Your Daily Phil: Under siege: New group bolsters Jews at non-Jewish nonprofits
Add EJP on GoogleGood Friday morning!
In today’s edition of Your Daily Phil, we report on the launch of a new organization focused on supporting Jewish employees of non-Jewish nonprofits, a significant percentage of whom reported encountering antisemitism at work. We also get an update on the internal feud between the founder and board of Mothers Against Campus Antisemitism, who appear to be approaching a rapprochement. We feature an opinion piece by Hadar Cohen exploring approaches to talking about God in a world that can be uncomfortable with the concept; one by Naomi Lipstein about the post-Oct. 7 discourse around the centering of tikkun olam in Jewish identity and practice; and one by Lisa Richman about the power of seeing and feeling seen in communal life. Also in this issue: Barry Finestone, Yehuda Kurtzer and Jeremy Weiser.
Shabbat shalom!
What We’re Watching
Rabbi David Wolpe will sit in conversation tomorrow with the Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt at Los Angeles’ Sinai Temple, where Wolpe is the Max Webb Rabbi Emeritus.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH EJP’S JAY DEITCHER
American Jews have long been disproportionately represented in the nonprofit sector, with 16% of American Jews working for nonprofits, according to a 2021 Pew study, filling roughly 4% of the nonprofit workforce despite making up an estimated 2.4% of the American population. But a new study indicates that, in the wake of the Oct. 7 terror attacks and the resulting war in Gaza, American Jews may be pulling away from the wider sector over antisemitism and discrimination.
The survey, “Jewish Professionals in Secular Nonprofits,” released yesterday by Blue Compass, a newly launched organization that combats antisemitism in the nonprofit sector, found that over a third of Jewish nonprofit workers working for non-Jewish nonprofits have considered leaving their jobs, that nearly 40% of workers have witnessed antisemitism at work and that 41% feel uncomfortable expressing their Jewish identity at professional events.
A core value nonprofit workers are passionate about is inclusion and belonging, Sharon Leslie, founding executive director, told eJewishPhilanthropy, but “unfortunately, Jews have been left out of that paradigm. That’s what makes it so painful. Jewish professionals are encountering antisemitism in spaces that they love, that say that they explicitly value inclusion and belonging.”
Roughly a quarter of respondents said that their workplaces didn’t have policies to protect them in the ways their workplaces protected other marginalized groups. This is occurring at a time when Jewish employees report dealing with increased Jewish stereotypes and misconceptions at work. Respondents reported feeling that peers expect them to speak for the entirety of the Jewish People, that they are asked to justify global events and that they face false assumptions about their beliefs based on their last name or heritage.
The idea for Blue Compass, which launched this month with funding from the Laura and Gary Lauder Family Foundation, Mediators Foundation and the Natan Foundation, came in the wake of the Oct. 7 terror attacks, when Leslie began feeling uncomfortable in the health-care and nonprofit sector, where she’d worked for over two decades.
“This isn’t just an issue for the Jews to solve,” Leslie said, but “screaming from the rooftops that antisemitism is bad” has been unproductive these past few years. Instead, the message that Leslie believes needs to be sent to non-Jewish nonprofits is that targeting antisemitism is not only the right thing to do, but “nonprofits are their most impactful when their staff is focused on the mission of the organization, so if you have a polarizing and divisive work environment, [workers are] going to be much less effective in the work [that they] do.”
Jewish employees are passionate about their workplaces and their missions, she said. “They want their missions to be successful, and they want there to be a strong and vibrant nonprofit sector. They just are really struggling in it.”
CONFLICT MEDIATION
Mothers Against College Antisemitism founder announces ceasefire with board, names new president
The influential Mothers Against College Antisemitism Facebook group and associated nonprofit appear to have resolved the weekslong dispute between its founder and board, resulting in the appointment of a new board president and an end to the two sides’ hostilities, according to a Facebook post on the group’s page late Wednesday night by its founder, Elizabeth Rand. “You probably know that there have been some issues between myself and the Board of The MACA Foundation,” Rand wrote. She then stated that the board members have been allowed back into the MACA Facebook group after being banned by her after the dispute began and announced that Miriam Zivin would serve as the next board president, reports eJewishPhilanthropy’s Jay Deitcher.
