If you are a rabbi, cantor, or rabbinical or cantorial student, please add your name here.
President Joseph R. Biden
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, D.C. 20500
Dear President Biden:
We the undersigned are rabbis, cantors and rabbinical and cantorial students affiliated with T’ruah, a rabbinic human rights organization representing over 2,300 rabbis and cantors in the U.S. and Canada. With a newly elected extremist, far-right government in power and an increase in political violence in Israel, we are alarmed that the future of Israeli democracy is at risk. We write to thank you for affirming the need for a strong democracy in Israel, and to urge you to use the power of the U.S. Administration to protect democracy in Israel, as well as human rights for both Israelis and Palestinians.
As Jewish clergy, we cannot stay silent when our faith is distorted to promote violent extremism. Our holy texts elevate the values of human dignity, equality, and justice. Israel’s new governing coalition’s commitment to permanent occupation and the expansion of settlements; to undermining the Israeli judiciary; and to the embrace of racism, homophobia, and violence – all violate the highest ideals of our tradition. Only a few months into this party’s leadership, we have already seen religious extremists in the government try to justify violence and attacks on democracy, and take action likely to lead to even more bloodshed in the holy land.
Incidents of violence, including the terrorist attacks in East Jerusalem, Hamas rocket attacks, settler raids on Palestinian villages, and deaths of civilians during IDF incursions into refugee camps, will only continue as long as Israel’s government incites inflammatory retaliation and doubles down on occupation efforts, including demolitions and evictions, the expansion of settlements, and the recent move toward legal annexation of the West Bank. We know the only hope of a true solution to stopping this violence is to end the ongoing military occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza, but we also know this government has absolutely no plans to do so.
This is why we are calling on your Administration to be persistent in the United States’ longstanding commitment to the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state next to the State of Israel, and by investing in human rights and democracy in the region. We appreciate the administration’s ongoing statements opposing settlement annexation and the attacks on the judiciary, and ask you to be even more vocal in your opposition to such moves.
Jewish text and tradition remind us to be wary of governments and ruling powers taking advantage of those whom they are charged with serving and leading. The proper role of government is enforcing mishpat (justice) and tzedakah (acts of righteousness) (II Samuel 8:15), understood as specific laws and policies instituted to ensure human dignity.
T’ruah’s rabbis and cantors, along with the vast majority of the American Jewish community, stand with the hundreds of thousands of Israeli protestors who have taken to the streets to declare that their undemocratic government does not speak for them. We will continue to advocate for a just, negotiated solution to the conflict that safeguards human rights. We ask the Biden Administration to take an active role in mitigating anti-democratic efforts in Israel and to continue to oppose policies that violate the human rights of Palestinians or Israelis, and that endanger hopes for a two-state solution in the long term.
