January 16, 2026
Jewish holidays celebrated in a largely secular, non-Jewish country push us inward, to face each other as families and in community. They are a time for joy, reflection, and sometimes even sadness. It is on us to pull those threads and connect them to our present reality. And so that is what we've done and will continue to do.
When History Rhymes (Beth Gendler and MARCH Minnesota)
It was Mark Twain, the master of wry observations, who said: History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes. Many of us don’t need to strain very hard to hear those rhymes; the sound they make rings loudly in our souls.
It might be a tad hyperbolic to look at what is happening in Minneapolis these days and immediately hear echoes of the Holocaust, or the genocide of Native American tribes. But that is indeed what comes up for Beth Gendler, of Jewish Community Action in Minnesota. As she wrote recently in The Forward,
As Jews, we remember our family histories not to make us fearful or to isolate ourselves, but rather to prepare us for moments just like this one. Our history is not meant to be forgotten. It is not meant to sit neatly on museum shelves or be tucked away in old family albums. We are meant to carry it. We are meant to learn from it. And we are meant to act because of it.
There’s a reason why American Jews, past and present, have been so over-represented in social justice movements. In the main, we see our own history, heavy with persecution, as a springboard for the defense of universal values. As a springboard for the defense of the other. Today, it is our immigrant community members on the receiving end of deliberate state terror. And so today, we join with other faith communities in formations like Multifaith, Antiracism, Change & Healing, a Minnesota coalition active in mobilizing against ICE. We do it there, and we do it everywhere.
Join us to plug in.
March 20, 2026
As Jews prepare to celebrate Passover and retell the story of our people's journey from slavery to freedom, we are also called to act in the present moment.
When History Rhymes (Beth Gendler and MARCH Minnesota)
It was Mark Twain, the master of wry observations, who said: History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes. Many of us don’t need to strain very hard to hear those rhymes; the sound they make rings loudly in our souls.
It might be a tad hyperbolic to look at what is happening in Minneapolis these days and immediately hear echoes of the Holocaust, or the genocide of Native American tribes. But that is indeed what comes up for Beth Gendler, of Jewish Community Action in Minnesota. As she wrote recently in The Forward,
As Jews, we remember our family histories not to make us fearful or to isolate ourselves, but rather to prepare us for moments just like this one. Our history is not meant to be forgotten. It is not meant to sit neatly on museum shelves or be tucked away in old family albums. We are meant to carry it. We are meant to learn from it. And we are meant to act because of it.
There’s a reason why American Jews, past and present, have been so over-represented in social justice movements. In the main, we see our own history, heavy with persecution, as a springboard for the defense of universal values. As a springboard for the defense of the other. Today, it is our immigrant community members on the receiving end of deliberate state terror. And so today, we join with other faith communities in formations like Multifaith, Antiracism, Change & Healing, a Minnesota coalition active in mobilizing against ICE. We do it there, and we do it everywhere.
Join us to plug in.