Known unknowns: Speaking to eJP last week, Rand stated that for the conflict to end, she wanted veto power over new board members and the ability to sit in on board meetings, even though she wouldn’t serve on the board, as well as an apology from the board for allowing her to be “abused” by a previous board member. In exchange, she would allow the board to manage the Facebook group. It is unknown if these demands were met. Rand and the board declined to comment on the matter.
SENSITIVE SUBJECT
God as Creator, Wisdom, Love, Mystery: Frameworks for approaching the Divine
“[A]s I immersed myself in various Jewish communities, I began to feel that God is often hidden in our synagogues. The word ‘God’ can feel taboo, even charged. In many circles, we embrace community, law and ritual — but God? Sometimes it seems to push people too far,” writes Hadar Cohen, founder of Malchut, a spiritual skill-building school, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy.
Crossing that bridge: “I developed a program called God Fellowship, a 12-week immersive journey that guides people in cultivating a personal relationship with God. … Many young Jews have been drawn to this program because the mainstream Jewish world has not fully given them the tools to connect with God. Hebrew school, bar and bat mitzvah preparation, even synagogue attendance — these can offer tradition and community, but often stop short of teaching how to live a life rooted in direct spiritual connection.”
CIRCLES OF RESPONSIBILITY
No, it’s not time to ‘retire’ tikkun olam
“In recent months, I’ve read two essays reflecting on whether tikkun olam (repairing the world) still belongs at the center of Jewish life. As the communications manager of OLAM, a network of Jewish and Israeli organizations that work to support largely non-Jewish populations in developing countries, the questions they raised struck a chord with me,” writes Naomi Lipstein in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy. “I found myself both challenged and compelled by their arguments, and convinced that this is an issue that demands a deeper conversation.”
Not a zero-sum game: “Tikkun olam has, at times, been treated as an alternative to peoplehood, Jewish learning and ritual practice. Instead, we should lean into it in a different way: one that fully embraces our commitments to Israel, Jewish tradition and the Jewish People alongside our responsibility to the wider world. … Jewish responsibility is wide-ranging, and when our communities are strong and secure, we will find the emotional, moral and financial capacity to reach out and help others. Taking care of our own allows us to reach out to humanity at large, to make the mission of international development, humanitarian aid and global service possible. Particular care is not a retreat from universal concern. It is the foundation that sustains it.”
ANOTHER TYPE OF GIVING
From invisibility to connection: Seeing and being seen
“How does it feel to be invisible when it’s not a cloak you can remove? Who, in our society, in our neighborhoods, in our synagogues, do we not see?” writes Lisa Richman, education director at Temple Beth Hillel – Beth El in Wynnewood, Pa., in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy. “In any community, it’s impossible to know every member. Even within affinity groups, truly knowing each person is difficult.”
Small actions, big impacts: “In Pirkei Avot, Rabbi Matia ben Charash teaches: ‘Upon meeting people, be the first to extend greetings.’ This simple yet profound teaching reminds us that visibility begins with acknowledgment. A greeting, a smile, the use of someone’s name; these small acts carry tremendous power. They say, ‘I see you. You matter. You belong.’ As we navigate our large and vibrant communities and even the smaller ones, I challenge each of us to consider: Who might be feeling invisible among us? Is it the older adult who sits quietly in the back row? The new member who hasn’t yet found their circle? The teenager who slips in and out without connecting? The person whose life circumstances have changed, leaving them feeling disconnected from the community they once knew? We cannot solve loneliness or invisibility with grand gestures alone; but we can commit to the small, sacred acts that Rabbi Matia ben Charash prescribes.”
