Anti-Racism

NSP is a multiracial Jewish community committed to dismantling racism and white supremacy. The Anti-Racism Working Group (ARWG), a multi-racial team of NSP leaders and members, works to institutionalize this commitment in the operations of NSP and the life of our community. The ARWG’s responsibilities include:

  1. Define and achieve alignment – in partnership with NSP leadership – around a set of goals and priorities. 
  2. Make plans for how we’ll meet our goals, including who takes responsibility for each goal/project (which may or may not be a member of the working group), what resources they’ll need, and how best to sequence steps and stages of this work.
  3. Check in on progress – provide supportive accountability to those who are leading pieces of the work and our consultants, ensuring NSP is moving closer to the goals we’ve set to develop a thriving, not just a protective environment; evaluate/troubleshoot how it’s going; reflect on what we are learning; communicate regularly and transparently to leadership and the community.

If you’re interested in learning more, participating in a training or other anti-racism program, or contributing to this work in some way, please contact the ARWG at antiracism@newsynagogueproject.org.

Goals

In November 2021, the leadership of NSP adopted the following community goals proposed by the ARWG:

  1. Within the next 12-18 months, establish anti-racism practices (e.g. redress for harm, accountability/enforcement, transparency) among NSP community, especially staff, leaders, and volunteers. 
    • Develop practices and provide training for leadership and community to address and learn from harms and build accountability with an understanding that processes must be unique to the context and attuned to level of commitment for each person involved.
    • Equip anyone taking a leadership role at NSP to do so with an understanding of the multicultural and antiracist space we want to build
  2. Within the next 12-18 months, develop training and learning opportunities for members where at least 75% of the congregation is actively participating in or engaged in the work.
    • Develop content for member orientation to acculturate newcomers, including content oriented toward kids and parents.
    • Develop discussion groups and caucus spaces to build socialization of concepts and norms.
    • Establish practices to ensure all NSP content and programming, for both adults and kids, represents the diversity of the Jewish community and values the experiences and traditions of Jews of Color rather than centering whiteness as a default.
    • Develop structure around NSP messaging and content to such that everyone entering NSP spaces understands our vision for a multicultural community and is equipped to be an active participant in building it.
    • Ensure that all learning opportunities offered by NSP, including our kids education program, instill appreciation for the inherent multiracial identity of the Jewish community and include history of JOC communities around the world and historical figures who identified as Black and Jewish
  3. Build a multiracial community in which Jewish and other people of color feel like they belong in NSP spaces, a reality reflected both in membership and leadership.  
    • Within 2-5 years, the NSP community, leadership, and Kollel will at least reflect the racial makeup of the U.S. Jewish population (>15%).
    • Assure that NSP program participation and attendance, including in our kids education program, is racially diverse and balanced by creating experiences valuable to Jews of Color, particularly Black and Indigenous Jews.

Resources

Below are links to resources for learning more about how we can all play our part in creating a community of belonging for everyone who shows up at NSP. If you have ideas for additional resources that would be helpful to share with our community, please write to antiracism@newsynagogueproject.org.

Accessibility

We are committed to making NSP as accessible and inclusive for all who wish to participate. This includes people who are disabled, chronically ill, neurodivergent, D/deaf, hard of hearing, blind or low vision, have scent-sensitivities, or who have any other kind of disability.

Continue reading “Accessibility”

COVID Safety

We want programming to be available to as many congregants as possible, while maintaining our commitment to pikuach nefesh, safeguarding life, as a central value: “We hold that to save one member of our community is to save and preserve the entire community of NSP and beyond.” In pursuit of keeping each other as safe as possible, attendees to NSP in-person programming must adhere to the following safety guidelines:

  • All attendees of NSP in-person events must be fully vaccinated. Fully vaccinated means two shots plus a booster for the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines and one shot plus booster for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Children under 6 months old are exempted from the vaccine requirement, and children under 5 years old are exempted from the booster requirement. If you have any questions regarding this policy, vaccine eligibility, or should you require a medical exemption, please contact Rabbi Yosef: rabbi@newsynagogueproject.org
  • Masking is required for indoor meetings and the use of indoor spaces (e.g. bathrooms) at outdoor events. Attendees over 2 years old must wear a mask. High-quality masks are strongly recommended, such as N95 or KN95 masks without a vent. Extra high-quality masks will be provided at NSP events. Unacceptable face coverings include gaiters, bandanas, or similar. Masks must cover the nose and mouth entirely and be on for the duration of the event (with exceptions for food and drink, if outdoors).
    • We expect children will have a difficult time being masked and will take off masks indoors to eat snacks. We want everyone to be aware that kids may not be masked, and know that parents are doing their best. Service leaders and speakers may unmask while leading if they receive a negative Covid test and maintain more than 6ft of distance.
  • Indoor food and meals are mask-optional when clearly advertised and demarcated. Whenever weather and space considerations allow, potlucks and meals will be held outdoors. When meals are held indoors, we will have supplies prepared for a group to eat together outside.
  • Rapid testing is required for all indoor meetings for attendees over 2 years old. Attendees are asked to take a rapid test shortly before attending indoor meetings and to only attend if their test result is negative. NSP will provide rapid tests at the event for attendees who have not tested.
  • Masking at outdoor NSP events is not required and is optional for all participants.
  • Members may not attend if they currently have any common symptoms of Covid-19, including cough, sneezing, fever, chills, or nausea. Members may not attend if they are waiting on the result of a Covid-19 test due to possible or confirmed exposure to Covid-19 or have been exposed to someone with Covid-19 in the last 14 days.