THE RAC: THE RELIGIOUS ACTION CENTER OF REFORM JUDAISM
The Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (The RAC) is the Washington office of the Union for Reform Judaism, the organization that supports more than 900 congregations across North America and represents an estimated 1.5 million Jews. Read more on our RAC Fact Sheet.
Deborah Kadin, a member of the Commission on Social Action, which oversees the work of the RAC and the development of public policy for the Reform Movement, will write an article on the RAC each month for the Temple newsletter.
Follow the RAC on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/TheRAC.
Deborah Kadin, a member of the Commission on Social Action, which oversees the work of the RAC and the development of public policy for the Reform Movement, will write an article on the RAC each month for the Temple newsletter.
Follow the RAC on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/TheRAC.
Engaging in Issues, Advocacy Hallmarks of RAC Programs
November 2012
Learning about an issue and taking on small and large-scale hands-on social action projects can be a meaningful way of repairing a small part of the world.
Advocating for long-standing change – having a role in affecting policy – is often more meaningful. But it can be daunting.
And that’s part of the reason behind the programs that the Religious Action Center has led for more than 30 years. These efforts help youth and adults understand and engage in the process of advocacy. Often they lead young people to become more deeply engaged.
L’Taken Seminar
Every year, nearly 2,000 high school-aged students come to Washington, D.C. to participate in L'Taken, an intensive four-day kallah focusing on the relationship between Jewish values, social justice and political activism. The program is designed to expose students to a variety of public policy issues, explore the Jewish values that inform the Reform Movement’s advocacy around them and teach teens how to become effective advocates.
The issues are wide-ranging – from HIV/AIDS to economic justice, from Israel to environmental concerns, from reproductive choice to the Middle East peace process.
They are selected in conjunction with students’ interests and are always tied to current legislative activity. Throughout the weekend, participants get the knowledge and tools on writing an effective and persuasive speech on their topic that they present when they visit the offices of their Congressmen.
Oak Park Temple confirmation classes have participated in L’Taken seminars for quite a while. As shown in the picture above, this past January, Sophie Gardner and Jessica Kaplan focused their attention on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, Rachel Pavlakovic lobbied on embryonic stem cell research, and Noah Fletcher concentrated on nuclear weapons issues. They met peers from around the country, exchanged ideas and caught some of the sights. Rabbi Max Weiss chaperoned the trip.
Machon Kaplan
Founded in 1976, Machon Kaplan, is a summer internship for Jewish socially minded undergraduate students. Based at the RAC headquarters in D.C., Kaplan provides students a meaningful social justice internship, the opportunity to engage in academic study related to their internships and a community of like-minded students with whom to share their experience. Students learn, through study and action, the interrelationship of Judaism and American democratic ideals, as well as the political interaction of the organized American Jewish community and the U.S. government.
Eisendrath Legislative Assistant Program
The Eisendrath Legislative Assistant Program, established in 1975, allows college graduates to get involved and play a pivotal role in every aspect of the Religious Action Center’s work – legislative advocacy, conferences, communications and supporting the work of the Commission on Social Action. The program lasts between three to 12 months and allows participants to monitor and analyze federal legislation, perform grassroots and coalition advocacy work and more. To date, more than 225 people have participated in this program, and many have gone on to become rabbis, professionals in the Jewish community, lawyers, public interest lobbyists, and staff members on Capitol Hill.
Consultation on Conscience
The Consultation on Conscience is the flagship public policy conference for the Reform Jewish Movement. It is held every two years in Washington, in the spring, shortly after the new Congress takes office.
It’s often packed with high-level briefings on current issues and critical legislation. Participants attend forums on a wide range of social justice topics, engage with peers from around the country and hear addresses from many prominent individuals including: President Bill Clinton, Bishop Desmond Tutu, NAACP President Benjamin Jealous, Former Vice President Hubert Humphrey, the Dalai Lama, Vice President Al Gore, Cecile Richards, Sister Helen Prejean plus scores of Senators and Representatives.
Learning about an issue and taking on small and large-scale hands-on social action projects can be a meaningful way of repairing a small part of the world.
Advocating for long-standing change – having a role in affecting policy – is often more meaningful. But it can be daunting.
