Occupy disavows anti-Semitic FB page

Today, Holocaust Memorial Day, the unquestionably anti-Semitic image above was posted to a Facebook Page called “#occupywallstreet,” making headlines in Israel and around the U.S..

While the Page does have 25,000+ followers, it is in fact not an official or quasi-official Occupy Wall Street Facebook Page connected to the Occupy Wall Street media team nor the NYC General Assembly. The Page claims affiliation with Occupy Tampa, but Occupy Tampa’s Facebook team has informed us that this is not the case. In other words, this image was NOT posted by Occupy Wall Street or Occupy Tampa, but by an unidentified administrator of the “#occupywallstreet” Facebook Page, a Page which appears to be operated by members of Anonymous and not by activists with boots on the ground at either Occupy Wall Street or Occupy Tampa.

Nonetheless, Occupy Wall Street has disavowed the Page, posting numerous denunciations to Twitter and Facebook.

Indeed, before learning of this egregiously offensive image posted in their name, Occupy Wall Street expressed solidarity with victims and resisters of the Holocaust.

While it is obviously distressing to see such hatred spoken in Occupy’s name, and no less distressing to know that there is no shortage of anti-Jewish bigots who have attempted to attach themselves to the Occupy movement, it is important to remember that this individual is certainly not a sanctioned representative of Occupy Wall Street in New York City, nor are his or her actions representative of Occupy Wall Street’s values. Occupy is explicitly against all forms of oppression, including anti-Jewish oppression, and does not sanction nor tolerate hate speech of any kind.

We will continue to monitor the situation and to combat anti-Semites whenever they attempt to co-opt the Occupy movement for their nefarious purposes.

[Update] The “#occupywallstreet” Facebook Page has been updated with the following post:

[Update 3:35pm] A representative from Occupy Tampa has confirmed that their General Assembly has no relationship to the “#occupywallstreet” Facebook Page:

This one (here) is the only Occupy Tampa facebook page, manage it for the Occupy Tampa media working group. And our twitter account is the one that repeat all of our post made here.

They’ve also given a statement to the Algemeiner Journal.

April 1: Occupy Interfaith Freedom Seder & Palm Sunday Processional

OCCUPY FAITH/OCCUPY JUDAISM INTERFAITH FREEDOM SEDER & PALM SUNDAY PROCESSIONAL IN SOLIDARITY WITH OCCUPY WALL STREET
Sunday, April 1, beginning at 11 AM
Judson Memorial Church, 55 Washington Sq. South

Schedule
11 AM · Palm Sunday observance and Agape meal
12 PM · Palm processional and pyramid protest
1:30 PM · Freedom Seder

RSVP on Facebook!

On April 1, 2012, members of Occupy Wall Street and New York City’s Jewish and Christian communities, including Occupy Faith NYC, Occupy Judaism, Occupy Catholics, Jews for Racial & Economic Justice, The Shalom Center, Congregation Kolot Chayeinu and Judson Memorial Church, will come together for a public Palm Sunday processional and Passover Freedom Seder in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street protests.

The annual Jewish holiday of Passover marks the liberation of the Israelites from their slavery in Egypt. Palm Sunday celebrates Jesus’ triumphant arrival in Jerusalem, which is followed shortly thereafter by his expulsion of the moneychangers from the Holy Temple. These holidays are explicitly connected to the themes of Occupy Wall Street, which challenges the corruption of the financial elite and struggles towards the liberation of the 99% from the bonds of economic slavery.

Following a traditional Palm Sunday observance and agape meal at NYC’s historic Judson Memorial Church (55 Washington Sq. South), protesters waving palms will pilgrimage to five symbolic “pyramids of power” to tell the pharaohs of government and industry to “Let our people go!” A Chase bank will symbolize the corruption of Wall Street and Americans’ enslavement to debt; a McDonald’s will embody the inaccessibility of healthy food to the poor and working class; the Varick St. Detention Center will epitomize the evisceration of American civil liberties in the wars on terrorism and illegal immigration; a BP gas station will represent environmental devastation wrought in the callous pursuit of profit; and the NYU Financial Aid office will signify crushing student debt. At each stop, clergy will recite Biblical texts and demonstrators will reflect on the connection between these oppressions and the unyielding corruption and insatiable greed of the 1%.

