TORONTO, ON – JUNE 06: Artist Paul Glyn-Williams puts the finishing touches on a George Floyd mural on June 6, 2020 in Toronto, Canada. This is the 12th day of protests since George Floyd died in Minneapolis police custody on May 25. (Photo by Cole Burston/Getty Images) Sixty Reform rabbis and cantors around Los Angeles signed a letter released on June 9 applauding protestors using their First Amendment rights, denouncing police brutality and calling on political leaders to do more to protect people of color.
Organized by Rabbi Jocee Hudson from Temple Israel of Hollywood in partnership with the California Religious Action Center, the letter states, “Today, we, a coalition of sixty Reform Rabbis and Cantors of Los Angeles, proclaim in a unified voice: We are responsible. We are responsible for the lives of our brothers and sisters, of our neighbors, and of each other. We hear the voice of God and our tradition thundering: ‘Your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground!'”
While the clergy applauded Mayor Eric Garcetti and 10th District City Councilmember Herb Wesson for adjusting the Los Angeles Police Department’s operating budget, they also called on Garcetti and “members of the Los Angeles City Council to shift more city funds from policing to invest in communities, families, and youth, especially in communities of color.”
L.A. clergy who signed the letter included, Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback of Stephen Wise Temple, Cantor Linda Kates of Leo Baeck Temple, Rabbis Jon Hanish and Becky Hoffman of Kol Tikvah, Rabbi Karen Fox of Wilshire Boulevard Temple, Rabbi Sarah Bassin of Temple Emanuel of Beverly Hills, Rabbi Alyson Solomon of Beth Chayim Chadashim and Rabbi Carrie Vogel of Kehillat Israel, to name a few. Click here to see all 60 clergy names.
And he said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”
Then God said, “What have you done? Your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground!
(Genesis 4:9-11)
As George Floyd lay on the ground, a police officer’s knee crushing his neck, cutting off his oxygen, choking him, as Mr. Floyd called out “Mama,” as he pleaded the same words as Eric Garner moaned almost six years ago, “I can’t breathe,” we confronted once again a true evil of our society.
Not all lives are valued equally.
We are a country that is rooted in institutional racism. We are a country that from our inception counted slaves as 3/5 a human being, that has oppressed and committed acts of violence against Black people and People of Color, and that continues to fail in our ability to extend the same sense of security and safety to all our citizens.
Black people are being killed in our streets.
Today, we, a coalition of sixty Reform Rabbis and Cantors of Los Angeles, proclaim in a unified voice: We are responsible. We are responsible for the lives of our brothers and sisters, of our neighbors, and of each other. We hear the voice of God and our tradition thundering: “Your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground!”
The voice of the Eternal, which is lodged deep within each of us, which recognizes the common humanity in us all, compels us to hear the call to action.
The murder of George Floyd, the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, and the murder of Breonna Taylor – these are not isolated events. Rather, they represent generations of victims of systemic racism, lynchings, and state-sanctioned violence against Black people and People of Color.
And, we say, as one voice: Enough.
In Los Angeles, the next steps are clear.
First, we stand in solidarity and stand side by side with all those in our city who exercise their First Amendment Rights and demand change. We are one with all those who march in non-violent protests and who bear witness to the pain and violence committed against Black people and all People of Color. We also denounce all acts of violence on our streets – whether from police, protestors, or third parties – and echo the calls of so many faith and civic leaders for peace.
Second, we applaud Mayor Garcetti and City Councilor Herb Wesson for proposals to shift $120 to $150 million from the operating budget of the Los Angeles Police Department to benefit communities of color in Los Angeles. But the Police Department’s budget makes up 54% of the City’s general budget, and so this transfer of 6-8% of the Police Department’s budget is only a first step. We call on Mayor Garcetti and Members of the Los Angeles City Council to shift more city funds from policing to invest in communities, families, and youth, especially in communities of color.
Finally, we call upon our national leaders to govern with courage and compassion, to fulfill their most basic role in our country: To represent all of us, to act in the best interest of all of us, and to see it as their fundamental duty to care for all of us.
Our neighbor’s blood cries out to us from the ground.
And, we weep over all the terror that has been inflicted. And we rage at the injustices in our midst. And we pray for shalom. And we act for change. Join us.
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