And that’s part of the reason behind the programs that the Religious Action Center has led for more than 30 years. These efforts help youth and adults understand and engage in the process of advocacy. Often they lead young people to become more deeply engaged.
L’Taken Seminar
Every year, nearly 2,000 high school-aged students come to Washington, D.C. to participate in L'Taken, an intensive four-day kallah focusing on the relationship between Jewish values, social justice and political activism. The program is designed to expose students to a variety of public policy issues, explore the Jewish values that inform the Reform Movement’s advocacy around them and teach teens how to become effective advocates.
The issues are wide-ranging – from HIV/AIDS to economic justice, from Israel to environmental concerns, from reproductive choice to the Middle East peace process.
They are selected in conjunction with students’ interests and are always tied to current legislative activity. Throughout the weekend, participants get the knowledge and tools on writing an effective and persuasive speech on their topic that they present when they visit the offices of their Congressmen.
Oak Park Temple confirmation classes have participated in L’Taken seminars for quite a while. As shown in the picture above, this past January, Sophie Gardner and Jessica Kaplan focused their attention on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, Rachel Pavlakovic lobbied on embryonic stem cell research, and Noah Fletcher concentrated on nuclear weapons issues. They met peers from around the country, exchanged ideas and caught some of the sights. Rabbi Max Weiss chaperoned the trip.
Machon Kaplan
Founded in 1976, Machon Kaplan, is a summer internship for Jewish socially minded undergraduate students. Based at the RAC headquarters in D.C., Kaplan provides students a meaningful social justice internship, the opportunity to engage in academic study related to their internships and a community of like-minded students with whom to share their experience. Students learn, through study and action, the interrelationship of Judaism and American democratic ideals, as well as the political interaction of the organized American Jewish community and the U.S. government.
Eisendrath Legislative Assistant Program
The Eisendrath Legislative Assistant Program, established in 1975, allows college graduates to get involved and play a pivotal role in every aspect of the Religious Action Center’s work – legislative advocacy, conferences, communications and supporting the work of the Commission on Social Action. The program lasts between three to 12 months and allows participants to monitor and analyze federal legislation, perform grassroots and coalition advocacy work and more. To date, more than 225 people have participated in this program, and many have gone on to become rabbis, professionals in the Jewish community, lawyers, public interest lobbyists, and staff members on Capitol Hill.
Consultation on Conscience
The Consultation on Conscience is the flagship public policy conference for the Reform Jewish Movement. It is held every two years in Washington, in the spring, shortly after the new Congress takes office.
It’s often packed with high-level briefings on current issues and critical legislation. Participants attend forums on a wide range of social justice topics, engage with peers from around the country and hear addresses from many prominent individuals including: President Bill Clinton, Bishop Desmond Tutu, NAACP President Benjamin Jealous, Former Vice President Hubert Humphrey, the Dalai Lama, Vice President Al Gore, Cecile Richards, Sister Helen Prejean plus scores of Senators and Representatives.
“JUSTICE, JUSTICE SHALL YOU PURSUE" - DEUTERONOMY 16:18-20.
October 2012
Raising funds and collecting things have been an important part of Jewish engagement in social justice. But so, too, is bringing about long-term systemic policy changes that can improve the quality of life for us all.
Since its inception, the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, or the RAC, has striven to affect substantive change and build a world that reflects the Jewish values of social justice.
Over the past half-century, the RAC has played a significant role in influencing Congress on some of the most important social issues of our time. Its work has improved our quality of life, made this a more equal and healthy society and helped ensure access for all.
Advocacy is central to our core value as Reform Jews, said Rabbi Marla Feldman, the executive director of the Women of Reform Judaism. She has served as the director of the Joint Commission on Social Action of the Union for Reform Judaism and Central Conference of American Rabbis.
“We proclaim that maintaining a strong safety net for those who are most vulnerable is the modern manifestation of our obligation to ‘leave the corners of our fields for the poor and needy.’ We believe that supporting public schools so that every child in America has access to a free and appropriate education and that paying workers enough to support themselves without having to choose between shelter and food, medication or heat, are family values. If we don’t bring these progressive religious values into the public arena with us, we will abandon the public square to those offering a different view of religion and values,” she said.
