The philanthropic sector and pro-Israel lobby both use money to wield influence in our politics and culture, often in ways that frustrate progressive Jews. Because these groups are so often associated with the Jewish community — a misguided equivalence, despite the fact that there are prominent members of the Jewish community in each — criticisms of these sectors are fraught with accusations of antisemitism. Sometimes, these bad faith accusations are weaponized in order to stifle dissent. Other times, they are very real, and it’s important for the Jewish left to know and understand the difference, so we can more effectively fight back against these forces.

How can we more accurately understand the role these groups play in shaping American politics? How can we hold the philanthropic sector accountable for the role it plays in shaping American Jewish politics, culture, and discourse?

Join us for this conversation between Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg, organizer, activist, and award-winning author; Graie Hagans, former chief vision officer at Bend the Arc and current JLF steering committee member; and Marty Levine, former CEO of JCC Chicago and member of The Jewish Council on Urban Affairs (JCUA) and Jewish Voice for Peace. Our speakers will unpack the many ways our communities talk about dark money groups and philanthropy, analyze how philanthropic institutions intentionally make themselves hard to criticize, and imagine how we might build Jewish philanthropic institutions that are accountable to our community, all without fueling antisemitism. This conversation will be moderated by Ari Bloomekatz, executive director of In These Times.

Time: December 14, Doors 6:15pm CT, Event 7pm CT 

Location: Chicago, IL (Venue and location information provided after registration)

Session 3: Philanthropy, Accountability, and the Weaponization of Antisemitism, December 14, Chicago 

Featured Speakers

Panelists:

Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg

Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg is the award-winning author of eight books who now makes her primary writing home at Life is a Sacred Text. She has received the Lives of Commitment Award from Auburn Seminary, and the Rabbinic Human Rights Hero Award from the human rights organization T’ruah, was named by Newsweek as a “rabbi to watch,” and as a “faith leader to watch” by the Center for American Progress, and has been a Sunday Washington Post crossword clue (83 Down).  Her most recent book, On Repentance and Repair: Making Amends in an Unapologetic World is a National Jewish Book Award winner and an American Library Association’s Sophie Brody Honor Book. It was hailed by Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley as “A must read for anyone navigating the work of justice and healing.”  Her North Star is the belief that we have a moral and religious obligation to care for one another, and to fight for a more just world.

Graie Hagans

Graie Hagans (he/they) is an organizer, political educator, and casual midrashist who helps people discover their own capacity to build a better and more beautiful world. He currently serves as a full-time consultant supporting the Jewish Bridge Project, The Shalom Center, and the Black Jewish Liberation Collective.

A longtime movement leader, Graie previously served as Chief Vision Officer at Bend the Arc, where he led political education, training and narrative strategy on antisemitism, anti-Black racism, and multiracial democracy building. He is also a founding member of the Black Jewish Liberation Collective, a member of the steering committee for the Jewish Liberation Fund, and serves on the board of Kehillat Sankofa.

Graie holds an MPP from the Bloustein School of Public Policy at Rutgers University. 

Marty Levine

A lifelong advocate for progressive social change, Marty founded the Jewish Alliance for Economic Justice. He is a long-time member and past leader of the Chicago chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace. Marty is the Co-chairman of the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs (JCUA) Votes Political Committee and actively works as a member of JCUA as it combats antisemitism and works for a more equitable community. He is a member of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.

Marty Levine, a social worker by training, lead the Jewish Community Centers of Chicago for 40 years until he retired in 2016.  Since he stepped down, he has consulted and helped build the strength of small, community service organizations from Gary to Waukegan. He was a contributing writer for Nonprofit Quarterly and currently publishes regular opinion pieces on Changecounts.net

Moderator: Ari Bloomekatz

Ari Bloomekatz is interim executive director at In These Times, where he was previously editor-in-chief. Before joining the team, Ari was managing editor of Rethinking Schools and Tikkun magazines, as well as an investigative reporter for Voice of San Diego and a staff writer at the Los Angeles Times from 2007 to 2014. His writing has also been published by the Washington Post, the Boston Globe, and the Seattle Times, among others. Ari is editor of the Haymarket Books–In These Times book series "Books for These Times" and also produced the popular volume Teaching for Black Lives. Ari was books editor at Jewish Currents, where he published The Israeli Black Panthers Haggadah and A Flag of No Nation. He also consults on both legacy and emerging media projects, is a veteran digital organizer and strategist, and enjoys teaching and coaching, most recently with a brilliant cohort at the Disability Justice Culture Lab. You can try to follow him @bloomekatz, but you're more likely to find him fishing.