Above Board – Week 36

SAJBD

An injury to one an injury to all

Speaking out against racism and prejudice wherever and whenever it occurs is part of the SAJBD’s mandate. Rather than being separate from our core mission which is to protect and uphold Jewish civil rights, it is in fact, part of the same broad goal.

By standing up for the rights of others, we contribute to an environment in which everyone feels safer. We also enhance our standing as a credible voice against racism by going beyond our own specific community’s concerns when the need arises.

Last week, the Board issued statements condemning the appearance of anti-Muslim graffiti and through the Hate Crimes Working Group welcomed the government’s decision to prohibit the radical anti-gay, and anti-Semitic, pastor Steven Anderson from visiting South Africa.

Both statements were covered by the mainstream media, with the Board’s Alana Baranov also being interviewed by several radio stations.

WJC: Keeping us connected in challenging times 

Last week, SAJBD National President Mary Kluk attended the annual meeting of the World Jewish Congress executive committee, on which she sits as the representative for South African Jewry.

A key focus of the discussions was on ensuring the security of Jewish communities throughout the world, particularly the smaller ones who lack the resources to maintain the requisite security levels.

The WJC has established a sophisticated security department which has, inter alia, established effective channels of communication with constituent countries and through which it works with the respective countries’ leaderships to identify how and where the WJC can assist.

One of the highpoints of the meeting was an address by Judge Neal Hendel describing how Israel goes about fulfilling its mission to be a Jewish state while at the same time striving to uphold the highest standards of democracy and equality for all its citizens.

It is a complex challenge in a complex society, yet what Israel has achieved and is achieving in terms of these ideals, remains a measure against which all countries with diverse communities ought to be measured .  

Jews of South Africa Exhibition

Last week Thursday, a series of cultural and educational events to mark 175 years of Jewish life in South Africa culminated in the opening of a superb new exhibition on what it has meant to be a Jewish South African over the generations.

The SAJBD Cape Council partnered with the SA Jewish Museum in putting together the exhibition, which has been a remarkable success and which we hope to bring up to Johannesburg eventually.

I endorse our Cape Chairman Eric Marx’s remarks on the occasion, when he cited the famous injunction in Pirkei Avot not to separate oneself from the community and went on to stress how our strength as a Jewish community has always been on how unified and well-structured we have been, while at the same time playing our part in the wider society.

• Listen to Charisse Zeifert on Jewish Board Talk, 101.9 ChaiFM every Friday 12:00 – 13:00