Anti-Racism Work
Combatting racism in ourselves and our society continues to be one of our central justice goals this year at Kol Ami.
In August, we hosted Essence Cohen Fields, a licensed professional counselor, to facilitate two sessions of Anti-Bias & Anti-Racism Training.
In June, we hosted a Pride & Anti-Racism Havdalah—reminding each other that we must remain committed to ending racism in ourselves, our community, and our society.
Explore more resources for taking action to dismantle racism now, even from home!
- Check out this detailed list of anti-racism resources on Medium.
- Racial Justice Resources for Reform Jews - from ReformJudaism.org
- Also from ReformJudaism.org: 8 Ways You Can Act Now for Racial Justice.
Support for Community in Guatemala
Please help us continue our support for the families in the village of San Antonio Aguas Calientes, Guatemala. Students continue to participate in school through either the Internet or class assignments. Guatemala’s coronavirus cases are dramatically increasing each day. Many families are struggling without work or weaving sales. Since there is no government or community support, Nueva Generación has started a Food Drive Campaign to provide food for the families on a monthly basis. Donate here and in the note section indicate: Guatemala Fund Donation. Kol Ami continues to sponsor the scholarships for Jared and Mario pictured below.
On Tuesday, June 23, we gathered on Zoom for Pride & Welcoming: Taking Action for LGBT Refugees and Asylum Seekers. Watch a recording of the presentation here:
And of course, you can visit HIAS.org to find out more about what you can do to support refugees from home!
Social Justice at Kol Ami
Tzedek Council
Transforming the World Using Jewish Values
Since our founding, Congregation Kol Ami has aimed to live up to our name—to be a "voice of the people," speaking out and working to build a world of justice and peace.
From our own backyard, creating care kits for the homeless for PATH and collecting food for SOVA, to supporting a partner community in Guatemala with visits and donation drives, we regularly host volunteer actions that directly benefit those in need. 
We strive to be advocates, lobbying elected officials with partners like RAC-CA to enact legislation and implement budgets that reflect our values. During the 2018 midterm election season, we participated in a civic engagement campaign to register voters and make sure that Kol Ami would be a 100% voting congregation.
Rabbi Eger and Rabbi Chaiken regularly preach on issues of justice and morality from our bimah during services, and we frequently host guest speakers and public officials in our sanctuary.
There are many ways we continue to pursue justice each and every day at Kol Ami, and we would love to have you involved! Email socialjustice@kol-ami.org to find out more!
Sun, April 18 2021
6 Iyyar 5781
Together, we can transform miles into a life-changing force for good.
Kol Ami's Tzedek Council is partnering with Jewish Coalition Assisting Refugees & Immigrant in this lovely, heartwarming initiative, Miles4Migrants. This initiative collects donations of airline milage (since most of us don't use them during COVID anyway...) and takes advantage of them before they expires to book flights and help reunite families. All in support if the secret Jewish mitzvah of welcoming the stranger/refugee/sojourner/foreigner.
Donate your miles here
Donate your miles here
D'var Torah
Tzedek Council Member Jess Winfield gave a D'var Torah for Refugee Shabbat on March 5, 2021. Read it here
HIAS Welcoming Congregation
Congregation Kol Ami is proud to be a HIAS welcoming congregation, supporting the rights of refugees and asylum seekers, and working to live out the value of loving the immigrant and the stranger, for we were strangers in Egypt.
Find out more about what HIAS is doing during the COVID-19 crisis by clicking here.
RAC-CA
Our Tzedek Council members often participate in events with the California Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (RAC-CA)! Visit the RAC-CA website by clicking here.
New to Kol Ami?
Sun, April 18 2021 6 Iyyar 5781
