20 | OCTOBER 3 • 2019

Jews in the D

O

n a recent sunny
Sunday afternoon, a
local group of black
and Jewish leaders came
together to greet Michigan Rep.
Brenda Lawrence and learn
more about the newly created
Congressional Caucus for Black
and Jewish Unity.
The local organization, the
Coalition for Black and Jewish
Unity, hosted Lawrence, who
co-founded the new caucus,
along with Reps. Lee Zelden,
R-N.Y., Debbie Wasserman
Schultz, D-Fla., Will Hurd,
R-Texas, and John Lewis,
D-Ga. The House caucus was
launched to bring both commu-
nities together and create legis-
lation to fight white supremacy.
“Our communities have a
long history of being there for
each other,
” Lawrence told the
gathering, recalling the past
involvement of blacks and Jews
in the early days of the civil
rights movement. She spoke
of her days in Southfield, first
as a councilwoman and then
as mayor, and cited the city’
s
long and successful integra-
tion of blacks and Jews. She
emphasized the need for candid
conversation, which, she said,
has always been the centerpiece
of the
relationship.
She recalled a time where she
had a disagreement with the
Jewish community on an Israel-
related topic, and said she was
especially touched when David
Victor, a local Jewish leader
and former national president

of AIPAC, told her it was OK
to disagree sometimes because
“we’
re family, and it’
s normal
for families to sometimes have
disagreements.
”
The Congressional Caucus
for Black and Jewish Unity is
holding its kick-off meetings
this month in Washington,
D.C. A key priority, she empha-
sized, was for the caucus to
collect reliable data on the spike
in racial and anti-Semitic hate
crimes so that critics will not
be able to deny the scale of the
issue and the urgency for more
legislative protection.
The local Coalition for Black
and Jewish Unity is a part-
nership between the Jewish
Community Relations Council
(JCRC/AJC) and the Council
of Baptist Pastors of Detroit
and Vicinity. The organization,
founded several years ago,
focuses on programming that
promotes solidarity between the
communities, speaks out against
hate, specifically racism and
anti-Semitism, and works on
developing future community
leaders.
The group has hosted events
at the Charles Wright Museum
of African American History
and the Holocaust Memorial
Center, and held joint Shabbats,
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
commemorations, joint seders,
criminal justice seminars,
educational “lunch, listen and
learn” meetings and holiday
parties.
Rev. Deedee M. Coleman,
president of the Council of

Baptist Pastors, a co-chair of the
local coalition and a longtime
pro-Israel advocate, told the
group she “almost fell off her
chair” when she learned that a
Congressional Caucus had been
formed to promote black and
Jewish unity, because it so close-
ly paralleled the work of the
local coalition. Coleman spoke
passionately about the need for
both communities to “speak up
for what’
s right” because “our
enemies are coming after us.
”
Rabbi Marla Hornsten of
Temple Israel, also a co-chair
of the local coalition, person-
alized the efforts of the group’
s
mission, emphasizing that “we
need to get to know each other
as more than just colleagues
and more than just acquain-
tances. We need to get to know
each other as family and dear
friends.
”
Rep. Andy Levin and Rep.
Elissa Slotkin were unable to
attend the event but sent staff
members who addressed the
group and expressed their sup-
port for the local coalition and
the new Congressional Caucus.
Rev. Ken Flowers, a co-direc-

tor of the local coalition, chal-
lenged the crowd to keep the
focus on action steps to advance
the cause of fighting racism and
anti-Semitism.
The Coalition for Black
and Jewish Unity is located
within the office of the JCRC/
AJC in the Jewish Federation
of Metropolitan Detroit in
Bloomfield Township. For more
information, visit jcrc.org/
coalition-for-black-and-Jewish-
unity or call (248) 642-2656.

Mark Jacobs is a co-director of the

Coalition for Black and Jewish Unity.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF MARK JACOBS

Black and Jewish Coalition hosts
Rep. Brenda Lawrence.

MARK JACOBS SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

Working Together

Mark Jacobs welcomes the
group to his home, where
the meeting was held.

TOP: Many from
both the Jewish and
black communities
attended the event.
RIGHT: Rep. Brenda
Lawrence addresses
the group.