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  1. Interesting initiative. All people should indeed be accepted, regardless of such personal issues.

    BUT, why is LGBT the only issue that is dealt with here? If such a huge investment is going to be put into a wide-scale survey and report, why not have it deal with the many other issues standing between us and a truly inclusive society – welcoming people from different ethnic backgrounds, people with special needs, different religious persuasions, etc? Should organizations have to face individual surveys from each pressure group?

  2. Great question, Ayelet. We are not focusing on the LGBT community at the exclusion of other groups and issues, but rather, as I write in the piece, “to begin to set a standard for forging a culture in which inclusivity, diversity and equality are paramount” for all. In other words, we see this as a starting point, as a stake in the ground, not as the end game. We welcome and encourage all of our partners within the Jewish community to join us in this effort by creating initiatives focused on many of the issues you list. For our part, our partner on this particular project is the Human Rights Campaign, which is focused on achieving equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans.

    It is our hope that in adopting more inclusive policies and procedures, Jewish organizations will not stop with sexual orientation but start there and also extend them to include age, color, disability, sex, race/ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender identity and expression. When we neglect or deny the needs of any population within our community, we not only weaken the strands of our Jewish tapestry, we also drop the mantle of leadership we have assumed when it comes to protecting and advocating for the civil rights of minority populations. Our vision is one in which people do not have to feel the need to exert pressure to be included and celebrated for who they are.

  3. We at JOI completely agree that the Jewish community must become more welcoming and inclusive to all who are unengaged. The success for the Jewish Organizational Equality Index lies in not the counting and evaluation, but what we as a community do after we find out how open we are to diversity. A program here or there is not going to be the answer to engaging those on the periphery of Jewish life – we need
    systemic organizational change that affects entire communities in order to break down the barriers for groups currently on the fringe to feel welcome.