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= Jewish Council on Urban Affairs =

Jewish Council on Urban Affairs (JCUA) is a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago, Ill., that works with diverse neighborhoods and community groups to battle discrimination, anti-Semitism, poverty and other forms of oppression. Jane Ramsey has been the organization’s executive director since 1980.

Mission
“The mission of the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs is to combat poverty, racism and anti-Semitism in partnership with Chicago’s diverse communities. Guided by prophetic Jewish principles, JCUA pursues social and economic justice for Chicago’s most vulnerable neighborhoods by promoting a vision of empowering communities from within. Since 1964, JCUA has assisted groups in low-income and minority communities, built coalitions with diverse groups, advocated on issues of poverty and racism and mobilized a Jewish constituency to create a more just city”.

About
According to Slingshot, a Resource Guide to Jewish Innovation, “For 45 years, the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs (JCUA) has been perceived by many as the social consciousness of the Chicago-area Jewish community”. According to Sojourner’s Magazine, JCUA is the preeminent model for today’s Jewish social justice organizations. As a Chicago-based organization, JCUA pioneered the American Jewish community’s participation in social justice work. Since 1964, JCUA has been working with neighborhoods targeted by social and economic depression and collaborates actively with immigrant communities to promote human rights and social justice. Working with other community-based organizations, JCUA focuses on issues that affect urban communities, such as “poverty, education, employment, housing, transportation and crime”. JCUA mobilizes the Chicago-area Jewish community in an effort to build partnerships and to advocate on behalf of disenfranchised Chicago residents.

Activities
JCUA works on several campaigns and projects concurrently. Some of the organization’s current activities are outlined below:

JCUA organizes Jewish-Muslim dialogue programs, such as “Iftar in the Sukkah” or “Iftar in the Synagogue”, events that bring local Jews and Muslims together to break the fast of Ramadan and to celebrate a coinciding Jewish holiday. In 2007, when the end of Ramadan overlapped with Sukkot, a Jewish festival marking the traditional time of harvest, about 150 Muslims and Jews congregated in Anshe Sholom B’nai Israel, an Orthodox synagogue in Chicago, to socialize, eat, and experience each others’ rituals. The “Iftar” programs have continued yearly.

From JCUA’s inception until today, the organization has focused on preserving affordable housing opportunities for low-income Chicagoans. In reaction to citywide gentrification, JCUA is working with community groups to ensure affordable housing for displaced residents. JCUA provides seed money to real estate developers to encourage development of affordable housing. July 11, 2007. JCUA works with the Coalition for the Protection of Public Housing on the “Housing is a Human Right” campaign. The campaign opposes the unjust treatment of Chicago public housing residents by challenging forced evictions.

JCUA runs a teen urban-immersion program called Or Tzedek (Hebrew for “Light of Justice”). The week-long program gives high school students the opportunity to engage with urban issues such as affordable housing, health-care, immigration, poverty, and homelessness. Participants learn about these social justice issues through a Jewish lens while meeting and volunteering with community leaders and experts.

In the aftermath of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raid in May of 2008 of the Agriprocessors kosher meatpacking plant, JCUA has helped organize an alliance of community groups and concerned individuals in Postville, Iowa. The group aims to reach a Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) with the new owners of the Agriprocessors plant. Since the 2008 raid, JCUA has raised money and supported the affected Postville community. The goals of the Postville Community Benefits Alliance are to ensure that the meatpacking plant is a responsible corporation and that it treats its workers fairly while providing a safe working environment.

JCUA has been at the forefront of the battle for comprehensive immigration reform. JCUA seeks to be a “strong Jewish presence” as it works with other faith communities, supporting the passage of federal legislation that treats immigrants fairly. JCUA, Jewish Community Action (St. Paul, Minn.) and Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society co-convened “We Were Strangers, Too: the Jewish Campaign for Immigration Reform.” The campaign aims to pass “comprehensive immigration reform which should include family reunification, a path to citizenship, enforcement that reflects our values while bolstering national security, legal channels for future immigrants and resources that empower immigrants to integrate into our society”.

Recognition

 * JCUA was included in the 2009-2010 edition of Slingshot, an annual guide that highlights innovative Jewish non-profit organizations. JCUA was the only Chicago-based organization to be selected in Slingshot’s most recent publication


 * The “Forward 50” is an annual list published by The Forward that highlights 50 of the most influential leaders in the American Jewish community. In 2009, The Forward included JCUA’s executive director, Jane Ramsey. “In almost every social and economic justice issue that came up in Chicago — homelessness, unemployment, community reinvestment, racism, anti-Semitism — Ramsey was there, providing Jewish leadership”