Social justice/Social Action

Social Justice at Slifka

Apply for the Tzedek New Haven Social Action Fellowship at Slifka for Spring, 2012

Social Justice programming at the Joseph Slifka Center for Jewish Student Life at Yale is grounded in and inspired by 1) the Kabbalistic vision of Tikkun Olam (a broken, holy world which requires human mending) 2) the righteous indignation of the Biblical prophets that we not neglect the oppressed, weak, or poor of our communities 3) the Biblical injunction “You shall not oppress a stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt and 4)  Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel’s belief that “In a free society, some are guilty, but all are responsible”.  With these sources as inspiration and imperative, and understanding their requirements of us as essential to what it means to be a Jew, we will seek to offer, facilitate, enhance and support meaningful service opportunities, and provide resources, guidance and learning opportunities for students and student organizations engaged in a wide variety of social justice work on in New Haven, across the country and around the world.

Specifically, within a text-based social justice framework, we will offer a wide variety of service opportunities and enhance existing campus programs by providing both Jewish context and financial support.  This will include organized Alternative Spring Break service trips, student-initiated Alternative Spring Break programs, student-initiated New Haven service programs and support for existing Dwight Hall and Chaplain’s office New Haven service programs.  Additionally, through the Social Justice program Slifka will support JAM (Jews and Muslims at Yale), Jews for Justice, Challah for Hunger, and The Yale Farm, and look to partner with campus environmental initiatives, LGBTQ programs, fair-wage efforts and human rights activism (at home and abroad).  In our teaching and learning about Social Justice, we will look at global and domestic economic disparities and other imbalances in our effort to understand the root causes of systemic injustice that may be confronted during the course of service-learning work, and much more.

In our own building operations and environment we will strive to embody the values we preach and teach, working to reduce our environmental ‘footprint’ in our dining operations and climate control, limiting the amount of waste we produce, and, above all, treating all the employees of the Slifka Center regardless of their position, age, gender, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, race or ethnicity, with dignity, consideration, and respect.

Social Justice Programs at Slifka Center are generously supported by the Arthur L. Shapiro Social Justice Program Endowment, a grant from the Seymour L. Lustman Fund, and other generous alumni and parents committed to the Jewish values of Tzedek and Tikkun Olam.

Apply for the Tzedek New Haven Social Action Fellowship at Slifka for Spring, 2012