The “Sort of Connected” (#DifferentButSame) campaign encourages Jews to put their differences aside and share values

Our Common Destiny, the new initiative to unify and strengthen the Jewish people through shared values, is launching the “Sort of Connected” (#DifferentButSame) social media campaign ahead of Tisha B’Av and Tu B’Av. The campaign challenges Jews around the world to connect with friends or family with whom they may not always agree, while declaring a common value. In light of this challenging moment in history exacerbated by the global pandemic, social distancing and polarizing public discourse – the campaign aims to unify people around what they have in common.

“The counterpoints of Tisha B’Av and Tu B’Av hold especially meaningful and relevant significance in these turbulent times,” said Sanford Cardin, CEO of Our Common Destiny. “The roots of both holidays lie in the qualities of the relationships we build together. At a time where Jews are the least physically connected they’ve ever been, this campaign will remind us that we are all connected through deep, shared values.”

The campaign kicks off worldwide July 28, before Tisha B’Av (which runs June 29-30 this year) and will comntinue through Tu B’Av, Aug. 4-5. For the campaign, Jews are encouraged to create a social media post with a photo and tag of a friend they are “sort of” (in Hebrew, B’Erech) connected to, and explain how that while they may differ on some issues, they still share common values.

The friend who was tagged is then challenged to make a similar post tagging an additional friend, thereby starting to build a chain of global Jewish connections. This social media chain reflects that Jews can differ on some issues, yet remain bonded by the same core values. Participants are also encouraged to use the hashtag #DifferentButSame.

The campaign reflects the wider goal of Our Common Destiny, which seeks to unite Jews worldwide by emphasizing that more unites than separates them. Since last fall, Our Common Destiny has been convening tens of thousands of Jews around the world in an online survey of their Jewish priorities for the future, which will be used to inform a Declaration of Our Common Destiny. Israel’s President, Reuven Rivlin, will review the declaration by year’s end.

Our Common Destiny is a crowdsourcing initiative, founded by Genesis Philanthropy Group and the Israel Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, under the auspices of Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin, to unify and strengthen the Jewish people by connecting Jews worldwide around shared values. For more information, visit www.ourcommondestiny.org. Follow Our Common Destiny on Facebook and Instagram.