Worthy Reads
Family Matters: In The Times of Israel, Barry Finestone reflects on the phenomenon of Jewish communal grief. “After the recent mass killing in Bondi, Jewish communities across continents gathered, mourned, and checked in on one another. Most of them have never been to Australia. Most of us did not know the victims. And yet the pain traveled fast and deep, as if the loss had occurred in our own neighborhood. This reaction often puzzles people outside the Jewish community. Why would the death of a stranger feel so immediate? Why does it produce not just sadness, but anguish and despair? Or as my son put it simply, why do our hearts hurt? The answer matters, because it reveals something fundamental about how Jews understand belonging, memory, and responsibility. It also challenges a modern instinct to treat grief as private, contained, and proportional only to proximity.” [TOI]
A Jubilee Approach: In his Substack “Identity/Crisis,” Yehuda Kurtzer connects turning 49 this past week and Judaism’s concept of yovel, the jubilee year. “Shabbat is one of Jewish tradition’s most audacious ideas for how we as individuals, families, communities, and even societies can experience a reset. … But the Torah has two bigger visions for societal resets. Leviticus 25 describes the Sabbatical year, a prolonged period of rest for the Land of Israel, a Sabbath in years, when the people may eat of its yield but not tend it; and even more audaciously, the Jubilee year, year 50, at the conclusion of 7 cycles of 7 years. … I’ve decided to make this my Jubilee year. I blessedly am not a creditor over others, and rather unfortunately my mortgage lender will probably not take kindly to my proudly announcing, blowing the shofar in the bank lobby, that I am free from paying back my debts. I do not eat from my fields (I do not have fields) and I do not have humans to manumit besides the high school senior who is leaving my house this year whether I like it or not. (I do not.) But I have three rituals and intentions in mind to mark my own Jubilee.” [Identity/Crisis]
Donation Determination: In the Chicago Tribune, Alison Leigh Cowan recalls a challenging but ultimately successful mission to donate blood while visiting Israel. “Our first attempt, on my birthday, did not go well. … [A young worker] announced he could not take our blood — because of our age. Stunned, we asked why. ‘The stairs,’ he said, pointing to six metal steps leading up to the trailer. I assured him that my husband and I could handle the stairs. He would not budge. … Our sole chance would come the following Friday. … [After an initial rejection, the representative allowed us to proceed and] painstakingly went over my medication history… Miraculously, I was cleared to go. Regarding my 67-year-old husband and his vital signs, she suddenly brightened. She asked if he played sports. ‘Your pulse is excellent, even better than mine,’ she cooed. ‘You should see me climb stairs,’ he said sweetly. Exhilarated that we two z’kaynim [old people] had not given up the fight too early, my husband and I sat in two chaises that offered a panoramic view of Jerusalem while our blood was tapped. The unexpected compliment my husband earned did more to revive our spirits than the cookies we munched once our little mission was over.” [ChicagoTribune]
Make the Investment: In Blue Avocado, Matt Leighty makes the case to funders and nonprofits for hiring dedicated grant-writing staff. “Most small nonprofits don’t have a grant writer. They have someone who can also write grants — a program manager, office administrator, or the ED. And when it works, it feels like magic. Why pay for a new position when someone on staff can handle it? But what they’ve really got is a unicorn: Someone who can write persuasively, understand budgets, translate strategy, and navigate funder portals — while doing their actual job. When that person leaves, the funding often goes with them. I’ve seen organizations lose six-figure funding streams because the only person who understood the grant process walked out the door. I’ve seen EDs stay up until 2 am submitting a proposal. This isn’t sustainable. And it shouldn’t be necessary.” [BlueAvocado]
Word on the Street
Roughly 20% of Americans donated to an online crowdfunding campaign last year, according to a new Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll; medical expenses were the most common cause for donations, followed by covering funeral costs…
The Associated Press spotlights efforts by the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission to promote volunteering ahead of the 250th anniversary of American independence…
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani met earlier this week with Steven Spielberg, who is facing growing scrutiny by conservative activists for his support of progressive Jewish groups; the meeting with Mamdani was held in the film director’s Manhattan home, in what The New York Times described as a “friendly get-to-know-you conversation” between the new mayor and Spielberg, who became a New York resident the day of the inauguration…
