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SOJAC Luncheon and Speaker

Saturday, April 9, 2016 • 1 Nisan 5776

12:30 PM - 2:00 PMSAJ Social Hall

Welcoming the Stranger: Refugees, Migrants and Asylum Seekers—Learning from Our Jewish Values

As Americans and Jews, we are called on to address a crisis unprecedented in our lifetimes: the greatest number of refugees and displaced persons since World War II. Conflict and persecution are driving millions from their homes, leaving them stateless and vulnerable. The backlash against immigrants and foreigners in the United States is threatening our legacy as a country that welcomes refugees.  At our annual Social Justice Action Committee luncheon, we will learn about the plight of the refugees, the challenges to us in dealing with this catastrophe and how Jewish texts, values and history call on us to respond.
 
We will learn with and from:
 
Rabbi Jennie Rosenn, Vice President of Community Engagement at HIAS. HIAS works around the world to protect refugees who have been forced to flee their homelands because of their status as ethnic, religious and sexual minorities.
 
Dr. Jill Goldenziel, Research Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School's International Security Program and Senior Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania's Fox Leadership Program.  She is writing a book on refugees, international law and U.S. foreign policy.
 
Mr. Shadi Martini, Senior Syria Advisor to the Multifaith Alliance for Syrian Refugees.  Mr. Martini is a businessman turned refugee by the Syrian war.  He now travels throughout the US and abroad to raise awareness of the crisis and plant the seeds for future stability in the region by fostering people-to-people engagement.  
 
As a prologue to the program, members of the SAJ will discuss their families' journeys to America and their legacy as refugees and immigrants at the 9:00 AM tish, "The Jewish Refugee/Immigrant Experience."   
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