Repair the World Urges Jan. 16 Shabbat Dinner Dialogue

Repair the World is urging the community to turn the tables on racial injustice as Jews break bread for Shabbat dinner before this upcoming Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The organization is urging the Jewish community to use Friday night dinners before Martin Luther King Day at homes and communal institutions as a platform to tackle issues of racial injustice that have surfaced nationwide following the tragic events in Ferguson, MO, Staten Island, NY, and elsewhere in recent months.

This Shabbat dialogue is part of Repair the World’s nationwide campaign called “Turn the Tables” dedicated to discussion and service-based action on racial inequality. The initiative will promote the principles of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and explore current events through guided discussions at the Shabbat table, where tradition has Jews gather with those closest to them.

Repair the World will provide resources for people across the country to host the Shabbat conversations, focusing on growing their understanding and finding a way to move forward, via Turn-the-tables.org.  The group will provide cards featuring the last words of recent victims of police violence and will ask participants to respond with their first words on healing. A quiz, available online, will help to educate participants about structural oppression.

Also as part of “Turn the Tables,” Repair the World will call on Jews to volunteer on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Jan. 19th, for local organizations and initiatives that address issues of racial inequality.