Photo at right courtesy of the Religious Action Center. RAC celebrated LGBT equality by marching in the 2011 Capital Pride Parade.
In changing the social justice landscape, the Reform movement has advocated for, among other legislation:
The RAC helped make marriage equality a reality in New York in 2011.
Our chief lobbyist is Rabbi David Saperstein, the director/counsel for the RAC. But the RAC doesn’t do this work alone. The RAC mobilizes Reform Jews to call their lawmakers and also take part in efforts to draw attention to critical national and international issues.
The Chai Impact Action Center, an online toolbox of engagement, provides alerts on legislation and other matters on social justice. There you also will find a list of topics and descriptions of positions that the Reform movement has taken on issues from arms control and campaign finance reform to hate crimes, gun control and reproductive rights and more. Programs that have been successfully implemented at other congregations also are available there.
To draw attention to issues, the RAC organizes forums and press conferences with other organizations. In addition, the Reform Movement galvanizes Jews around the country to stand up and be counted at large rallies. They include, but are not limited to, the following:
In 2011, the Reform Movement was a cosponsor of the “Stand up for Women’s Health Lobby Day and Rally," organized by Planned Parenthood, in 2011. Rabbi David Saperstein spoke at the event. Thousands of women’s health supporters gathered on Capitol Hill to carry the message that women’s health is non-negotiable.
On Mother’s Day in 2000, Rabbi Eric Yoffie, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, was the only religious leader to speak at the Million Mom March. Nearly 750,000 people attended the rally on the National Mall in support of tighter restrictions on handguns.
In 1992, the RAC helped mobilize the Jewish community to take part in the March for Women’s Lives. An estimated 1.1 million individuals, including thousands of Reform Jews, descended on the National Mall to give an urgent wake-up call to government leaders and the nation that women’s lives were at risk. The RAC hosted a weekend of pre-march events.
In 2006, the Reform Movement supported the 2006 Rally to Stop Genocide organized by the Save Darfur Coalition. A major rally was conducted in Washington; others were conducted in cities across the U.S.
Raising funds and collecting things have been an important part of Jewish engagement in social justice. But so, too, is bringing about long-term systemic policy changes that can improve the quality of life for us all.
Since its inception, the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, or the RAC, has striven to affect substantive change and build a world that reflects the Jewish values of social justice.
Over the past half-century, the RAC has played a significant role in influencing Congress on some of the most important social issues of our time. Its work has improved our quality of life, made this a more equal and healthy society and helped ensure access for all.
Advocacy is central to our core value as Reform Jews, said Rabbi Marla Feldman, the executive director of the Women of Reform Judaism. She has served as the director of the Joint Commission on Social Action of the Union for Reform Judaism and Central Conference of American Rabbis.
“We proclaim that maintaining a strong safety net for those who are most vulnerable is the modern manifestation of our obligation to ‘leave the corners of our fields for the poor and needy.’ We believe that supporting public schools so that every child in America has access to a free and appropriate education and that paying workers enough to support themselves without having to choose between shelter and food, medication or heat, are family values. If we don’t bring these progressive religious values into the public arena with us, we will abandon the public square to those offering a different view of religion and values,” she said.
Photo at right courtesy of the Religious Action Center. RAC celebrated LGBT equality by marching in the 2011 Capital Pride Parade.
In changing the social justice landscape, the Reform movement has advocated for, among other legislation:
- Civil Rights Act (1964)
- Voting Rights Act (1965)
- Americans with Disabilities Act (1990) and the ADA Amendments Act (2008) *Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) (1993)
- Violence Against Women Act (1994)
- Assault Weapons Ban (1994)
- State Children’s Health Insurance Plan (1997)
- Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) (2000)
- Help America Vote Act (2002)
- Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (2002)
- CLEAN Energy Act – increased CAFÉ Standards (2006)
- Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act (2008)
- Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act (2009)
- Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (2009) *Repeal, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (2010)
- Affordable Care Act (2010)
- Children Nutrition Reauthorization Act (2010)
- Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (EPA, 2011)
- RESTORE Act (Gulf Coast restoration, 2012)
The RAC helped make marriage equality a reality in New York in 2011.
