When my husband and I learned that we were going to be parents, we wondered how the actual birth would go. We had heard some devastating statistics about the maternal mortality rate in the United States. Black women in the United States die from pregnancy-related causes at three to four times the rate of white women, regardless of education, income, or other socioeconomic factors.

This campaign aims to help dismantle systemic racism by educating, inspiring, and empowering individuals and communities to look inwardly to make communal change and outwardly to win legislative change.

Deep-rooted systemic racism is deeply impacting People of Color across the U.S., including Jews of Color. Last fall, TV host and podcaster Nick Cannon visited the RAC to speak with Reform Jewish leaders about this crucial topic. 

The LAs are at the heart of every aspect of our social justice work, but to date, the fellowship has not fully reflected the diversity of the Movement it represents – and we’re committed to changing that.

Those of us on the margins are not exceptions to a “normal” Jewish community; we are an integral part of the community itself, and we want to know that you know: We all belong here.

Though the terrain may be uncertain, we are guided by our deep commitments to justice, learning, and action. As we walk hand-in-hand into 2021, let us make this year one filled with purpose, joy, nourishment, and a renewed sense of hope.

In the video “Owning Our Racial Equity Work Ahead,” Yolanda Savage-Narva, the Union for Reform Judaism’s director of Racial, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (REDI), calls on each of us in the Jewish community to do three things.

The Union for Reform Judaism shares resources for use in congregations and Jewish communities, as well as by families and individual, in our shared pursuit of justice.

This is a moment that requires extraordinary courage to do the hardest and most transformative social change work. It is for all Americans of conscience to build a more just and compassionate future by facing the truth of our history and our present.