JVP Presbyterian GA Bay Area Delegation
Donation protected
Dear Potential Donor,
Our names are Aaron Lerner, Susannah Nachenberg, and Jesse Yurow. Each of us shares three things in common - we're young activists, we're Jewish, and we are all passionate about pursuing peace and justice in Israel-Palestine.
While we each have our own paths that have led us to where we are in our persuit of Tikkun Olam, or the Jewish concept of Repairing the World (specifically in Israel-Palestine), we are now at a crossroads. We will be forming the Bay Area delegation to attend the Presbyterian Church USA's General Assembly.
So, what's really going on? Basically, the Presbyterian Church's General Assembly, or church governing body, will be gathering for their bi-annual church-wide conference from June 15th-20th in Detroit to discuss a variety of issues. One of these issues is their investments in companies involved with the Israeli occupation. This goes from Caterpillar supplying bulldozers to the Israeli government that are used to demolish Palestinians' homes, to Hewlett-Packard creating technology such as bio-metric ID's that are used at checkpoints. This will be a pivotal moment in Palestinian Solidarity activism in the United States.
Aaron, Susannah, and Jesse are all members of Jewish Voice for Peace, an organization "that through grassroots organizing, education, advocacy, and media, Jewish Voice for Peace works to achieve a lasting peace that recognizes the rights of both Israelis and Palestinians for security and self-determination." Link: https://jewishvoiceforpeace.org/about Our hope is to fulfill this mission by encouraging the Presbyterian Church to divest from these companies that are involved in denying the Palestinian people security and self-determination.
By attending the Presbyterian GA, we hope that our presence will demonstrate to the delegates that there is not a united Jewish voice on this issue, but that young Jews like us are speaking out against Israeli policies towards the Palestinians. That we will not stay silent, that we will not let powerful organizations intimidate the delegates by claiming that divesting would be "anti-Semitic." We are there to lend our voices by encouraging the delegates to vote in favor of human rights, peace, and justice.
However, the catch is that if we are to be able to attend this conference, we need to help fundraise to cover our air fare and hotel fees. Our goal is to collectively raise $1,000 through this website and through a fundraising dinner we will have in June. For those who raise < $20.00, I will write you a series of personalized Haikus depending on how much you donate. For those who donate > $20.00, you will have your own personalized Shakespearean sonnet written by none other than Aaron Lerner himself.
Please donate any amount you feel comfortable donating; anything would be greatly appreciated. By donating even a small amount, you will help young activists like us achieve a potentially major victory for the movement for justice in Israel-Palestine.
Other than that, wish us luck, and we thank you for contributing to the JVP Bay Area delegation to the 2014 Presbyterian General Assembly!
Sincerely,
Aaron Lerner
Susannah Nachenberg
Jesse Yurow
Our names are Aaron Lerner, Susannah Nachenberg, and Jesse Yurow. Each of us shares three things in common - we're young activists, we're Jewish, and we are all passionate about pursuing peace and justice in Israel-Palestine.
While we each have our own paths that have led us to where we are in our persuit of Tikkun Olam, or the Jewish concept of Repairing the World (specifically in Israel-Palestine), we are now at a crossroads. We will be forming the Bay Area delegation to attend the Presbyterian Church USA's General Assembly.
So, what's really going on? Basically, the Presbyterian Church's General Assembly, or church governing body, will be gathering for their bi-annual church-wide conference from June 15th-20th in Detroit to discuss a variety of issues. One of these issues is their investments in companies involved with the Israeli occupation. This goes from Caterpillar supplying bulldozers to the Israeli government that are used to demolish Palestinians' homes, to Hewlett-Packard creating technology such as bio-metric ID's that are used at checkpoints. This will be a pivotal moment in Palestinian Solidarity activism in the United States.
Aaron, Susannah, and Jesse are all members of Jewish Voice for Peace, an organization "that through grassroots organizing, education, advocacy, and media, Jewish Voice for Peace works to achieve a lasting peace that recognizes the rights of both Israelis and Palestinians for security and self-determination." Link: https://jewishvoiceforpeace.org/about Our hope is to fulfill this mission by encouraging the Presbyterian Church to divest from these companies that are involved in denying the Palestinian people security and self-determination.
By attending the Presbyterian GA, we hope that our presence will demonstrate to the delegates that there is not a united Jewish voice on this issue, but that young Jews like us are speaking out against Israeli policies towards the Palestinians. That we will not stay silent, that we will not let powerful organizations intimidate the delegates by claiming that divesting would be "anti-Semitic." We are there to lend our voices by encouraging the delegates to vote in favor of human rights, peace, and justice.
However, the catch is that if we are to be able to attend this conference, we need to help fundraise to cover our air fare and hotel fees. Our goal is to collectively raise $1,000 through this website and through a fundraising dinner we will have in June. For those who raise < $20.00, I will write you a series of personalized Haikus depending on how much you donate. For those who donate > $20.00, you will have your own personalized Shakespearean sonnet written by none other than Aaron Lerner himself.
Please donate any amount you feel comfortable donating; anything would be greatly appreciated. By donating even a small amount, you will help young activists like us achieve a potentially major victory for the movement for justice in Israel-Palestine.
Other than that, wish us luck, and we thank you for contributing to the JVP Bay Area delegation to the 2014 Presbyterian General Assembly!
Sincerely,
Aaron Lerner
Susannah Nachenberg
Jesse Yurow
Organizer
Aaron David Lerner
Organizer
Palo Alto, CA