Our chief lobbyist is Rabbi David Saperstein, the director/counsel for the RAC. But the RAC doesn’t do this work alone. The RAC mobilizes Reform Jews to call their lawmakers and also take part in efforts to draw attention to critical national and international issues.
The Chai Impact Action Center, an online toolbox of engagement, provides alerts on legislation and other matters on social justice. There you also will find a list of topics and descriptions of positions that the Reform movement has taken on issues from arms control and campaign finance reform to hate crimes, gun control and reproductive rights and more. Programs that have been successfully implemented at other congregations also are available there.
To draw attention to issues, the RAC organizes forums and press conferences with other organizations. In addition, the Reform Movement galvanizes Jews around the country to stand up and be counted at large rallies. They include, but are not limited to, the following:
In 2011, the Reform Movement was a cosponsor of the “Stand up for Women’s Health Lobby Day and Rally," organized by Planned Parenthood, in 2011. Rabbi David Saperstein spoke at the event. Thousands of women’s health supporters gathered on Capitol Hill to carry the message that women’s health is non-negotiable.
On Mother’s Day in 2000, Rabbi Eric Yoffie, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, was the only religious leader to speak at the Million Mom March. Nearly 750,000 people attended the rally on the National Mall in support of tighter restrictions on handguns.
In 1992, the RAC helped mobilize the Jewish community to take part in the March for Women’s Lives. An estimated 1.1 million individuals, including thousands of Reform Jews, descended on the National Mall to give an urgent wake-up call to government leaders and the nation that women’s lives were at risk. The RAC hosted a weekend of pre-march events.
In 2006, the Reform Movement supported the 2006 Rally to Stop Genocide organized by the Save Darfur Coalition. A major rally was conducted in Washington; others were conducted in cities across the U.S.
what is the religious action center of reform Judaism
September 2012
The Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism is the hub of Jewish social justice and legislative activity in Washington, D.C. It is the primary public policy institute of American liberal Judaism. The RAC has served to mobilize the Jewish community on legislative and social justice concerns and to be its lobbyist in the U.S. Congress on issues from Israel and Soviet Jewry to economic justice, civil rights, international peace and religious liberty.
A portion of our annual dues pays for the staff, programming, education and advocacy and other areas that are in the RAC’s purview. But the RAC works differently from other lobbyists: it doesn’t buy influence. Armed with Jewish values and moral suasion, the RAC attempts to persuade lawmakers to introduce, support and vote for bills that reflect the progressive principles of the Reform Movement.
The RAC grew out of a necessity to have an impact in Washington on the issues of the day. In the aftermath of a 1952 Supreme Court decision focusing on release time for religious instruction, the Reform movement felt the need to redouble its work to maintain the Constitutional principles of the separation of church and state.
But how to do that? For years the Reform movement debated over whether we should lobby in Washington. Many Christian groups, both Protestant and Catholic, had long maintained social action offices in D.C.
In 1959, Kivie Kaplan, vice-chairman of the UAHC (the Union of American Hebrew Congregations as the URJ was known at the time) offered a gift of $100,000 for the purchase of a building that would serve as the RAC headquarters. Kaplan (2nd from right in the photo on the right) at the time also served as the national president of the NAACP. (Photo courtesy of the Religious Action Center.)
Two years later, delegates at the General Assembly in Miami Beach voted to accept the gift and establish the RAC. However, once the implications of the resolution became clear, a number of major Reform congregations urged that the decision be reconsidered. At the 1961 Biennial, the issue was reintroduced; the ensuing debate was stormy and intense, according to an address delivered by Rabbi Eric Yoffie during the re-dedication of the RAC in 2003.
“The opponents of the Center offered a number of arguments,” Yoffie said. “They said that it would be arrogant for any institution to presume to speak for us all-we Reform Jews are famously unable to agree on the time of day…. But the key argument was this: while both sides acknowledged that ethics are central to Reform Judaism, the opponents insisted that ethics means personal ethics and individual conscience, and not collective political action.”
The resolution was overwhelmingly adopted.
In November 1961, 250 UAHC leaders presented a Torah belonging to Rabbi Isaac Meyer Wise, the founder of the Reform movement in the U.S., to President John F. Kennedy as part of a salute to the RAC in the White House Rose Garden. Kennedy noted that the RAC’s establishment "is an effective answer to those who deny the responsibilities of religion for correcting injustice."