Approximately 30% of the workforce across the six locations of New York City eatery Breads Bakery is unionizing and making demands of the shop’s Israeli owners — including “a redistribution of profits, safer working conditions, more respect and an end to this company’s support of the genocide happening in Palestine”…
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, which won a Pulitzer Prize in 2019 for its coverage of the previous year’s deadly Tree of Life synagogue shooting, announced that it is shutting down on March 3, after 240 years of publication…
Democratic colleagues and leaders are lauding Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD), the longtime former No. 2 Democratic House leader, as a champion for Israel, and say that his retirement, announced Thursday, will deprive Democrats of one of the leading congressional advocates of a strong U.S.-Israel relationship, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports…
The Cooper Union settled a lawsuit brought forth by nearly a dozen Jewish students at the school who had been trapped in the New York university’s library for 20 minutes while anti-Israel students protested outside…
Four former University of Rochester students pleaded guilty to intentionally damaging university property for their roles in posting “Wanted” posters accusing faculty and staff members of committing war crimes in Gaza; the students were expelled weeks after they were arrested…
The Missouri Statehouse is set to consider legislation adopting the IHRA working definition of antisemitism in educational settings on Monday…
Frida Friderica “Beck” Saharovici, a Holocaust survivor and mainstay of the Memphis, Tenn., Jewish community, died yesterday at 93…
Major Gifts
Susan and Richard Friedman donated $10 million to the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County (Fla.) to combat antisemitism and expand Jewish programs and services in the area…
Transitions
Jeremy Weiser was named the next president and CEO of the Memphis Jewish Community Center…
Dima Shimelfarb has been appointed the American Friends of Tel Aviv University’s inaugural vice president of development for the eastern region…
Pic of the Day
Israeli President Isaac Herzog participates in a bar and bat mitzvah event for the children of terror victims yesterday at the President’s Residence in Jerusalem. Approximately three dozen children participated in this year’s event, which was arranged by the Organization for Victims of Terror Attacks.
Birthdays
Musician, singer-songwriter and co-founder of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band Steely Dan, Donald Fagen turns 78 on Saturday…
FRIDAY: Law professor at Georgetown University, Peter Edelman turns 88… Former member of the Swiss Federal Council and president of the Swiss Confederation in 1999, she is the first woman to ever hold this position, Ruth Dreifuss turns 86… Rabbi emeritus of Kehilath Israel Synagogue in Overland Park, Kan., Herbert Jay Mandl turns 81… Vice chairman of Gilbert Global Equity Partners, Steven Kotler… Pulitzer Prize-winning Supreme Court reporter for The New York Times for 40 years, she is now a lecturer and senior research scholar at Yale Law School Linda Greenhouse turns 79… Retired MLB umpire, he worked in 3,392 major league games in his 26-year career, his family name was Sklarz, Al Clark turns 78… Presidential historian, spokesman for the 9/11 Commission, and university lecturer, Alvin S. Felzenberg turns 77… Composer, singer, radio show host, and author, he has released seven albums under the name “Country Yossi,” Yossi Toiv turns 77… Actress, singer and songwriter, she is the half-sister of Barbra Streisand, Roslyn Kind turns 75… Australian author of more than 40 books of children’s and young adult fiction, including a five-book series about a 10-year-old Jewish boy in Nazi-occupied Poland, Morris Gleitzman turns 73… Former governor of the Bank of Israel from 2013 to 2018, Karnit Flug turns 71… International president of the Rabbinical Assembly, he is the rabbi of Beth El Synagogue in East Windsor, N.J., Rabbi Jay M. Kornsgold turns 61… Dean of the Bar-Ilan University law school, Michal Alberstein turns 57… Investment banker, Joel Darren Plasco turns 55… Justice of the High Court of Australia, James Joshua Edelman turns 52… Russian-born American novelist, journalist and literary translator, Keith A. Gessen turns 51… Filmmaker, she is the second lady of New York State, Lacey Schwartz Delgado turns 49… NFL insider and reporter for the NFL Network, Ian Rapoport turns 46… Chairman and CEO of Paramount Skydance and founder of Skydance Media, David Ellison turns 43… Israeli actress and model, best known for her role as Nurit in “Fauda,” Rona-Lee Shimon turns 43… Director of development and community relations at Manhattan Day School, Allison Liebman Rubin… Pulitzer Prize-winning staff writer at The New Yorker, Ben Taub turns 35… Enterprise account executive at Built, Madeline Peterson… Television and film actress, Nicola Anne Peltz Beckham turns 31… Co-director and rabbi of JLIC TLV, Rabbi Joe Wolfson…
