Why is this Passover different from others in our past? This might be the fifth essential question being asked during American seder tables this year.
The National Jewish Democratic Council’s Women’s Leadership Network is urging that as we are near the end of this year’s National Women’s Month, we include it.
Unlike the traditional four questions and responses with which we all are so familiar, this one will not appear in our Haggadot that admittedly have evolved over time. But we should not be deterred from discussing current world events and the impact on the lives of American Jews or Jewish Americans.
Today, countless American sederim are different from what some might consider traditional. For example, today, many plates include an orange signifying the fruitfulness of all Jews, specifically women and members of the LGBT community. And, Elijah’s cup no longer sits alone on a side table. It is accompanied by Miriam’s cup, signifying the multitude of contributions women make to Jewish culture, past and present. And, when we read the familiar, “And thou shalt tell thy son in that day, saying: It is because of that which the Lord did for me when I came forth out of Egypt,” many texts now include “thy daughter.” While many contend that Jewish slavery actually is myth, we nonetheless perpetuate the drama during our sederim. So, when we retell to our children and grandchildren the Exodus story, we should consider discussing a very real struggle of slavery — human trafficking, a different, but no less horrific form of it. And, while there exists today universal support for federal legislation addressing such atrocity, unfortunately, it is ensnared in the Senate.
The Exodus story told about the Israelites being enslaved and led out of Egypt by Moses, the revelations at Sinai, and the wanderings in the desert to the borders of Canaan plays a part in the American Jewish community’s heartfelt displays of strong social activism, concerns for equality, and compassion for those less fortunate than others. So, how do we, members of the Jewish community, engage in remedying this seemingly emotional and uncompromising political environment in which civil discourse and really listening to one another has been replaced with disrespect, distortion, miscommunication and misguided acrimony? Answer: By joining together and making our voices heard.
Human trafficking, by all accounts, is a multi-billion dollar industry with perpetrators profiting from the control and exploitation of women, girls and young children, some of the most vulnerable members of society. And, it appears that some of our most beloved venues are not immune from being connected to it. In fact, this form of modern slavery can be found during the Super Bowl, at motorcycle rallies in South Dakota, in the fields of Florida, in gangs in California, and in brothels in Washington. It is crucial that our community is aware of its broad reaching existence. Victims of sex and labor trafficking need help and services throughout the year. Efforts to address this hideous crime never should be used a partisan wedge issue. To do so demeans us as a modern society.
The Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, introduced by Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) creates a fund to help human trafficking victims by using fees charged to traffickers. It passed the Senate Judiciary Committee with bipartisan support. But, Democrats recently were exceedingly surprised to learn that the Hyde Amendment language, restricting federal funding for abortion and other health care services, was included – an outrageous trick forcing the entire bill to be stymied until the controversial language is removed. Enter further inane GOP partisan action: GOP leadership says that confirmation for President Barack Obama’s stellar nominee for attorney general, Loretta Lynch, will not move forward until the Cornyn bill is passed. Coupled with that is the fact that relief for victims of human trafficking is no further along than it was a year ago. That illustrates just how partisan politics can harm, possibly irreparably damage, efforts of tikkun olam. Stalemate? Well, not exactly.
Enter two strong women: Fighting and defying the odds by creating a compromise, and, in today’s political climate, an almost unheard of bipartisan effort, Sens. Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) are working to route the bill, without the Hyde language, through the appropriations process even though the GOP very well could reinsert it. We must work together to prevent such derailment from happening.
We have much to which we relate this year when retelling the Exodus story. Modern slavery certainly can be one of the issues we address.
Barbara Goldberg Goldman is the chair of the National Jewish Democratic Council’s Women’s Leadership Network.