Following the palm processional, protesters will return to Judson Memorial Church for an interfaith Freedom Seder, a ritual meal which uses food to symbolically evoke themes of slavery and liberation. Conceived of in 1969 by Rabbi Arthur Waskow, a civil rights and environmental activist who participated in the 1961 Freedom Rides, the first Freedom Seder commemorated the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, and celebrated the liberatory narrative of the Passover Haggadah by affirming the struggle for Black liberation. 43 years later, Rabbi Waskow has become a participant in and advocate for the Occupy movement – a contemporary struggle for human liberation – and will help to lead this Freedom Seder which will tie the themes of Occupy Wall Street back to the Passover liturgy.

Occupy Faith NYC is a coalition of New York City interfaith leaders supporting Occupy Wall Street. Occupy Judaism is Occupy Wall Street’s Jewish community contingent, which organized high holiday services and erected a sukkah (tabernacle) in Zuccotti Park. Jews For Racial & Economic Justice is a local NGO that addresses issues of racial and economic justice in New York City. The Philadelphia-based Shalom Center, helmed by Rabbi Arthur Waskow, advocates for social, economic and environmental justice with a prophetic Jewish voice. Congregation Kolot Chayeinu is a progressive Jewish congregation in Park Slope, Brooklyn. Judson Memorial Church is a historic New York City Christian congregation known for its leadership in the progressive faith community.

How to Occupy Rosh Chodesh

Prepared by Rabbi Ezra Weinberg and Shuli Passow

  1. Organize a planning team. This can be as small as two people, but it will be helpful to have others on board for tweeting/facebooking/promotion.
  2. Decide on the goals of the event. As an example, here is what we determined for Kislev RC in New York:
    1. Ongoing Jewish presence at OWS that links the tradition to what’s going on down there.
    2. Educate people about Rosh Chodesh.
    3. Build community.
  3. Decide on the flavor of the prayer. Two directions one could go in:
    1. Traditional egalitarian primarily in Hebrew.
    2. More of a prayer/study experience primarily in English - accessible for people who are not familiar with traditional Judaism.
  4. Decide on logistical issues:
    1. How many people do you need as a minimum to run the program?
    2. How long will it be (if it’s a colder month, no more than one hour.
  5. Determine plan for promotion:
    1. Where will you advertise? It’s a good idea to send out to your local Occupy Judaism listserv, as well as the national listserv. Many folks on these lists are eager to post far and wide.
    2. Recruit 5-6 people to spread the word on Facebook and Twitter.
    3. Consider reaching out to Moving Traditions, whose program, Rosh Chodesh: It’s A Girl Thing, connects with hundreds of girls, women, and synagogues around the country.
  6. Develop your program, assign roles and general time frame for each piece. Here are two potential scenarios:
    • Option A: Traditional service (things to prepare)
      1. Borrow a Torah.
      2. Get someone to layn (4 Aliyot).
      3. Get a Table for Torah reading.
      4. Make a rain plan – can’t have Torah out in the rain.
      5. Find competent davening leaders – give them time restraints.
      6. Find extra siddurim - hopefully with transliteration.
      7. Come up with a few places to create Kavanot to explicitly connect the prayers to Occupy movement (ie: making the link from prayer to justice) and to explain how this is a traditional service.
      8. Consider themed group Aliyot to tie in themes of OWS.
      9. Find someone to call out page numbers.
      10. Ask someone to be an usher to help bring in new faces and people who show up late.
    • Option B: (one example of a non-traditional service)
      1. Opening, 10 minutes: Welcome, What is Rosh Chodesh, framing that links RH to these themes.
      2. Woman’s holidays - claiming space for marginalized. Themes of renewal.
      3. Round of introductions, 5 minutes - depends on who’s there, how many (ie: won’t do large group introductions if there’s a huge crowd)
      4. Framing and lead into Hallel, 10 minutes:
        • Celebrate the beginning of the month - Not so in gregorian (paying rent).
        • Rosh Chodesh as celebration.
        • Protest as celebration.
        • Protest as song.
        • Thanksgiving reflection - Hallel Praise that evokes gratitude.
      5. Hallel-15-20 minutes (traditional supplementary prayers of praise sung on Rosh Chodesh).
        • Full Hebrew Hallel might be difficult - not accessible, consider doing an abridged version with introductions/kavanot (intention) before each song sung.
        • Need to make xerox’d copies.
        • Musical instruments - guitar and drums and major plus – ask specific people to bring instruments.
      6. Hevruta Text studies that lead into a discussion - Prepare source sheets that bring together sources on Rosh Chodesh (see Exodus Ch 12 for first mention of Rosh Chodesh), and another theme that you are interested in exploring. Provide the sources with discussion questions for people to explore in pairs at the event. It’s a good idea to provide English translation for any Hebrew you provide. Check Wikipedia for ideas on certain themes that have historically come to be connection to Rosh Chodesh.
      7. Closing remarks and Song-5 minutes.