SATURDAY: Physician and medical researcher, Bernard Salomon Lewinsky turns 83… Editor and publisher of Denver’s Intermountain Jewish News, historian and teacher of the Mussar movement, Rabbi Hillel Goldberg turns 80… President of the Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston for 30 years, now a professor at Brandeis, Barry Shrage turns 79… Former President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, Baron David Edmond Neuberger turns 78… World-renowned Israeli cellist, he has over 50 recordings on the Deutsche Grammophon label with many top orchestras, Mischa Maisky turns 78… Long-time editor at Bantam Books, Simon & Schuster and Crown Publishers, Sydny Weinberg Miner… Retired executive director at Beta Alpha Psi, the international honor society for accounting students, Hadassah (Dassie) Baum… Founder and CEO at Los Angeles-based Quantifiable Media and Tel Aviv-based Accords Consulting, Rose Kemps… Fellow for Religious Freedom at the Forum, Richard Thomas Foltin… Professor of American Jewish history at Brandeis University, he taught his last class in December 2024, Jonathan D. Sarna turns 71… President and CEO of the Nellis Management Company and past president of The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, Mark A. Levitt turns 70… Majority owner of the NBA’s Golden State Warriors, Joe Lacob turns 70… Member of the Knesset for the United Torah Judaism party, Uri Maklev turns 69… Member of the U.K.’s House of Lords and advisor to the government on antisemitism, Baron John Mann turns 66… Theatrical producer, playwright and director, Ari Roth turns 65… Actor with a recurring role in “Sex and the City” and author of two books on his recovery from acute myeloid leukemia, Evan Handler turns 65… Vice chair of the Jewish Federation of Greater Naples, Beth Ellen Wolff… Author and journalist best known for his novels Gangster Nation, Gangsterland and Living Dead Girl, Tod Goldberg turns 55… Member of the Knesset for Likud, Galit Distel-Atbaryan turns 55… Film director and screenwriter, Joe Nussbaum turns 53… Caryn Beth Lazaroff Gold… Private equity executive and unofficial troubleshooter for the Trump administration, Jared Kushner turns 45… Communications manager for Ford Motor Company, Adam David Weissmann… Former spokesperson on terrorism and financial intelligence at the U.S. Treasury, Morgan Aubrey Finkelstein… Israeli rapper, singer and songwriter, Michael Swissa turns 30… Andrew Tobin… Debbie Seiden…
SUNDAY: Psychologist and the author of 27 books, he lectures at NYU, Michael Eigen turns 90… Retired judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit in Chicago, author of 40 books on jurisprudence and economics, Richard Posner turns 87… Violinist and music teacher, Shmuel Ashkenasi turns 85… Film, television and theater director, best known for his TV series “Full House” and “Family Matters” and his films “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” and “Fat Albert,” Joel Zwick turns 84… Las Vegas resident, Stephen Norman Needleman… Economist and professor of banking at Columbia University, he was a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Frederic Stanley “Rick” Mishkin turns 75… Noted gardener and florist, Lynn Blitzer… Professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and chief of experimental medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, he is the author of five books, Dr. Jerome E. Groopman turns 74… Former member of the Canadian House of Commons, Susan Kadis turns 73… Former director general of Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Avi Gil turns 71… CEO of Sense Education, an AI company, Seth Haberman turns 66… Attorney, author, speaker and activist, Brian Cuban turns 65… Partner at Magnolia Marketing LLC, Alan Franco… Rabbi at Beth Avraham Yoseph of Toronto (BAYT), Rabbi Daniel Korobkin turns 62… Former National Hockey League player for 12 seasons with the Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames and San Jose Sharks, Ronald “Ronnie” Stern turns 59… Actress, socialite and reality television personality, Kyle Richards Umansky turns 57… Defensive tackle in the Canadian Football League for 12 seasons, he is a co-owner at Vera’s Burger Shack based in Vancouver, B.C., Noah Cantor turns 55… Film, stage and television actress, Amanda Peet turns 54… Hockey coach, he is a former goaltender with the NHL’s Phoenix Coyotes, he also played in six other leagues, Josh Tordjman turns 41… Member of the Knesset for the Democrats party, Naama Lazimi turns 40… Executive chef and restaurateur, Yehuda Sichel… VP and head of strategic partnerships at Penzer Family Office, Michal (Mickey) Penzer… French-American actress, Flora Cross turns 33… Director of football strategy and assistant quarterbacks coach for the Baltimore Ravens, Daniel Stern turns 32… Founder when she was just 12 years old of Nannies by Noa, Noa Mintz turns 25…
