‘Community of Conscience’ asks South Florida to fight against antisemitism and hate
As antisemitism and other forms of hate and bigotry rise in South Florida and around the globe, a nonprofit Jewish advocacy organization is asking the community to combat the divisive issue.
Adhering to the idea that there is power in numbers, the AJC wants people to join the South Florida Community of Conscience on Thursday. The concept, first launched in Washington in June 2019, centers around nine principles, including denouncing hate and supporting democracy.
“I think it will send a powerful message in a time when everyone really needs it,” said Brian Siegal, director of AJC Miami and Broward.
At 4 p.m. Thursday, during AJC Miami’s annual Thanksgiving Diversity Celebration, community leaders will participate in a virtual launch of South Florida Community of Conscience, reading the principles and reading from AJC’s America’s Table: A Thanksgiving Reader.
Participants include Bishop Peter Eaton of the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida; Rebecca Fishman Lipsey, president and CEO of The Miami Foundation; Marlon Hill, a partner with Hamilton, Miller & Birthisel; and Rick Hirsch, interim executive editor of the Miami Herald.
“Intended to be read as part of a Thanksgiving gathering, the brief booklet tells the story of a people – the American people,” Siegal said in an email. “It celebrates the freedoms we enjoy as Americans and acknowledges that we still have much work to do.”
The statements to be read by the participants include:
▪ Join us, in the spirit of the American motto E Pluribus Unum, as we unite across difference, celebrate our diversity, contribute to a shared society, and resolve to advance the welfare of all.
▪ Join us, in the spirit of patriotism, as we strive proudly and boldly to uphold American ideals of equality, of dignity, of opportunity for all.
▪ Join us in seeking to fulfill the biblical teaching that we are all b’Tzelem Elokim, all created in the divine image, the very foundation of human equality.
While the AJC launched Community of Conscience on a national scale a year ago, leaders across the country have created regional groups to further the mission.
“Initially, this South Florida Community of Conscience will work to make confronting the rise in hate crimes a local, state and national priority,” Siegal wrote. “This group will be a vehicle to issue a clarion call for advancing pluralism and civility in our daily discourse.”
How to join the Community of Conscience event
To join the event, which is scheduled to run from 4 to 5 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 19, you need to RSVP for the launch, which will be held via Zoom. For more information email rsvpmiami@ajc.org.
This story was originally published November 16, 2020 at 6:00 AM.
