As you may agree, this has been a strange year. It's been almost 11 months since we cancelled our Period. End of Sentence Film Screening and Discussion and moved pretty much all of our programming online! We think we are doing a pretty good job but we also know we can be doing more both for our members as well as for our communities. Please take a moment to click here and complete a short NCJW Membership Survey. In addition, everyone who completes the survey between now and February 28, will be entered into a drawing to receive this great NCJW Advocate T-Shirt (black/Size Medium)!

The NCJW Chicago North Shore Nominating Committee will be meeting soon to begin the selection of new executive team and board members to fill the terms of those rolling off the Board. The term for a director is for two years to be installed in June 2021, and the term for a Board Member at Large is for one year. There are also some committee and project chair positions to be filled as well! If you know someone who would be a terrific leader with NCJW, including self-nominations, we welcome them!

Being a part of the NCJW Board is an excellent way to give back to the community, work with and learn from amazing women, and lead our vital organization. Not sure what role would be a good fit for you? Shoot the nominating committee an email and they will be in touch!

Please submit your nominations for the NCJWCNS Board here

or download the nomination form and email to ncjwnominating@ncjwcns.org.

Join us for a screening and Discussion of The Color Tax: Origins of the Modern Day Racial Wealth Gap. The Color Tax tells the story of how a system of predatory home contract sales during the 1950s and 60s plundered enormous sums of wealth from the pockets of black families seeking the American dream of homeownership. In a compelling narrative format, The Color Tax documents who peddled the contracts, how and why they were allowed to do it, and what happened when black families organized to fight back in one of Chicago’s most heart-wrenching and perilous campaigns for racial and economic justice. Our program will include a screening of the 37 minute film followed by a Talk Back with author Beryl Satter and producer Bruce Orenstein. Click here to register.

The pandemic has forced all of us in our homes for longer periods of time. As we spend more time together, we have new opportunities to talk with our young people. One topic is helping them define consent and build healthy relationships. But how do we begin these conversations and what does success look like? Whether you came to our first program where we explored sex trafficking or not (click here to watch the recording), don’t miss this session where we offer everyone some tools they can use to talk with the young people they love about what matters. Click here to register.

Repro Shabbat is an opportunity for congregations, organizations, and communities to celebrate the critical importance of reproductive health access, reproductive rights, and reproductive justice, and to learn more about Judaism’s approach to these issues.

Friday, February 12, 6:00 pm: NCJW Scholar-in-Residence Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg will be joining Congregation BJBE on Shabbat. Folks can attend services on Facebook at www.facebook.com/bjbecommunity/live.

Saturday, February 13, 9:30 am: Am Yisrael Congregation www.amyisrael.org

For more information and additional Rabbi’s for Repro events visit https://www.rabbisforrepro.com/shabbat

For this discussion, we are honored that attorney Nora Zuckerman, Ross & Zuckerman LLP, will provide us with an update on reproductive technology laws as well as ethical issues. We will also discuss the book Inheritance: A Memoir of Genealogy, Paternity and Love by Dani Shapiro. Nora will discuss the legal, moral and ethical perspectives on the issues in the book, including an overview of laws in Illinois. We will have a fascinating conversation about the ethics of egg donation, sperm donation, embryo donation, and surrogacy and how families are formed and treated in the legal system and many other sectors in our society.  Click here for more information and to Register.

Dr. Rebecca Crawford-Foster is a proud member of the Blackfeet/Dakota tribes. She is a clinical psychologist, professor and consultant who has worked closely with the Native American communities in South Dakota and Montana for over thirty-five years. She is also the mother of fourteen. She has a compelling story to tell, and one that has been invisible to most Americans. Click here to register.

Please join us for a screening of this powerful film and a panel discussion. You will receive a link to screen the film on your own in advance of the March 9 discussion.

With its impressive array of storytellers and archival footage, Shared Legacies explores the normalized bigotry of the Jim Crow South, the North’s rampant bias in the areas of housing, employment, and education, and the civil rights era initiatives that brought Black and Jewish leaders together to support Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision for a more just and equitable world.

Program sponsors include: NCJW Chicago North Shore, NCJW South Cook, Open Communities, JCC Chicago/JCC Chicago Jewish Film Festival, Rainbow Push, Congregation Sukkat Shalom, and Independent Voters of Illinois-Independent Precinct Organization (IVI-IPO)

Regstration will open in mid-February. Click here for more information.

The first 100 days of a new administration — a term coined by President Roosevelt — is generally considered the qualification for measuring a president’s success. Typically a lot happens during this phase. President Biden and Vice President Harris, both longtime friends of NCJW, paired with a Congressional majority allows for many possibilities to safeguard human rights. We expect to see a great deal of action in the coming weeks and months toward our goals of protecting women, children, and families.

NCJW is sending a weekly newsletter to all advocates so you can all stay informed on the actions taking place and ways to push if actions from this administration are still needed. From executive orders and actions to policy to nominations, we will bring you information about how the new administration and 117th Congress is impacting NCJW’s mission to improve the lives of women, children, and families. We are excited to bring you NCJW’s focus on the first 100 days of the Biden-Harris administration. Click here for a full list of priorities and email action@ncjw.org if you aren't receiving the email in your inbox.

As an organization with over 180,000 advocates, National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) represents people of many different racial, ethnic, national, and cultural backgrounds. Together, we have been fighting toxic structures of systemic hate for generations. We’ve responded as allies, in coalitions, and through writing legislation to get towards the root cause, most notably helping to write and pass The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act and the Violence Against Women Act.

Antisemitism has become more visible and emboldened in the past several years, showing up in spaces where we work nationally and in our local communities. It is critical NCJW also speak out and stand up for our own Jewish community and fight just as hard against this form of hate as we do for other forms. It is important to create safety for our own communities, and because we know that fighting one form of hate is linked to the fight for all forms.

In order to fight against antisemitism, we need a shared definition of what antisemitism is. This page is meant to provide you with NCJW’s definition, the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition that we support as an educational tool, and framing and resources to guide NCJW advocates and NCJW sections as you continue your work for a world that is safe and equitable for all.

Sunday, February 7, 2021, 10:00 am

Attend a day of learning on racial justice as a Chicagoland Jewish community. This day will be multifaceted and have programming for all ages. It will provide space to speak about white supremacy, to discuss the nature of racism in Jewish life, and to hold up the diversity of our Jewish community. We will begin with prayer and reflection and then learn from many teachers, most of whom identify as Jews of Color (JOC). Participants are welcome to join for one session, a few or all day! Click here to register.

Thursday, February 4, 2021, 6:00-7:30pm

In this three-part series, Anthony Mordechai Tzvi Russell will join a panel in exploring issues of systemic racism in the United States through the lens of moments in Yiddish culture: Leyb Malach’s play Mississippi, written in the wake of the infamous Scottsboro Boys trials; Yoysef Kerler’s poem Ven Kh’volt in Alabama Zayn, written in response to the American Civil Rights Movement, and the diverse engagements in the Yiddish language press with the phenomenon of anti-Black racism in the United States.  NCJW is excited to be a co-sponsor. Learn more and register here. 

Chicago North Shore has several new ways to support our section. As always, you can make a one time donation or purchase a tribute (links are below), you can even purchase an NCJW star necklace or hanger charm or become a monthly donor!