Tuesday marks the beginning of February. Across the Jewish world, February has become known as JDAIM, or Jewish Disabilities Awareness, Acceptance and Inclusion Month. Each year our Inclusion Committee, led by Terri Michaels, provides our congregation with opportunities to deepen our awareness and capacity to include people with disabilities so that all people sense belonging. In fact, prior to the pandemic, this committee greatly impacted the accessibility built into our synagogue's renovations. And, one of the synagogue's last programs before we closed in March of 2020 was the very informative and successful program, Hollywood Imagery of Disabled Characters with Susan Nussbaum, Chicago-based playwright, novelist and longtime disability rights and culture activist. .
This year, our JDAIM month will begin with a D'var Torah next Friday night, February 4, by Rabbi Lauren Tuchman, who herself is blind and is a great advocate for Jews with disabilities. Our month will conclude with a discussion with the author of the book Golem Girl, Riva Lehrer, a Jewish artist, writer and curator who focuses on the socially challenged body. This book intersects with concern for arts, medicine, education, race, disabilities, law and even the lack of equalities that emerged during the pandemic. Details on both programs can be found below.
Watch EmetMail for more information and for personal reflections from our congregants about including those with disabilities.
As we welcome this Shabbat, praying for a Shabbat of ease and peace, may we enhance our abilities to open our doors, even our zoom screens, to all those who would like to enter.
Shabbat Shalom,
Warmly,
Marci Dickman
Director of Lifelong Learning