Its first director was Rabbi Richard Hirsch, director of the Chicago Federation and the Great Lakes Council of UAHC. He served until 1973 when he became executive director of the World Union for Progressive Judaism. Al Vorspan assumed the role for one year. And in 1974, Rabbi David Saperstein was appointed director-general counsel.
Here are a few pieces of history of interest:
The Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism is the hub of Jewish social justice and legislative activity in Washington, D.C. It is the primary public policy institute of American liberal Judaism. The RAC has served to mobilize the Jewish community on legislative and social justice concerns and to be its lobbyist in the U.S. Congress on issues from Israel and Soviet Jewry to economic justice, civil rights, international peace and religious liberty.
A portion of our annual dues pays for the staff, programming, education and advocacy and other areas that are in the RAC’s purview. But the RAC works differently from other lobbyists: it doesn’t buy influence. Armed with Jewish values and moral suasion, the RAC attempts to persuade lawmakers to introduce, support and vote for bills that reflect the progressive principles of the Reform Movement.
The RAC grew out of a necessity to have an impact in Washington on the issues of the day. In the aftermath of a 1952 Supreme Court decision focusing on release time for religious instruction, the Reform movement felt the need to redouble its work to maintain the Constitutional principles of the separation of church and state.
But how to do that? For years the Reform movement debated over whether we should lobby in Washington. Many Christian groups, both Protestant and Catholic, had long maintained social action offices in D.C.
In 1959, Kivie Kaplan, vice-chairman of the UAHC (the Union of American Hebrew Congregations as the URJ was known at the time) offered a gift of $100,000 for the purchase of a building that would serve as the RAC headquarters. Kaplan (2nd from right in the photo on the right) at the time also served as the national president of the NAACP. (Photo courtesy of the Religious Action Center.)
Two years later, delegates at the General Assembly in Miami Beach voted to accept the gift and establish the RAC. However, once the implications of the resolution became clear, a number of major Reform congregations urged that the decision be reconsidered. At the 1961 Biennial, the issue was reintroduced; the ensuing debate was stormy and intense, according to an address delivered by Rabbi Eric Yoffie during the re-dedication of the RAC in 2003.
“The opponents of the Center offered a number of arguments,” Yoffie said. “They said that it would be arrogant for any institution to presume to speak for us all-we Reform Jews are famously unable to agree on the time of day…. But the key argument was this: while both sides acknowledged that ethics are central to Reform Judaism, the opponents insisted that ethics means personal ethics and individual conscience, and not collective political action.”
The resolution was overwhelmingly adopted.
In November 1961, 250 UAHC leaders presented a Torah belonging to Rabbi Isaac Meyer Wise, the founder of the Reform movement in the U.S., to President John F. Kennedy as part of a salute to the RAC in the White House Rose Garden. Kennedy noted that the RAC’s establishment "is an effective answer to those who deny the responsibilities of religion for correcting injustice."
Its first director was Rabbi Richard Hirsch, director of the Chicago Federation and the Great Lakes Council of UAHC. He served until 1973 when he became executive director of the World Union for Progressive Judaism. Al Vorspan assumed the role for one year. And in 1974, Rabbi David Saperstein was appointed director-general counsel.
Here are a few pieces of history of interest:
- The landmark 1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act were drafted in the Center's conference room by Jewish , Black and other civil rights leaders.
- The Reform movement was the first Jewish organization to oppose the Vietnam War. During mass anti-war protests in Washington D.C. in 1968, the RAC became the hub of Jewish involvement. Jewish demonstrators camped inside the building and on the lawn. Staff led discussions on war and Jewish tradition and mobilized broader Jewish involvement. The headquarters served as an emergency first-aid station when protestors were overcome by tear gas.
- The Center became operational headquarters for the 1987 Freedom March for Soviet Jewry. RAC staff mobilized congregations throughout the country and coordinated the organizing efforts of the entire Jewish community. “The rally was the making of a memory, the shaping of a commitment to the freedom of Soviet Jews,” recalls Leonard Fein, Senior Scholar at the Religious Action Center, “The numbers were the message.”
