Rabbis For Human Rights - North America

Resources

“It is appropriate for a person who is merciful and pursues justice, to not make their slaves carry a heavy yoke, nor cause them distress…it is forbidden to embarrass a slave with one’s deeds or with words, for the Torah prescribes that they perform a service and not that they be humiliated.” (Rambam, Hilchot Avadim 9:8)

 

Photo by Yi-tao "Timo" Lee via flickr.com. Creative Commons License.

Resources

 

 

• Passover 2012 Resources


• The Ten Plagues of Modern Slavery, Passover 2012/5772, Rabbi Joshua Lesser


• Hearing the Cry of Oppression: A D'Var Torah for Parshat Va'era 2012/5772 by Rabbi Jarah Greenfield.


• Who is Wise, Powerful, Wealthy, and Honored? , David Spinrad


• Fair Trade and Human Rights, Ilana Schatz


• Sukkot without a Guilty Conscience: A D'var Torah by Rabbi Jill Jacaobs for Sukkot 2011/5772 about slavery in America's tomato fields.

• On Power, Hope, and Change: A Sermon for Rosh Hashanah, 5772, by Rabbi Barbara Penzner.

• Passover Seder Readings on Modern Slavery 2011 (part 1)(part 2).

 

• A Fact Sheet on Modern Slavery, the Jewish response to slavery and human trafficking and resources to learn more.

• Talking Points on Slavery and Human Trafficking, High Holidays, 2010/5771 by Rabbi Rachel Kahn-Troster.

• Films about Modern Slavery, a list of suggested films about the problem of modern slavery, prepared for Rabbis for Human Rights-North America by the organization Free the Slaves. Please be sure to preview any film in advance of showing it.


• An Interactive Lesson Plan on Modern Slavery that incorporates both traditional text study and improvisational acting.

• Slavery in America Today: The Current Situation and a Jewish Response - an article by Ron Soodalter about modern slavery in America based on a talk he gave at Columbia University in November 2009.Rabbi Amy Eilberg offers a Jewish response to Soodalter’s article.


• Human Rights Shabbat 2009: Sermon on Slavery - Rabbi Rachel Kahn-Troster discusses biblical and modern slavery in relationship to Parshat Vayeshev.


• A Sermon on Slavery, Then and Now by Rabbi Gordon Tucker. Rabbi Tucker discusses the problem of modern slavery and describes his experience visiting sites from the African slave trade.

• Trafficking and Prostitution: Lessons from Jewish Sources: A Jewish response throughout history about trafficking and prostitution by Naomi Graetz and Julie Cwikel from 2006.

 

• Trafficking and Prostitution in Jewish Sources: A Text Sheet and a Study Guide: A 2009 text study and teacher's guide by Naomi Graetz, looking at the issue of prostitution in classic Jewish sources. She asks important questions about Jewish attitudes to prostitution depending on whether or not the prostitute is Jewish and inspires us to take action.

 

• A Yom Kippur Sermon on Sex Trafficking - Rabbi Aaron Fine’s Yom Kippur sermon from 2010/5771.


• 2010 Passover Materials: Rabbis for Human Rights – North America is please to present a variety of resources for your Passover celebration. This collection of materials focuses on the sad reality that for millions, slavery is not yet history. We invite and encourage you to use this “Feast of Our Freedom” to both learn and teach about modern-day slavery and human trafficking. Please print and use them at your Seders, in your synagogues, classrooms and beyond.  We would like to thank everyone who contributed materials for this packet.
  • Bound Together: Contemporary Slavery and Global Poverty by Rabbi Steve Gutow
  • A Passover Sermon by Rabbi Joshua Levine Grater
  • Pesach and Slavery Then and Now by Rabbi Gilah Langer
  • A Slavery Fact Sheet by Abby Cohen
  • The Ten Plagues by Abby Cohen
  • The Four Children by Rabbi Gilah Langer and David Arnow
  • Four Questions by Abby Cohen

• A Misheberach for Victims of Slavery. A beautiful prayer of support and compassion for victims of slavery, written by Rabbi Joshua Boettiger, that can be used during synagogue services or before an anti-trafficking event, to remind us of the spiritual dimensions of our holy work.


• Human Rights Shabbat 2010: Sermon on Slavery - Rabbi Rachel Kahn-Troster discusses modern slavery and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

• Slavery in Leviticus 25 - An abridged version of Prof. Jacob Milgrom's analysis on the problem of slavery and debt bondage in Leviticus 25.


• A Text Study by Rabbi Gordon Tucker, The Dignity of Work and the Indignity of Slavery: Texts with Questions, Rabbi Gordon Tucker's text sheet from his session at the 2008 Conference on Judaism and Human Rights, “The Dignity of Work and the Indignity of Slavery,” along with discussion questions. Read a transcript of the session. For just the texts, click here.

• A Rosh Hashanah Sermon on Modern Slavery - Rabbi Charles Feinberg’s Rosh Hashanah sermon from 2009/5770.


• A Rosh Hashanah Sermon on Slavery - Rabbi David Stern’s Rosh Hashanah sermon from 2008/5769.