The Etz Chayim Jewish and Israel Action Committee (Etz JIAC) is a group of congregants who are proud and inspired by the accomplishments and contributions of Israel and Jews. We are both proactively and reactively engaged in articulating the positive aspects of Jews and Israel and working to refute both misunderstandings and deliberate lies of the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement as well as anti-Israel and anti-Semitic activities on middle school, high school and college campuses across the country.
The committee arranges for guest speakers at Etz Chayim, and provides occasional update and action alert emails on these and related topics so that recipients can make their voices heard. Some might participate in letter writing, outreach, education and protest activities.
Together, we can make a difference in highlighting the positive contributions of our Jewish and Israeli community and in combating BDS and anti-Semitism to promote a proud and secure Israel and Jewish community in this country.
Please send a message to martin@griss.com to join our email list, etz-jiac@googlegroups.com
On Aug 8, 2021 and Aug 11, 2021 we held the first of a series of events to explore and address antisemitism and related anti-Israel and anti-Zionist manifestations.
Please see the dedicated webpage, Antisemitism for details, resources and upcoming talks.
Educate & Inform our Community: History of Israel and Jews, and realities of conflict; clarify meanings of Antisemitism, Anti-Zionism, Anti-Israel, BDS, SJP
Empower our kids: to effectively deal with anti-Semitic activities on middle school, high school and college campuses
Take action to respond to both positive and negative events impacting Jews and Israel: via protests and letter writing, such as concerning the California Ethnic Studies Curriculum, and other egregious BDS, SJP and antisemitic events
Etz JIAC's talks and emails are inspired by the theme Guardians and Prophets: Diaspora Jews and Israel Need Each Other to offer perspectives on Israel, Diaspora, BDS, Antisemitism and many other issues. Guardians care about the security of the Jewish people, both in Israel and the world, while Prophets care about the evolution of Judaism and about Jews and Israel doing the right things in the right way. See Guardians & Prophets for more details.
Oct 17, 2021 - Zoom talk by Rabbi Serena Eisenberg. An update on the California Ethnic Studies controversy: Is it good for the Jews?
Nov 7, 2021 - Zoom talk by CA Assemblymember Marc Berman. On the Legislative Jewish Caucus and AB101
Feb 21, 2021. Ethnic Studies
Oct 19, 2020 - The BLM Movement and Antisemitism
Aug 8, 2021. Mark Balch - Contemporary Antisemitism: A Moderated Etz Conversation
Wed, Aug 11, 2021. 7pm Rabbi Serena Eisenberg and Zev Hurwitz. Staying Strong When Antisemitism Arrives on Campus
Sunday Apr 18, 2021, 11am. Zoom talk by Dr. Norbert Goldfield. Healing Across The Divides
Sunday Mar 21, 2021, 11am. Zoom talk by Noa Zer, AICAT. Ensuring Water and Food Security During this Global Crisis
Sunday Feb 21, 2021, 11am. Zoom talk by Max Samarov, StandWithUs, StandWithUs: What are our Jewish Children Confronting in School and College?
Sunday Jan 31, 2021, 11am. Zoom talk by Amir Kashfi and Rachel Wallace, IsraAID, Israel Helps the World: IsraAID's Humanitarian Projects
Sunday Nov 8, 2020, 11am. Zoom talk by Matan Zamir, Deputy Consul General of Israel, The Abraham Accords and prospects for Peace in the Middle East
Sunday, Oct 11, 2020, 11am. Zoom talk by California Assembly Member Marc Berman, about the Legislative Jewish Caucus and Ethnic Studies.
We did not record his talk, but Marc has supplied us with links to some reference materials:
Feel free to send additional questions via the preferred link
Sunday, Aug 16, 2020, 11am. Zoom talk by Matan Zamir, Deputy Consul General of Israel, What is going on in Israel? Current events and policies
Sunday, July 12, 2020, 11am. Zoom talk by Julian Resnick, Explaining Israel - a Top Tour Guide Deals with Complex Reality
Sunday, June 14, 2020, 11am. Zoom talk by Olga Meshoe-Washington, Israel as an Apartheid State? A South African Perspective
March 11, 2020 - Completed voting in World Zionist Congress (WZC) - See WZC Voting for details
Sun, Nov 10, Z3 Conference at JCC - https://www.z3project.org/z3conference