Thousands to Create Domestic Jewish Agenda

Independent Jewish groups, blogs promote online forum; Presidential candidate given opportunity to offer solutions to grassroots Jewish priorities

Tuesday, May 08, 2007

(NEW YORK CITY, May 8, 2007) -- More than a dozen independent Jewish groups today launched an online campaign to engage thousands of Jews in shaping a domestic Jewish agenda for the 2008 election. After publicly presenting the agenda and urging presidential candidates to respond, the coalition will run full page advertisements in Jewish newspapers explaining the agenda, publicizing candidate responses, and noting those candidates who choose not to respond. This groundbreaking effort is the first time unaffiliated Jews will shape a Jewish public affairs agenda.

Mik Moore, the editor of jspot.org, said the campaign was developed in response to two phenomena. “First, most Jews are unconnected to the Jewish organizations that speak to presidential candidates in their name,” said Moore. “Second, despite a strong interest in domestic issues among Jews, Jewish organizations in recent years have focused much of their attention on international issues.”

Representing a new phase in efforts by Jewish Funds for Justice to develop an engaged Jewish netroots, the campaign gives all Jews a voice and a vote in how they want to be represented as a community on domestic issues. Starting Tuesday, May 8, thousands of Jews will go online to choose five of ten pre-selected issue areas:

• Child Care
• Civil Rights
• Education
• Environment
• Health Care
• Housing
• Immigration
• Katrina/Rita
• Seniors
• Wages

After two weeks, the votes will be counted and the top five preferences will be presented as a domestic Jewish agenda.

A letter from the partner organizations and all participants will be sent to each of the currently eighteen presidential campaigns, requesting a written response explaining how the candidate as President would address the challenges represented by each issue area. The campaign responses will be posted on jspot.org and other websites to provide a public forum for evaluation by participants and others. Three weeks after the letters are sent to the candidates, a full page advertisement will be published in Jewish newspapers explaining the agenda, encouraging commentary on the candidate responses, and noting which campaigns had and which had not responded.

The initiative was created by jspot.org, the online action center of Jewish Funds for Justice, a national, publicly-supported foundation dedicated to combating poverty in the U.S., and the injustices underlying it. Partners include Hazon, Isabella Freedman Retreat Center, Jdub Records, Jewish Student Press Service, Jews for Racial & Economic Justice, Jews United for Justice, Jewschool.com, Moishe/Kavod House Boston, Progressive Jewish Alliance, The Shalom Center, The Tribe, VelveteenRabbi.com, and Workmen's Circle/Arbiter Ring.

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CONTACT: Mik Moore, Jspot, mmoore@jewishjustice.org or (646) 670 8249