JALSA Statement in Support of the Haitian Community
The Torah, which contains the most sacred principles of our Jewish faith, commands us to "welcome the stranger" no less than 36 times. Our Jewish values and our shared, broader moral values compel us to treat others the way that we would want to be treated. The Haitian immigrant families of Springfield, Ohio - and immigrant families across our country - contribute so much to the cities and towns in which they live. It is profoundly immoral, abusive, and a violation of our democracy to perpetuate abhorrent lies about this community.
We know how deeply our own Massachusetts Haitian community is hurting hearing these attacks. After Florida and New York, our state is home to the third largest Haitian American population in the United States. The Haitian community adds so much to our region culturally, economically, and socially. The Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action (JALSA) has been proud to work closely with this community on efforts including the passage and defense of the Work and Family Mobility Act (immigrant driver’s license law) as well as on recent efforts to resettle newly arriving families who will strengthen our workforce and enhance the fabric of our communities. We are resolute in standing shoulder to shoulder with the Haitian community - with our neighbors - to denounce the bigoted hatred targeting them.
We call on all people of conscience to condemn these hateful lies attacking Haitian Americans and besmirching all immigrants. Instead, let us celebrate the immigrant communities who make our state and country stronger by joining our workforce and strengthening our economy, becoming consumers, making our neighborhood businesses more stable, and bringing innovative ideas which propel our thinking and result in better lives for all of us.
Our long-held values remind us that in this modern day being a welcoming society is how we uphold our most treasured traditions. We must strive to honor those values, and all join together to support the Haitian community now and any other communities that become targets of false and vile attacks intended to divide us from one another.