Simon Greer will soon leave his current job as head of the Progressive Jewish Alliance and Jewish Funds for Justice to join the Nathan Cummings Foundation as president and CEO.

by Josh Nathan-Kazis

If Simon Greer won’t have lunch with you, don’t take it personally. For that matter, don’t take it personally if he will. Greer, who will soon head the foundation funding much of the Jewish social justice sphere, has an unabashed attitude towards power.

… Greer, who moved his organization from relative obscurity to the forefront of the Jewish social justice movement, explained candidly, “We operate from a power analysis.”

… People active in Jewish social justice organizations are not openly critical of Greer, from whom they may soon be asking for funding when he moves to Cummings. But, as he himself admits, in dealing with other social justice groups, “we had sharp elbows because we had to make room at the table.” Sitting in his Manhattan office with a photo over his shoulder of a placard that reads “Kicking Ass for the Working Class,” Greer added, “I’m not sure everyone wanted us [there].”

You can read the complete article in The Jewish Daily Forward.