Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad F. Wolf
Department of Homeland Security
Washington, DC 20528
Dear Acting Secretary Wolf:
As Oregon Jewish clergy and members of T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call For Human Rights, we unequivocally condemn unconstitutional kidnappings by unmarked federal agents, and call on you and President Trump to recall all federal forces from Portland immediately.
According to several media reports, unmarked federal agents have pulled peaceful protestors who are not on federal property into unmarked vans without probable cause, held them in a federal courthouse, and eventually released them with no record of arrest.
Traditional commentators on the Torah understand the prohibition, “do not steal” in the Ten Commandments as referring to the theft of human beings, considered one of the most grievous crimes. The twentieth century Israeli Rabbi Chaim David HaLevi wrote, “Jewish law assures us that no person will be arrested without cause, whether for a serious crime or a minor one.” (Aseh L’kha Rav 3:48)
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, too, bans unjust detention, imprisonment, or exile, and principles adopted by the UN General Assembly further specify that, “[a]rrest, detention or imprisonment shall only be carried out strictly in accordance with the provisions of the law and by competent officials or persons authorized for that purpose.” Both the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and U.S. law grant the right to freedom of peaceful assembly.
In recent weeks, federal agents in Portland also shot a peaceful protestor in the head with “less lethal” munitions, causing serious injuries including a skull fracture that required facial reconstruction surgery. Local officials have asserted that the presence of federal agents only escalates tensions and causes more violence. We echo the calls of Oregon’s local, state, and federal elected officials who have repeatedly requested that federal agents leave Portland. And let us not forget that these acts of escalated violence are occurring at a time already full of uncertainty and concern from COVID-19, and when those imprisoned face a significantly heightened risk of contracting the disease.
Jewish text and tradition remind us again and again to be wary of governments and ruling powers taking advantage of those whom they are charged with serving and leading. The proper role of a government, though, must be to do “mishpat” (justice) and “tzedakah” (acts of righteousness) (II Samuel 8:15), understood as specific laws and policies instituted to ensure equality.
Oregon rabbis and Jewish community members have been in the streets and advocating to our elected officials to protest police brutality against Black Americans and other people of color, as well as the systemic racism that perpetuates inequality. We refuse to look away from this escalation in unjust state violence against Oregon residents or anyone else.
Sincerely,
Rabbi Benjamin Barnett, Havurah Shalom, Portland, OR
Rabbi Phil Bressler, Beit Am, Corvallis, OR
Rabbi Abby Cohen, Portland, OR
Rabbi Yizhak Husbands-Hankin, Temple Beth Israel, Eugene, OR
Rabbi Daniel J. Isaak, Emeritus Rabbi, Congregation Neveh Shalom, Portland, OR
Rabbah Debra Kolodny, UnShul, Portland, OR
Rabbi Eve Posen, Congregation Neveh Shalom, Portland, OR
Rabbi Ruhi Sophia Motzkin Rubenstein, Temple Beth Israel, Eugene, OR
Rabbi Laurie Rutenberg, Gesher-A Bridge Home, Portland, OR
Rabbi Ariel Stone, Portland Interfaith Clergy Resistance, Portland, OR
Rabbi Joey Wolf, Havurah Shalom, Portland, OR
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Now more than ever, your voice is urgently needed to counter the rising tide of intolerance and hatred of minorities in our country. Click below to sign the pledge to hold Trump accountable for upholding human rights and civil liberties.
If you are a rabbi or cantor, sign here.
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-Blessing after the Shema, Morning service
Mass incarceration is a racial justice issue.
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- Organizing to end prolonged solitary confinement, which international law experts have classified as torture.
- Advocating for an end to police practices that result in disproportionate stops, arrests, and deaths of people of color.
- Organizing rabbis and their communities to protest police violence and to demand full investigations in cases of killings by police officers.
- Advocating for more just sentencing policies.
- Helping Jewish communities to volunteer with incarcerated individuals and their families, employ the formerly incarcerated, and engage in local campaigns to change state criminal justice laws.
- Educating the Jewish community about why our current system of mass incarceration benefits none of us.
- Educating our communities about the intersection between the U.S.’s prison industrial complex and the detention of immigrants. See our immigration campaign for more.
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- In New York City, chaverim are engaged in ending all solitary confinement in city jails, and working toward the closure of Rikers Island. In Westchester, we are part of the #CommunitiesNotCages coalition to overhaul New York State’s racist and draconian sentencing laws.
