PROTESTS Jewish Atlanta Pledges to ‘Not Stand Idly By’
Photo Credit: Audrey Galex // Rabbi Laurence Rosenthal of Ahavath Achim Synagogue speaks
during a June 4 interfaith march from near the state capitol to downtown Atlanta.
By Dave Schechter In Atlanta, in the cradle of the civil rights movement, there is a history of the
10 | JUNE 15, 2020 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES
Jewish community praying, with their voices and their feet, speaking up and marching in support of African Americans seeking equality under the law and in the
Photo credit: Audrey Galex. // Rabbi Joshua Lesser of Congregation Bet Haverim takes
a knee during the June 4 interfaith march that ended outside CNN Center.
in the name of law enforcement, by police application of justice. Over the decades there also have been and citizens, are horrific. These slayings points of friction between the communi- are part of a pattern of systemic violence ties, differences of opinion over issues in- against Black Americans that cannot conternational and local, and times when the tinue. We cannot stand idly by these and Jewish community might have done more countless other transgressions against our Black brothers and sisters.” to assuage their neighbors’ pain. Harkening back to the “history of In the aftermath of the killings of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Breonna Tay- Black-Jewish solidarity during the Civil lor in Louisville, and Ahmaud Arbery near Rights movement,” the statement went on Brunswick, Ga., segments of Atlanta’s Jew- to say, “our tradition compels us to actively ish community decried violence against fight racism and systemic injustice. As our sages taught, ‘It is African Amerinot incumbent upon cans and called for you to complete the greater efforts to work, but neither counter racism at are you at liberty to the individual and desist from it.’ Seginstitutional levments of our comels. The statements munity have been they issued struck active in this fight, common themes as and the entire Jewwell as differences ish community is reflecting how each called to re-engage views its mission. in this effort.” “Do not stand The Atlanta idly by the blood of JCRC also issued a your neighbor” (Leseparate statement, viticus 19:16) was the extending condofirst line of a joint lences to include the statement issued families and “countby the Jewish FedLeslie Anderson, executive director of less others, Black eration of Greater Atlanta JCRC, said that the organization “felt it was important to include a call Americans who Atlanta, the Jewish for action” in its separate statement. have been killed in a Community Relations Council of Atlanta, the Anti-Defama- wanton and senseless manner and whose tion League Southeast region, the American deaths spotlight the lack of equal rights Jewish Committee regional office in Atlanta, and treatment under the law,” and pledging to “join the fight against institutional and the Atlanta Rabbinical Association. Citing the deaths of Floyd, Taylor, and and acts of individual racism, which conArbery, the statement said, “These crimes, tinue to traumatize, terrorize, and devalue
