 JULY 16 • 2020 | 27

“We went through the 10 
[demands] and we didn’
t get 
commitments or timeframes or 
clear outcomes,
” Greenblatt said. 
“We expected specifics, and 
that’
s not what we heard … The 
answer we heard was, ‘
We’
re on 
a journey, we’
re doing better, 
we’
re almost there.
’
 That’
s not 
good enough.
”
The coalition maintains that 
its demands would be simple 
to meet and pointed to years of 
ongoing discussions. 
“
All Mark needs to do, all 
Facebook needs to do, is once 
and for all say, ‘
White suprem-
acy, racism, anti-Semitism, 
anti-Muslim hate, xenophobia 
— once and for all, it has to 
stop, and that it stops now,
’
” 
Greenblatt said.
Following the meeting, 
Facebook issued a statement 
saying the coalition wants them 
“to be free of hate speech and so 
do we,
” and that they have spent 
billions of dollars to moderate 
online content and removed 
hundreds of hate groups from 
its site. 
The day after the meet-
ing, Facebook released a 
long-awaited civil rights audit 
of its policies and practices. 
While Zuckerberg has argued 
Facebook protects and promotes 
free speech and democracy, the 
audit highlighted the presence 
of extremists, white nationalists 
and hate groups on the social 
network — and algorithms that 
reinforced existing opinions 
encouraging polarization. 
“Unfortunately, in our view, 
Facebook’
s approach to civil 
rights remains too reactive and 
piecemeal,
” the audit said.
Some of the largest and 
most well-known businesses 
pausing their advertising are 
Adidas, Best Buy, Boeing, 
Coca-Cola, Colgate-Palmolive, 
CVS, Hershey, Honda, Levi’
s, 
Microsoft, Pfizer, Starbucks, 
Target, Unilever, Verizon, 
Volkswagen, Walgreens and 

White Castle. 
Michigan-based Ford Motor 
Company and Beaumont Health 
have also joined the boycott. 
In late June, Ford announced, 
“We are pausing all national 
social media advertising for the 
next 30 days to re-evaluate our 
presence on these platforms. 
The existence of content that 
includes hate speech, violence 
and racial injustice on social 
platforms needs to be eradi-
cated.” 
Besides businesses, non-
profit organizations have 
also joined. ADL Michigan 
Regional Director Carolyn 
Normandin says the Michigan 
Jewish Democratic Caucus and 
the Detroit Center for Civil 
Discourse, founded by Rabbi 
Asher Lopatin, executive direc-
tor of the Federation’
s Jewish 
Community Relations Council/
AJC and the rabbi of Kehillat 
Etz Chayim in Oak Park and 
Huntington Woods, are among 
those groups. 
While the boycott can hurt 
Facebook’
s image and bottom 
line, smaller businesses, many 
with business models reliant 
on Facebook, provide the bulk 
of Facebook’
s income. For 
example, its top 100 advertisers 
account for less than 10% of its 
annual earnings, according to 
the Wall Street Journal. Some 
media observers speculate 
that given the pandemic and 
the slower summer sales sea-
son, some companies paused 
advertising to save dollars and 
assess future advertising but 
will be back regardless of what 
Facebook chooses to do. 
Greenblatt doesn’
t buy it. 
“I believe this campaign will 
continue to grow,
” he said. “It 
will get more global; it will get 
more intense until we get the 
answers I think we are looking 
for.
” 

Learn more about the boycott at 

stophateforprofit.org.

Sholem Aleichem 
Institute Welcomes
New Director
T

he Board of the Sholem 
Aleichem Institute (SAI) 
announced that Hilary 
Duberstein has been appointed 
director. 
The SAI is a secular, non-po-
litical Jewish orga-
nization that brings 
educational, social 
and cultural activi-
ties to its members 
and the communi-
ty by incorporating 
Yiddish, as well 
as English and Hebrew, into 
programming, especially during 
the High Holidays. 
Duberstein earned her mas-
ter’
s of music in vocal perfor-
mance from Indiana University. 
She has been in Detroit Jewish 
for more than six years. Prior 
to moving here, she was the 
executive director and cantorial 
soloist for Moses Montefiore 
Temple in Bloomington, 
Illinois. 
Since she planted her roots 
in Waterford, Duberstein has 
worked within Jewish education 
for multiple area synagogues. 
Currently, she is working for 
Shaarey Zedek through its vir-
tual platforms and is serving as 
cantorial soloist and spiritual 
leader for Temple Beth El in 
Battle Creek. 
“I have bounced around in 
different Jewish educational set-
tings, teaching everything from 
early childhood through middle 
school,
” Duberstein told the 
JN. “I have previously taught 
private voice lessons, helped 
with Shir Tikvah’
s special needs 
program, taught third grade at 
Shir Shalom’
s Sunday school 
program and, prior to my job in 
Battle Creek, I was the cantorial 

soloist at Temple Kol Ami and 
worked with its seventh graders 
to get them ready for bar and 
bat mitzvahs.
” 
With the SAI going on 
almost 94 years, Duberstein 
looks forward to revitalizing the 
organization. 
“I was drawn to the idea of 
helping to rebuild the organi-
zation,
” Duberstein said. “It has 
had a metamorphosis and has 
brought the idea that you can 
be Jewish and be connected 
culturally, not just religiously.
” 
Duberstein was also drawn 
to the SAI’
s emphasis on music 
through its Moishe Haar 
programs, which honors the 
memory of its school principal 
and former institute director 
through music. 
As director, Duberstein will 
overhaul the SAI’
s website and 
get it up and running on social 
media platforms. She hopes that 
its social media presence will 
help it reach a demographic 
that it hasn’
t reached before. 
Due to the COVID-19 pan-
demic, Duberstein is moving a 
lot of SAI’
s normally scheduled 
programming to the virtual 
setting, including High Holiday 
celebrations. This will be the 
first time in the program’
s histo-
ry that it will be offering virtual 
programming. 
“I would like to grow our 
membership and grow our pro-
gramming. I would like to start 
implementing family-
focused programming as well,
” 
Duberstein said. “I would also 
like to connect the older gener-
ation of Yiddish speakers with 
the younger generation. 
“I look forward to expanding 
and growing SAI’
s presence.
” 

CORRIE COLF CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Hilary 
Duberstein