- The Massachusetts T’ruah cluster is working in coalition with formerly incarcerated women and their families, who are leading the fight to pass a moratorium on new prison and jail construction in the state — stopping a $50 million proposed women’s prison and re-allocating taxpayer money to communities most affected by mass incarceration.
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Now more than ever, your voice is urgently needed to counter the rising tide of intolerance and hatred of minorities in our country. Click below to sign the pledge to hold Trump accountable for upholding human rights and civil liberties.
If you are a rabbi or cantor, sign here.
If you are a lay member of the Jewish community, sign here.
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-Blessing after the Shema, Morning service
Mass incarceration is a racial justice issue.
We cannot achieve real change unless we recognize and name that racism is at the root of this disaster. As Bryan Stevenson puts it: "Slavery didn't end in 1865, it just evolved." Though just 5% of the world's population lives in the United States, our country imprisons 25% of the world's incarcerated people, and people of color are disproportionately targeted.
T’ruah’s campaign to end mass incarceration engages rabbis, cantors, and their communities in making concrete change locally and nationally to our broken criminal justice system. We believe that the goal of our criminal justice system should be teshuvah, not simply punishment. We draw inspiration from Jewish legal writings that aim to create a criminal justice system rooted in dignity and justice for both perpetrator and victim.
Our work includes:
- Organizing to end prolonged solitary confinement, which international law experts have classified as torture.
- Advocating for an end to police practices that result in disproportionate stops, arrests, and deaths of people of color.
- Organizing rabbis and their communities to protest police violence and to demand full investigations in cases of killings by police officers.
- Advocating for more just sentencing policies.
- Helping Jewish communities to volunteer with incarcerated individuals and their families, employ the formerly incarcerated, and engage in local campaigns to change state criminal justice laws.
- Educating the Jewish community about why our current system of mass incarceration benefits none of us.
- Educating our communities about the intersection between the U.S.’s prison industrial complex and the detention of immigrants. See our immigration campaign for more.
Local organizing:
- In New York City, chaverim are engaged in ending all solitary confinement in city jails, and working toward the closure of Rikers Island. In Westchester, we are part of the #CommunitiesNotCages coalition to overhaul New York State’s racist and draconian sentencing laws.
- The Massachusetts T’ruah cluster is working in coalition with formerly incarcerated women and their families, who are leading the fight to pass a moratorium on new prison and jail construction in the state — stopping a $50 million proposed women’s prison and re-allocating taxpayer money to communities most affected by mass incarceration.
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Now more than ever, your voice is urgently needed to counter the rising tide of intolerance and hatred of minorities in our country. Click below to sign the pledge to hold Trump accountable for upholding human rights and civil liberties.
If you are a rabbi or cantor, sign here.
If you are a lay member of the Jewish community, sign here.
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-Blessing after the Shema, Morning service
Mass incarceration is a racial justice issue.
We cannot achieve real change unless we recognize and name that racism is at the root of this disaster. As Bryan Stevenson puts it: "Slavery didn't end in 1865, it just evolved." Though just 5% of the world's population lives in the United States, our country imprisons 25% of the world's incarcerated people, and people of color are disproportionately targeted.
T’ruah’s campaign to end mass incarceration engages rabbis, cantors, and their communities in making concrete change locally and nationally to our broken criminal justice system. We believe that the goal of our criminal justice system should be teshuvah, not simply punishment. We draw inspiration from Jewish legal writings that aim to create a criminal justice system rooted in dignity and justice for both perpetrator and victim.
Our work includes:
- Organizing to end prolonged solitary confinement, which international law experts have classified as torture.
- Advocating for an end to police practices that result in disproportionate stops, arrests, and deaths of people of color.
- Organizing rabbis and their communities to protest police violence and to demand full investigations in cases of killings by police officers.
- Advocating for more just sentencing policies.
- Helping Jewish communities to volunteer with incarcerated individuals and their families, employ the formerly incarcerated, and engage in local campaigns to change state criminal justice laws.
- Educating the Jewish community about why our current system of mass incarceration benefits none of us.
- Educating our communities about the intersection between the U.S.’s prison industrial complex and the detention of immigrants. See our immigration campaign for more.
Local organizing:
- In New York City, chaverim are engaged in ending all solitary confinement in city jails, and working toward the closure of Rikers Island. In Westchester, we are part of the #CommunitiesNotCages coalition to overhaul New York State’s racist and draconian sentencing laws.
- The Massachusetts T’ruah cluster is working in coalition with formerly incarcerated women and their families, who are leading the fight to pass a moratorium on new prison and jail construction in the state — stopping a $50 million proposed women’s prison and re-allocating taxpayer money to communities most affected by mass incarceration.
Partners:
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