IKAR

Minyan Tzedek (meen-YAN TZE-dek) noun

IKAR Justice Team
[From Hebrew - minyan: The quorum required for public service of worship, and tzedek: Righteousness]

 IKAR MINYAN TZEDEK: DARFUR - TAKE ACTION

Darfur: Take ActionSince the summer of 2004, the United Nations has called the situation in Darfur "the worst humanitarian crisis of today." As Jews, we have a distinct responsibility to do whatever is in our power to ensure that "Never Again!" really means "Never Again!"

To start a Minyan Tzedek focused on the issue of Darfur, you can use the following materials to get started.

A. How to host a house party
 
B. Educational materials on Darfur:
Fact Sheet
Background Document
Photos from AJWS and Ruth Messinger
Latest News
 
C. A Text Study about the Darfur
Text Study
 
all documents above are reproduced with permission of American Jewish World Service (www.ajws.org
 
D. Ideas of ways to take action on the issue
Call President Bush and urge him to use all diplomatic channels to pressure Sudan to consent to the deployment of the U.N. peacekeeping force approved in U.N. Security Council resolution 1706. Click here for the White House phone number and a sample script. You can do this every day.
Contact your members of Congress. See how they rate at www.darfurscores.org, then write them a letter or call their office. Ask them to keep Darfur on the Congressional agenda. For talking points, click here.
Keep Darfur in the news. Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper. Tell him/her about the rally you participated in and why the issue is important to you and your community.
 
E. A list of organizations (both national and global) that work on the Darfur issue
American Jewish World Service (global)
Jewish World Watch (local)
Save Darfur (national)
 
F. Share your experiences with IKAR
Report the time you spend working on your Minyan Tzedek to IKAR's Isaiah Initiative: Tell us how much time you and all the members spent working on your issue and share a little bit about how it has affected you.

*reproduced with permission from Religious Action Center--RAC
**reproduced with permission from Joint United Nations Programme on HIV AIDS

 
GETTING STARTED
What You'll Need to Know
  1. Information about how to host a house party
  2. Background material on an individual issue
  3. A Jewish Perspective or text study about the issue
  4. Ideas of ways to take action on the issue
  5. A list of organizations (both local and global) that work on the issue

3 DIFFERENT WAYS TO BEGIN
1. Join a Minyan Tzedek with other IKARites who share your interest
Hunger - email:
HIV/AIDS - email:
Darfur - email:
Environmental Justice - email:
2. Create a new Minyan Tzedek around an issue that we've already researched
3. Create your own Minyan

If you care passionately about another issue and would like help to organize your own group, download a Minyan Tzedek form on how to prepare yourself.

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