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Rabbi Marc Schneier
Limmud: Let My People Know
		Eduardo Elsztain, WJC Treasurer and Chaim Chesler, Founder Limmud FSU with Edgar M. Bronfman, WJC President

In May 2006, WJC leaders were in Moscow for Limmud FSU, a networking and educational renewal opportunity for Russian Jews. Operating organically, Limmud brings Jews together to learn about all facets of Judaism and Jewish culture. "Everyone with an expertise can come and talk. That's the beauty of Limmud," said Chaim Chesler, the founder of Limmud FSU.

Several hundred people attended the initial event, and some 700 people have already registered for next year's Limmud.

"This is a kind of grass roots movement. After a half-century of 'let my people go' in the Soviet Union, this is a chance to say 'let my people know,'" said Israel Singer, chairman of the WJC's Policy Council.

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Ethnic Understanding

At the February WJC Governing Board meeting in Jerusalem, American Section Secretary Rabbi Marc Schneier unveiled a television campaign he is launching with his partner, Hip-Hop pioneer Russell Simmons, showcasing universally popular celebrities appealing to youth against anti-Semitism and racism. As President of the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding, Rabbi Schneier is re-energizing the traditional cooperation between American Jews and African Americans.

WJC ActivismThis includes the television ads, as well as outreach to youth and building inter-ethnic coalitions on Capitol Hill. He is one of the organizers of the Save Darfur Coalition, and he and Russell Simmons addressed the Coalition’s major April 30 Washington rally against the genocide in Darfur.

Rabbi Schneier also continues to devote himself to Israel and Diaspora Jewry. He was personally asked by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to lead the new American Friends of Kadima, which has also joined the WJC American Section, and he has established two cutting-edge synagogue congregations, The Hampton Synagogue in Westhampton Beach and The New York Synagogue in Manhattan.

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International Day on Ethics and Development

WJC Policy Council Chairman Israel Singer stressed the need to apply compassionate principles to economics and explained the importance of inter-religious dialogue in contributing to development and the fight against poverty at the International Day of Ethics and Development at the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in Washington, D.C.

The meeting was inaugurated by IDB President, Luis Alberto Moreno; then Archbishop of Washington, Theodore E. Cardinal McCarrick; and the Secretary of State of Norway, Ms. Anne Margareth Fagertun Stenhammer. In all, representatives from government, international organizations, universities, civil society organizations and the private sector from 34 countries participated in the conference.

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Iran: A Clear and Present Danger

The Iranian regime is a “clear and present danger to the safety of the people of the world, Jews everywhere and Israel in particular,” said WJC Secretary General Stephen E. Herbits who opened a day-long session at the WJC Governing Board meeting in Jerusalem on the subject, which concluded with the consensus to take several practical measures to combat the threat.

Herbits, who has forty years of national security experience, described Iran’s capabilities, intentions and dangerous rhetoric, explaining that Iranian pursuit of nuclear technology, implicit threats to use nuclear weapons against Israel, stockpiles of ballistic missiles, chemical and biological weapons programs, support for global terrorist organizations, ties to terrorist murders of Jews around the world, calls to destroy Israel and denial of the Holocaust contribute to the threat. He then moderated a panel discussion during which three experts addressed the Governing Board and took questions in an open conversation on the subject.

Emanuele Giaufret, head of the Economic and Political Section of the European Union, noted that Iranian President Ahmadinejad’s call to “wipe Israel off the map” was condemned by the EU, and that Iran’s development of a nuclear program will not escape EU engagement. He said that the EU believes that the issue requires a unified international consensus and can be resolved through transparency and diplomatic negotiation. David Makovsky, a Senior Fellow at the Washington Institute of Near East Policy, sees Iran as a threat to American foreign policy, worrying that Iran’s nuclear ambitions could trigger a regional nuclear arms race in the Middle East. Makovsky asserted that Iranian President Ahmadinejad has galvanized the Iranian people by making the nuclear program as an issue of national pride, using oil as leverage in allowing Iran’s nuclear program to continue, directing hatred against the United States, and directing hatred against Israel.

However, Makovsky stressed that Iran has economic vulnerabilities that can be used to apply pressure. Iran exports some $45 billion of oil annually, yet it relies heavily on the international community for refined oil, importing some 70% of its internally consumed refined oil.

Uzi Arad, of the Herzliya Inter Disciplinary Center’s Institute of Policy and Strategy, and an advisor to the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committees, called for immediate action, warning of “catastrophic results if we fail to act.” Arad outlined a comprehensive global strategy that would “declare Iran as the number one threat” to the civilized world and halt or delay its acquisition of weapons, using pressure of economic sanctions, or even military options, if necessary. Arad said, Israel would have to “find a way to protect itself from what might be,” were Iran to become nuclear.

In the discussion that followed the panel presentation, Governing Board members voiced concern for the safety of Iran’s 22,000 – 30,000 member Jewish community who “do not demonstrate the wish to leave,” and the potentially painful ‘hostage’ situation that might develop in the country in the face of an escalating standoff.

World Union of Jewish Students President Victoria Dolburd, a member of the Governing Board, said that WUJS initiated Farsi-language blogs on the Internet, to reach young Iranians and forge relationships with student dissidents. She also noted that WUJS collaborated with the Student Solidarity Movement in the fight for democracy in Iran, joining hundreds of students in Stockholm, London, Paris, Brussels, New York and Berlin to protest against brutal human rights violations taking place in Iran.

The WJC Governing Board called on “Jewish communities and Jewish organizations around the world to actively work with their respective governments to put a stop to Iran’s development of nuclear weapons. Since Iran represents a clear and present danger to the safety and security of the people of the world, Jews everywhere and Israel in particular, the WJC is working to inform governments and international organizations about the Iranian threat and contribute to the emerging world effort to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons. As part of this effort, the WJC continues to discuss with governments and international organizations how to utilize economic and political means against Iran and how to reduce reliance on oil by developing alternative sources of energy. The WJC is in regular contact with UN and diplomatic officials around the world concerning efforts in the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, and the International Atomic Energy Agency to stop the Iranian threat.

Communities have sprung to action with efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining or developing nuclear weapons, and to combat the dangerous anti-Semitic rhetoric emanating from its government. To monitor the Iranian threat and the efforts of the WJC and the Jewish communities of the world, visit the WJC campaign to stop the Iranian threat

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