Sincerely,
Rabbi Laura Abrasley
Rabbi Howard Avruhm Addison
Rabbi Aura Ahuvia
Cantor Sheri Allen
Rabbi Doug Alpert
Rabbi Renni Altman
Rabbi Benjamin Altshuler
Rabbi Julia Andelman
Cantor Dana Anesi
Rabbinical Student Max Antman
Rabbi Charles Arian
Rabbi Amy Ariel
Rabbi Melanie Aron
Rabbi Tsurah August
Rabbi Guy Austrian
Rabbi Ilana Axel
Rabbi Ethan Bair
Rabbi Lewis Barth
Rabbi David Dunn Bauer
Rabbi Shelley Kovar Becker
Rabbi Marci Bellows
Rabbinical Student Hannah Bender
Rabbi Karen Bender
Rabbi Allan Berkowitz
Rabbi Leah Berkowitz
Rabbi Donald Berlin
Rabbi Marjorie Berman
Rabbi Howard Berman
Rabbi Phyllis Berman
Rabbi Aryeh Bernstein
Rabbi Barry Block
Rabbi David Bloom
Rabbi Rena Blumenthal
Rabbi Jill Borodin
Rabbi Mark Borovitz
Rabbi Anna Boswell-Levy
Rabbi Bradd Boxman
Rabbinical Student Ashira Boxman
Rabbi Carolyn Braun
Rabbi Joshua Breindel
Rabbi Julie Bressler
Rabbi Cari Bricklin-Small
Rabbi Caryn Broitman
Rabbi Deborah Bronstein
Rabbi Rachel Brown
Rabbi David Brusin
Rabbi Meredith Cahn
Rabbi Harold Caminker
Rabbi Debra Cantor
Rabbi Ariana Capptauber
Rabbi Reba Carmel
Rabbi Carie Carter
Rabbi Joshua Chasan
Rabbi Ian Chesir-Teran
Rabbi Geoffrey Claussen
Rabbi Howard Cohen
Rabbi Aryeh Cohen
Rabbi Abby Cohen
Rabbi Hillel Cohn
Rabbi Mike Comins
Rabbi David Cooper
Rabbi Jill Cozen-Harel
Rabbi Beth D. Davidson
Rabbi Jessica Dell’Era Nussbaum
Rabbi Lavey Derby
Rabbi Robert Dobrusin
Rabbi Boris Dolin
Rabbinical Student Shayna Dollinger
Rabbi Matt Dreffin
Rabbi Ellen Dreyfus
Rabbi Malka Drucker
Rabbi Judith Edelstein
Rabbi Laurence Edwards
Rabbi Amy Eilberg
Rabbi Marc Ekstrand
Rabbinical Student Hannah Ellenson
Rabbi Barat Ellman
Rabbi Anthony Elman
Rabbi Sue Levi Elwell
Rabbi Andrew Ettin
Rabbi Susan Falk
Rabbi Anne Feibelman
Cantor Devorah Felder-Levy
Rabbi Michael Fessler
Rabbi Zev-Hayyim Feyer
Rabbi Brian Field
Rabbi Johnny Fifles
Rabbi Avi Fine
Rabbi Daniel Fink
Rabbi Brian Fink
Rabbi Tirzah Firestone
Rabbi Adam Fisher
Rabbi Cantor Irma Flitt
Rabbi Betsy Forester
Rabbinical Student Madeleine Fortney
Rabbi Jeff Foust
Rabbi Laurie Franklin
Rabbi Marsha Friedman
Rabbi Dayle Friedman
Rabbi Ruth Gais
Rabbi Rachel Gartner
Rabbi Jonah Geffen
Rabbi Lisa Gelber
Rabbi Maya Glasser
Rabbi Miriyam Glazer
Rabbi Ilan Glazer
Rabbi Bob Gluck
Rabbi Susan Goldberg
Rabbi Dan Goldblatt
Rabbi Barbara Goldman-Wartell
Rabbi Lynne Goldsmith
Rabbi Elizabeth Goldstein
Rabbi Lisa Goldstein
Rabbi Debra Goldstein
Rabbi Mark Asher Goodman
Rabbi Lisa Grant
Rabbi Laurie Green
Rabbi David Greenstein
Rabbi Suzanne Griffel
Rabbi Susan Grossman
Rabbi Tom Gutherz
Rabbi Joshua Gutoff
Rabbi Laurie Hahn Tapper
Rabbi Judith Halevy
Rabbi Moshe Raphael Halfon
Rabbi Joshua Hammerman
Rabbi Eytan Hammerman
Rabbi Ori Har
Rabbi Maurice Harris
Sister Sande Hart
Rabbi Lauren Henderson
Rabbi Alan Henkin
Rabbi Eli Herb
Cantor Terry Horowit
Cantor Sandy Horowitz
Rabbi Margo Hughes-Robinson
Rabbi Mark Hurvitz
Rabbi Yitzhak Husbands-Hankin
Rabbi Me’irah Iliinsky
Rabbi Brian Immerman
Rabbi Jill Jacobs
Rabbi Devorah Jacobson
Rabbi Daria Jacobs-Velde
Rabbi Ellen Jaffe-Gill
Rabbi Beth Janus
Rabbi Amita Jarmon
Rabbi Becky Jaye
Kohenet Jo Anne Kaabar
Rabbi Randy Kafka
Rabbi Cassi Kail
Rabbi Beth Kalisch
Rabbi Jane Kanarek
Cantor Alane Katzew
Rabbi Stuart Kelman
Rabbi Justin Kerber
Rabbi Elisa Klapheck
Rabbi David Klatzker
Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum
