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Guest Column
Editorial
Charitable Giving
Part Of The
American Way
A
Students film video in support of Israel.
D
Ann Arbor
uring
Operation
Pillar of
Defense, Israel's lat-
est defensive strike
against the terrorist
organization Hamas,
which rules the Gaza
Strip, there were
many University of
Michigan students
who wanted to do something to mobilize support for
Israel on the campus.
We had seen quite a bit of one-sided news media cov-
erage of Israel as well as negative talks about and demon-
strations against the Jewish state on campus. In addition
to a successful November pro-Israel rally on the Diag,
at which more than 150 students attended, we felt there
was more to be done.
During a weekly I-LEAD (Israel Leadership Education
Advocacy and Dialogue) meeting of about 20 students,
while discussing ways to advocate for Israel just after
Operation Pillar of Defense, a few of us came up with
the idea to make a video to show support for Israel on
campus. I-LEAD is a pro-Israel, Hillel-affiliated group on
campus that strives to provide an engaging environment
where thought-provoking conversation and education
can take place regarding the modern-day State of Israel.
From conception to completion, the two-minute
video took one week; it included the involvement of 40
students. There are 13 Metro Detroiters featured: Alyssa
Adler, Jessica Curhan, Daniel Elkus, Michele Freed, Ariel
Halpern, Nicole Hertzberg, Stephanie Horwitz, Rachel
Klein, Eli Newman, Celia Shecter, Leah Sternberg, Ariella
Yedwab and Emily Zussman.
Setting The Stage
We had three main objectives for this ambitious and nec-
essary video project.
First, we wanted to show University of Michigan
students there are many students who support Israel
on campus. While presenting our support for Israel, we
chose to focus on
concrete objective
reasoning such as
free speech and the
freedom of religion
— qualities of Israel
that too often are
overlooked.
Second, we wanted
to inspire and reach
out to other univer-
sities and colleges
through the "I Support
Ulsrael" campaign, encouraging students on other cam-
puses to also show their support for Israel by creating
their own videos. We hope that by encouraging other
groups of students to make videos with a similar pro-Isra-
el message, they would ultimately become part of a spiral-
ing nationwide campaign of campus support for Israel.
Lastly, we wanted to show the Israeli citizens, who are
our family and friends, that we support them.
Moving Forward
The project has received overwhelmingly positive reac-
tions in Israel as well in the United States. Friends in
Israel have shared the video online. And students on
campus who were not even involved in the video have
shared it on Facebook and have encouraged their friends
on other campuses to partake in the "I Support Ulsrael"
campaign.
We hope our actions trigger a domino effect of Israel
support on the U-M campus. And we look forward to
seeing the videos created by other students, in Michigan
and elsewhere, as part of an expanding "I Support
Ulsrael" campaign.
❑
Jeremy Borison of Cleveland and Michele Freed of Ann Arbor
are sophomores and Stephanie Horwitz of West Bloomfield is a
senior at the University of Michigan.
Go to www.youtube.com , type in
"I Support Israel®Umich" and look for
"I Support Ulsrael ®UMich".
s debate in Washington intensifies
over the potential reduction of
the tax deductibility of charitable
contributions to help fight off the federal
deficit, the fact remains such gifts are
the financial lifeblood of most religious
organizations. To further limit those gifts
inevitably would hurt the most vulnerable
Americans the hardest.
Congress and the Obama administration
owe it to the people to consider all options as
part of federal budget talks. Perhaps there's
a need and a means to require more scrutiny
to assure claimed contributions indeed have
been properly vetted; the federal government
would surely benefit from that exercise by
unmasking illegitimate claims.
But in the final analysis, there must be a
more prudent way to get the budget in line
other than effectively attacking the very gifts
that support the social safety net cast far
and wide in the wake of America's battered
economy. Government incentives to encourage
donations to qualifying organizations should
be increased, if possible, not lowered.
Consider how vital contributions are to the
Detroit Jewish community, from Federation's
Annual Campaign, dubbed Step Forward, to
the hundreds of other worthy organizations
that depend on tax-deductible gifts to stay
afloat and serve so ably to keep Jewish
recipients out
of poverty's
jaws.
William
Daroff, a
leader of the umbrella Jewish Federations
of North America, put it well: "When many
of our neighbors are still in severe economic
distress, and when Hurricane Sandy clearly
shows the need for charities to lead where
the government cannot, it is the absolute
wrong time to place a stumbling block in front
of our ability to help those in need."
Against this backdrop, Jewish leaders have
joined forces with a faith-based coalition
that includes Muslim and Christian groups
to demonstrate the depth and breadth of
religious organizational interest in sustaining
humanitarian and poverty-focused assistance
programs. Giving is central to religious life in
America. It's a mitzvah of the highest order. It
crosses religious boundaries. It's an essential
component to making the world a better
place.
The deductibility of charitable contributions
has been a cornerstone of the U.S. tax code. It
should remain so. Remind your U.S. senators
and representatives of that.
StepForward
❑
December 13 • 2012
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