l Shana Tova

l Shana Tova

"L'shana tova, tikatevu," Obama said, speaking in Hebrew. "May you have a good year, and may you be inscribed for blessings in the book of life." Obama talks about the meaning of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and why during this time of year all people should work to "heal old divisions, seek new understandings and come together to build a better world for our children and grandchildren." President Obama recorded a greeting to Jews around the world who will celebrate Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, beginning at sundown Friday. "L'shana tova, tikatevu," Obama said, speaking in Hebrew. "May you have a good year, and may you be inscribed for blessings in the book of life." Obama talks about the meaning of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and why during this time of year all people should work to "heal old divisions, seek new understandings and come together to build a better world for our children and grandchildren."

Time again, according to the Jewish calendar, to celebrate the New Years by looking inwards. But we do not simply take account of our individual actions over the last year, we also look at our community’s actions. Each year on Rosh Hashanna and Yom Kippur we traditionally recite the Viduy prayer. No matter our personal accounting, the synagogue’s walls echo with a call for collective forgiveness. Together, the community chants: We have been guilty, we have betrayed, we have stolen, we have spoken falsely… This prayer, coupled with the mournful call of the shofar, or ram’s horn, demands that we each humbly repent for our neighbor’s vices in addition to our own. Every New Year we face this religious reckoning which demands us to support each other and to hold our community accountable to itself and to forgive itself. This year, in the Bay Area, such demands could not be timelier.

Overnight, the city went from one of the most forgiving cities to those youth who have transgressed civil immigration laws to one of the most draconian. Today, any youth thought to be undocumented and picked up by the San Francisco Police Department for a criminal offense (SFPD) gets transferred without trial to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). After over a year of struggle, our community is ready to both forgive and to hold itself accountable. On October 5, 2009, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors’ Public Safety Committee will discuss legislation to allow undocumented youth their day in court. Under the Undocumented Immigrant Youth Ordinance, only youth found guilty of violating criminal laws can be transferred to ICE. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors’ vote on this Ordinance is scheduled for October 13, 2009. Organizers expect Mayor Newsom to veto the new law, so having a veto proof majority of eight (8) supervisors supporting the Ordinance is critical. Today, we have that support, but we need you to maintain it.