National LGBT Jewish Professionals Retreat
This convening will be a results-oriented gathering of senior leaders of LGBT synagogues, and national and local LGBT Jewish organizations, as well as representatives of key foundations and organizations working throughout the United States to build a more inclusive Jewish community. Our goal is to take concrete steps toward building a more unified LGBT Jewish movement: setting an overall agenda for change, discussing ways to better collaborate and cooperate, and committing the financial and organizational resources to follow through on our plans.
The invitation-only convening will be led by professional facilitators Aliza Mazor and Robert Bank, and intends to bring together activists, rabbis, funders, lay leaders, professional leaders, and other stakeholders representing LGBT Jewish organizations and programs – together with allies from non-Jewish communities who can share their experience organizing for LGBT inclusion in other religious traditions. We will work in advance online, gather for social events on June 26-27, meet Sunday evening, June 27, and all day on June 28 and 29 at Berkeley Hillel, and move forward together with tangible, concrete plans and commitments from funders to support the building of the LGBT Jewish movement. We offer a special thanks to the convening hosts, the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry of the Pacific School of Religion and Berkeley Hillel.
Specific convening goals include:
Current Draft Agenda
Sunday, June 27, 6pm - 9pm
Monday, June 28, 9am – 8pm
Monday, June 28, 8pm
Tuesday, June 29, 9am – 5pm
Tuesday, June 29, 5pm
The invitation-only convening will be led by professional facilitators Aliza Mazor and Robert Bank, and intends to bring together activists, rabbis, funders, lay leaders, professional leaders, and other stakeholders representing LGBT Jewish organizations and programs – together with allies from non-Jewish communities who can share their experience organizing for LGBT inclusion in other religious traditions. We will work in advance online, gather for social events on June 26-27, meet Sunday evening, June 27, and all day on June 28 and 29 at Berkeley Hillel, and move forward together with tangible, concrete plans and commitments from funders to support the building of the LGBT Jewish movement. We offer a special thanks to the convening hosts, the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry of the Pacific School of Religion and Berkeley Hillel.
Specific convening goals include:
- To celebrate the successes and growth of the Jewish LGBT movement over the past two decades.
- To share knowledge about the history and context of this work as it is has evolved on a local and national level through organizations, community groups, and the work of individuals.
- To assess the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges faced by the movement in its current state.
- To identify emerging needs and areas of potential coordination and collaboration.
- To identify strategies for leveraging the strengths and expertise of organizations and individuals in pursuit of broad goals.
- To reduce intra-movement tensions and optimize working conditions.
- To forge a strategic vision to inspire and guide our actions over the next three years.
Current Draft Agenda
Sunday, June 27, 6pm - 9pm
- Welcome and Reception
- Introductions
- Charting Our Progress: 25 Years of Jewish GLBT Activism
- Strategic Analysis of Current Activities
Monday, June 28, 9am – 8pm
- Overview of the Jewish GLBT Landscape
- Issues and Priorities
- Sharing with Funders
- GLBT Movement Building in Other Faith Communities
- Sharing with Bay Area Activists
Monday, June 28, 8pm
- Keynote Speaker: Stuart Milk
Tuesday, June 29, 9am – 5pm
- The Power of Movements
- Vision for a Jewish GLBT Movement
- Expanding the Pie: Resourcing the Jewish GLBT Movement
- Identifying Structures to Take us Forward
Tuesday, June 29, 5pm
- Closing Dinner
