students attended a session called “Judaism and Social Justice: Why to Care- How, When, Where, and For Whom?” outlining the Jewish obligation to take up the cause of social action. Presenter Rabbi Fred Scherlinder-Dobb explained that the historical basis of this is rooted in ancient Jewish text Deuteronomy 20 that states “Justice, justice, you shall pursue.” He taught students how to interpret their social social justice work into a Jewish context. Hillel students would like to thank the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford, the Jewish Studies Program, and Trinity College Hillel for their support. The experience was more meaningful than these student accounts can simply summarize.