Rabbi David L. Kline
Rabbi Michael Knopf
Rabbi Jacob Komisar
Rabbi Douglas Krantz
Rabbinical Student Shirah Kraus
Rabbi Claudia Kreiman
Rabbi Suri Krieger
Rabbi Judith Kummer
Rabbi Noa Kushner
Rabbi Karen Landy
Rabbi Gilah Langner
Rabbi Talia Laster
Rabbi Michael Latz
Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie
Rabbi Adam Lautman
Rabbi Ali (Sagadencky) Lawton
Rabbi Jim Lebeau
Rabbi Esther Lederman
Cantorial Student Gabriel Lehrman
Rabbi Darby Leigh
Sister Corrine Lepage
Rabbi Michael Lerner
Rabbi Joshua Lesser
Rabbi Sheldon Lewis
Rabbi Michael Lezak
Rabbi Valerie Lieber
Rabbi Mordechai Liebling
Rabbi Jonathan Lipnick
Cantor Erica Lippitz
Rabbi Ellen Lippmann
Cantor Abbe Lyons
Rabbi Aaron Mackler
Rabbi Nina Mandel
Rabbi Paula Marcus
Rabbi Marc Margolius
Rabbi Bonnie Margulis
Rabbi Amalia Mark
Rabbi Sharon Mars
Rabbi Ralph Mecklenburger
Rabbi Lev Meirowitz Nelson
Rabbi Abby Michaleski
Rabbi Mimi Micner
Rabbi Diana Miller
Rabbi David Mivasair
Rabbi Katie Mizrahi
Rabbi Joel Mosbacher
Rabbi Cantor Bronwen Mullin
Rabbi Ariel Naveh
Rabbi Suzanne Offit
Rabbi Malka Packer-Monroe
Rabbi Luciana Pajecki Lederman
Rabbi Michael Paley
Rabbi Ephraim Pelcovits
Rabbi Hava Pell
Rabbi Jonathan Perlman
Rabbi Julie Pfau
Rabbi Abby Phelps
Rabbi William Plevan
Rabbi Elaine Pollack
Rabbi Amber Powers
Rabbi Sally Priesand
Rabbi Jonathan Prosnit
Rabbi Rachel Putterman
Rabbi Charles Rabinowitz
Rabbi Michael Ramberg
Rabbi Debra Rappaport
Rabbi Victor Reinstein
Cantor Judith Ribnick
Rabba Dorothy Richman
Rabbi Yael Ridberg
Rabbi Stephen Robbins
Rabbi James Rosenberg
Cantor Aviva K Rosenbloom
Rabbi Seymour Rosenbloom
Rabbi David Rosenn
Rabbi Ken Rosenstein
Rabbi Michael Ross
Rabbi Julie Roth
Rabbi Harry Roth
Rabbi Robert Rottenberg
Rabbi Sandy Rubenstein
Rabbi Robert Rubin
Rabbi Jill Rubin
Rabbi Ralph Ruebner
Rabbi Gretchen Sand
Rabbi Ma’ayan Sands
Rabbi Eva Sax-Bolder
Rabbi Jeffrey Saxe
Rabbi Fred Scherlinder dobb
Rabbi Jennifer Schlosberg
Rabbi Howie Schneider
Rabbi Sunny Schnitzer
Rabbi Jeremy Schwartz
Rabbinical Student Aliza Schwartz
Rabbi Amy Schwartzman
Rabbi Sid Schwarz
Rabbi Stephen Segar
Rabbi Judith Seid
Rabbi Gerald Serotta
Rabbi Judy Shanks
Rabbi Dina Shargel
Rabbinical Student Jenna Shaw
Rabbi Cantor Robbi Sherwin
Rabbi Jessica Shimberg
Rabbi David Shneyer
Rabbi Misha Shulman
Rabbi Alexandria Shuval-Weiner
Rabbi Rachel Silverman
Rabbi Becky Silverstein
Rabbi Suzanne Singer
Rabbi Jenny Solomon
Rabbi Eric Solomon
Rabbi Kate Speizer
Rabbi Hannah Spiro
Rabbi Toba Spitzer
Rabbi Alexandra Stein
Rabbi Naomi Steinberg
Rabbi Oren Steinitz
Rabbi Keith Stern
Rabbi George Stern
Rabbi Danielle Stillman
Rabbi Jamie Stolper
Rabbi Ariel Stone
Rabbi Andrew Straus
Rabbi Joshua Strom
Rabbi Yaffa-Shira Sultan
Cantor Ramón Tasat
Rabbi Joshua Taub
Rabbi Sylvia Templar
Rabbi Elliott Tepperman
Rabbi David Teutsch
Rabbinical Student Aaron Torop
Rabbi Michael Torop
Rabbinical Student Gabby Tropp
Rabbi Lauren Tuchman
Rabbi Burton Visotzky
Cantor Eliot Vogel
Rabbi Heidi Waldmann
Rabbi Pamela Wax
Rabbi Seth Wax
Rabbi Deborah Waxman
Rabbi Abi Weber
Rabbi Elyse Wechterman
Rabbi Simkha Weintraub
Rabbi Samuel Weintraub
Rabbi Lew Weiss
Rabbi Micah Weiss
Rabbi Alex Weissman
Rabbi Zachary Wiener
Rabbi Nancy Wiener
Rabbi Joseph Wolf
Cantor Josee Wolff
Rabbi Michal Woll
Rabbi Eric Woodward
Rabbinical Student Lori Wynters
Rabbi Sara Zacharia
Rabbi Daniel Zemel
Rabbi Lina Zerbarini
Rabbi Shawn Zevit
Rabbi Jonathan Zimet
Rabbi Henry Zoob
