Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By richards on March 21, 2013

Passover

March 21, 2013

by Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz

Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Congressman from Florida's 20th congressional district

Every Passover, we gather with family and friends around the Seder table to read the inspiring foundational story of our peoples liberation from slavery in Egypt. We tell and retell this story every year, and millennia later it informs who we are. There are many ways in which Judaism speaks so strongly to the themes of service and justice, but to me, there is none stronger than our own experience: Once we were slaves in Egypt, and now we are free. Distilled in this line, the sentiment is clear. Our tradition and history compel us to give back to our society, make the world a better place, and ensure freedom for all.

This intimate connection between Judaism and social justice is why throughout American history the Jewish communityour communityhas been a vocal advocate for the values of freedom and equality that make the United States the great country that it is. As a Jewish woman and a member of the U.S. Congress, I strive to bring that connection to bear on my work every day. We are all obligated to make those connections in our own way.

This Passover, I am particularly focused on the rights of women and girls, both in our own backyard and around the world. The Talmud teaches that the optimism and initiative of Jewish women ensured our redemption from slavery in Egypt. And today, women are often still the catalysts for change and liberation; yet too many women around the world are still enslaved and oppressedincluding the victims of rape and violence, those who are denied an education and those coerced into sex trafficking.

The specter of violence against women looms large today. Millions of women in war-torn countries like Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda dont move freely from place to place for fear of being rapeda fear created and exacerbated by soldiers who purposefully and disgracefully turn womens bodies into casualties of war.

Denying girls the education they need undermines their freedom as well. Lets be clear: meaningful freedom for women and girls will never be possible without the ability to access education and the social tools necessary to build a fruitful life. But barriers to girls education are enormous worldwide. Women activists like the brave Mukhtar Mai of Pakistan receive death threats almost weekly for striving against the odds to educate young girls.

Sex trafficking is a global pandemic in parts of the world, and in Southeast Asia alone, 250,000 women are trafficked every year. Traffickers prey on women and their families who are vulnerable because they are forced to grapple with the grim daily realities of life in poverty. These women are bound by modern slaverytrafficked and abused, they languish without the freedoms and protections they deserve. Some are chained to beds, given just enough food and water to stay alive, and have no way to protect their own physical and sexual health. We must fight to liberate these women and girls from the shackles of bondageboth physical and figurativethat keep them from freedom. As Passover reminds us, we must not rest until these women too, are free.

See the original post here:
Passover 5773: Once we were slaves in Egypt, and now we are free

Category: Jewish American Heritage Month
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