No Longer Screaming into the Void: Honor Your Social Justice Heroes

Now at 26 years old, I had my first experience with the Woman of Reform Judaism (WRJ) when I was just 17. That means that at the ripe old age of 26, I have already been on my WRJ journey for nearing a decade. And there’s a reason for why I’ve stuck around.

As the NFTY (Reform Jewish Youth Movement) North American President at the time, WRJ and the people that make it possible---from board members to district leaders to staff---showed up for me and lifted me up as I explored what it meant to be a young, Jewish woman in leadership. 

When I raised ideas to engage more youth, I was given a platform and resources to bring other young women to the inaugural WRJ Social Justice Conference. When I raised social justice issues I and other young people care most about, I was asked to speak, share my thoughts, and help inform WRJ’s work on policy issues. When I was looking for similarly aligned organizations to support my non-faith-based community organizing work aligned with WRJ, I was met with encouragement, resources, and access to the broader WRJ sisterhood. 

This is all to say, WRJ has always lifted me up. At every turn throughout my leadership journey, I have been supported by this strong-willed, compassionate, energized community. So, I really mean it when I say: WRJ can and does lift us all up.

Young people, and especially young women in leadership, are generally not well respected or taken all that seriously. For me, as a gun violence prevention advocate and a young woman, I often felt discredited and like I was screaming into the void on preventing gun deaths. WRJ reminded me that people were indeed listening and that my leadership was not only valid, but impactful and important. 

As a testament to that genuine respect for my leadership and social justice work, I was honored to be nominated for and to accept the WRJ Women’s Empowerment Award in 2019. 

My award, with its etching of “chazot b’yachad” or “stronger together” reminds me often that my community believes in me as much as I believe in the power of our community. And that reminder is powerful, as it really does take us all---across age groups, racial and ethnic identities, sexualities, gender expressions, and socioeconomic backgrounds---to make meaningful, positive change on our WRJ community and the local communities in which we live. This award is a reminder and a promise that WRJ will show up, lift up, and turn out for one another. It’s also a reminder that people see your work and respect it.

If someone in your life has been quietly leading, supporting less well represented groups in our community, or even screaming into the void on their social justice issue of choice (as I often am), this is your time to lift them up, celebrate their work, and remind them that people see and respect their work. Remind them that they’re making a difference. 

Consider nominating this person in your life today for the 2025 WRJ Women’s Empowerment Award. The nomination deadline is Monday, December 9, 2024.

We are most certainly stronger together, and I cannot wait to see who receives the award this year. I can attest that the award and the support for you that it symbolizes goes a long way when the going gets tough. As things feel bleak out in the world, celebrating our successes and victories is all the more important, so be sure to uplift the leader in your life!