A group of approximately 70 Bay Area Jewish leaders will publish an open letter condemning the S.F.-based Jewish Community Federation’s guidelines for grantees regarding Israel-related programming. The letter will run as a half-page ad in the May 7 edition of the Forward, a New York Jewish newspaper read nationally.
Billed as a “warning” to all Jewish communities, the letter blasts the federation’s recently adopted guidelines, which forbid grantees from engaging in activities or partnering with organizations that endorse boycotts, divestment or sanctions on Israel.
“The guidelines curtail freedom of speech and artistic expression by declaring certain opinions and organizations out of bounds,” the letter reads in part. “They will have a chilling effect on the entire spectrum of community institutions.”
Signers of the letter include rabbis Allen Bennett, David Cooper, Diane Elliot, Burt Jacobson and Michael Lerner; professors David Biale, Steve Zipperstein, Diane Wolf, Deena Aranoff, Chana Kronfeld and Naomi Seidman; and artists Naomi Newman, Joel ben Izzy, Alan Snitow, Josh Kornbluth and Deborah Kaufman.
Related: http://www.scribd.com/doc/30649075/Forward-Ad-Prominent-Bay-Area-Jews-Warn-About-SF-Jewish-Federation-Guidelines-4-10