JALSA in Shalom Magazine on Project 2025 and Jewish Values

Full article in Shalom Magazine at this link.

The Policies of Project 2025 and Our Jewish Values
By Cindy Rowe

Leviticus 19:16 reminds us that we cannot stand idly by when the life of your neighbor is being threatened. Many members of our Jewish community are deeply concerned that Project 2025, the policy blueprint for the incoming federal administration, represents such an existential threat to our neighbors, ourselves, and our very democracy. Indeed, many of the policy prescriptions detailed in Project 2025 run directly counter to our shared Jewish values.

Project 2025’s approach to environmental policy is a prime example. The plan would roll back investments in renewable energy, reduce clean air and water protections, and undermine preparedness when it comes to global climate emergencies. Meanwhile, as Jews, we have a profound duty to advocate for responsible stewardship of a healthy environment. Rooted in Deuteronomy 20, we adhere to the ethical principle of Bal Tashchit (“do not destroy”), the prohibition of wasteful destruction. Psalm 24 (“The Earth is the Lord's, and the fullness thereof.”) reminds us of the responsibility to care for our planet in a healthy manner. And the value of Tikkun Olam instructs us to “repair the world,” and leave our planet in better shape than we found it.

The healthcare proposals in Project 2025 are just as antagonistic to our Jewish values. The plan would increase prescription drug costs, lead to Medicare privatization, and reduce vaccinations for the young and senior citizens. Meanwhile, we know that every person has a right to the healthcare that they need. Kavod HaBriyot (upholding human dignity), Sh'mirat Haguf (caring for the body), and Pikuach Nefesh (preserving life) guide us on healthcare policy, values that are in opposition to Project 2025.

Education is another area where Project 2025 conflicts with our beliefs. The plan would dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, eliminate the Head Start program, phase out key sources of federal education funding, and increase costs on student loan borrowers. We hold that everyone deserves an education. Judaism insists that learning should be made accessible to all and is a communal responsibility. Proverbs 22:6 states the importance especially of early education: “Train a child in the way he should go; even when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

When it comes to labor and fair wages, Project 2025 contradicts Jewish scripture. The plan would make it harder to form and join a labor union, increase dangerous child labor, and harm wages by reducing competition for contracts and eligibility for overtime pay. The Torah explicitly calls for respecting labor and paying due wages. Deuteronomy 24:14-15 compels employers to “not take advantage of hired workers” and to “pay them their wages each day... because they are counting on it.” Leviticus 19:13 further amplifies the message to not “defraud” hired workers of their wages.

On immigration policy, Project 2025 boils down to enacting mass deportations at the core of its vision. This would sometimes be without a warrant, and include the possibility of arrests where U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was not previously active, like schools and places of worship. Massive detention camps may appear at the border. This, of course, runs directly counter to the Torah’s instructions to “welcome the stranger,” which appear in the scripture no less than 36 times.

These and many other issues – from reproductive rights to civil rights to voting rights – are potentially under fire by the policy proposals laid out in Project 2025. Jewish Americans care deeply about these issues and may be alarmed by the legislative approaches promulgated by the blueprint.

For those interested in taking action to prevent policies that infringe on our shared Jewish values and may harm our families, our neighbors, and our democracy, what can people do?

In mid-November, the Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action (JALSA) held a well-attended community-wide Zoom conversation during which a few central goals were laid out. We have a special responsibility in our state to be an example for what is still possible in our country first by protecting our Massachusetts residents and then protecting people who come into Massachusetts. We must also engage on federal issues when we can have an impact, and aid those in other states to help protect their rights.

JALSA will hold an upcoming series of Community Conversations in which you can participate. We want to hear directly from you about your concerns, priorities, and ideas. If you are interested in taking part, or in joining a JALSA issue team, hosting a policy workshop presented by a JALSA organizer, and/or inviting JALSA to give an overview of all of our priorities to your group of friends, community organization, or synagogue members, reach out to us at www.JALSA.org.

We all have an important role to undertake toward ensuring that we are living out our Jewish values and that all people are treated with respect and dignity, with Kavod HaBriyot. As Leviticus 19:16 instructs, none of us can stand idly by in this moment.

Cindy Rowe is the CEO of the Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action (JALSA) which is dedicated to upholding our constitutional rights and civil liberties, and the pursuit of social, economic, environmental, and racial justice based on Jewish values.