Jewish tradition tells us, “It is not up to one to complete the task, but neither is one free to desist from trying to do something.”

In 1960, four men from North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro, North Carolina, including my friend Franklin McCain, sat down in order that others could stand up. From here, the movement spread throughout the United States.

Franklin would speak at a Martin Luther King service at Temple Emanuel in Greensboro, where I served as rabbi until retiring a few years ago. To me, he was a giant of humanity.

In 1965, in Selma, Alabama, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel marched alongside Martin Luther King Jr. across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. Forty-nine years later, I was privileged to march across that bridge and to get into some “good trouble” with Congressman John Lewis, of blessed memory.

The following year, it was my privilege and honor to organize the national Jewish commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday. At that commemoration were David Goodman, William Barber and Peter Yarrow, as well as a host of rabbis and Jewish leaders.

On that day, we, too, marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge.

I’m convinced that whether we are talking about the A&T four or John Lewis, all of us are required to march as it were “across bridges.” All of us are mandated to march for justice.

Just as in 1965 when Rabbi Heschel marched with King, allyship between Jews and African Americans in pursuit of justice is critical.

Hate crimes against Jews increased by 34% in 2021, while hate crimes against African Americans increased by nearly 40% in 2020.

White nationalists believe that there is an effort, which some conspiracy theories say is being led by Jews, to replace white people with people of color and immigrants.

In Buffalo, an 18-year-old white racist killed 10 Black people and wounded three others. Extremism experts say this racist conspiracy has inspired attacks on ethnic and religious minorities as far away as Christchurch, New Zealand, and El Paso, Texas. White nationalists killed Jews at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh and targeted Jews in the recent Highland Park shootings.

Yes, we will need to be allies and to work together!

We will need to work together to ensure voting rights of all.

We will need to work together to make sure that politicians stay out of doctors’ offices when it comes to a woman’s right to choose.

We will need to work together to preserve American democracy against these white nationalist forces who would subvert it and replace it with permanent white minority rule.

We will need to work together to make sure that all votes count so that no elected officials can subvert the will of the voters.

We will need to work together to hold accountable at all levels those who on January 6 attempted to overthrow our government.

Finally, we must work together to combat all forms of bias, bigotry, racism, homophobia and antisemitism.

We must do this together. Together as allies. Together as friends.

If we think that we have done enough thus far, then we will need to do more. And if we think that we have given enough money to candidates who uphold our values, we will need to give more.

Again, as Jewish tradition teaches, “It is not up to one to complete the task, but neither is one free to desist from trying to do something.”

In 1960, four A&T students sat so that we could stand. In 1965, John Lewis marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge so that we all could vote.

Now, as much as ever, we will need to join them in spirit and in action. May God bless us in this holy task.

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