After Raid, Occupy’s Ideas Live On

by Daniel Sieradski, co-organizer Occupy Judaism
The Forward, Nov. 25, 2011 · Source

Occupy Wall Street is in exile. Her benches, once bountiful, lay barren. Her sidewalks — a wasteland. Where there were tents bustling with life, there is breeze. As the Book of Lamentations wonders, “How does the city sit solitary that was full of people?”

Under cover of night, eschewing the eye of moral scrutiny, Titus Bloomberg’s centurions sacked and overwhelmed the weary Zealots of Zuccotti Park, razing the golden city and carting off its holy vessels and vestments. Many pursuers of peace were beaten and taken captive. Many more were dispersed, left to seek refuge elsewhere in the land.

Perhaps it is so that the Occupiers had sinned. Perhaps this curse befell us because of inexperience and infighting, needless hatred towards one another, immoral conduct, or inadequate ambition to embody our best selves. Some say the Shekhinah (the Divine Spirit) had left days before the fulfillment of the decree, as word came that darkness had descended on the encampment.

Perhaps we were merely the victims of Sodom, whose men (and mayor) wax haughtily: “Why should we suffer wayfarers, who come to us only to deplete our wealth. Come, let us abolish the practice of traveling in our land.”

Either way, the jig would have been up eventually.

As Jews we know: Exile is not nearly the end.

Rabbi Michael Lerner wrote in a public email Sunday that the community is “festishizing the tents” — that they’re beside the point.

And it’s true. Occupy Wall Street long ago transcended mere physicality. Whether or not the occupation stays in Zuccotti Park, whether there are tents and a People’s Kitchen, the movement’s Yohanan Ben Zakkais have already redacted its collective and mutable knowledge and carried it forth to 1,500 diaspora communities spread around the world. Each has been endowed with the gifts of radical iconoclasm, personal and collective empowerment, horizontalism, mutual aid, consensus-based decision making and, of course, the fearsome people’s mic (also known as the human microphone).

They are prepared and preparing to mic check injustice everywhere. As the occupiers have so well put it, “You cannot evict an idea whose time has come.”

This past Sunday, my friend and teacher Douglas Rushkoff gave a talk at the People’s Library in Zuccotti Park. He concluded:

“Remember that you have already won.

“Whatever happens in this square, the day you leave is not the day you have lost. It is not the day you have surrendered. It is the day you have spread out. It is the day you have declared a bigger battlefield. It is the day you teachers and we students become the same.

“It is the day we Occupy the World.”

Though, pending the court’s decision, we may no longer have the physical space of Zuccotti Park in which to pilgrimage and fulfill our obligations, the people of Occupy live. In retelling our story (“We are the 99%”), recounting our values (“social and economic justice for all”) and carrying forth our tradition unto the four corners of the Earth (“Occupy Everywhere”) we are empowered to bring the spirit of the occupation into every facet of our lives, occupying not only physical spaces, but also frames of mind and moments in time.

While our hearts may always harken to Zuccotti, so long as the occupation endures in our spirits, the taste of redemption that was the blessed geulahdik anarchy of Occupy Wall Street shall stay forever fresh on our tongues. May we ever forget, shall those tongues cleave to our palettes and our right hands wither.

Statement on Eviction of Liberty Square

Occupy Wall Street has been exiled from Zuccotti Park. As Jews, we know that exile is not the end. Occupy Judaism stands shoulder to shoulder with the Occupy Wall Street protesters. We are outraged by Mayor Bloomberg’s contempt for the rights of American citizens and his use of public health and safety to justify beating and macing nonviolent protesters. The mayor’s actions reflect neither Jewish, nor American, nor human values. You cannot evict an idea thats time has come. You cannot evict 99% of America. You cannot evict 99% of humanity.