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In This Issue:
Chapter Leaders Participate in Advocacy Training and Congressional Visits in Washington, DC
Reception for Book on Polish-Jewish Dialogue
Rabbi David Rosen Talks With New York Chapter Board
Upcoming Events
Selected National AJC News
Advocacy Training and Congressional Visits in Washington, DC
AJC staff and lay leaders from across the country, including representatives from the New York Chapter, gathered in Washington the day before AJC's National Annual Meeting for advocacy training and action on issues regarding the Middle East and energy independence.
The Chapter held meetings to discuss these issues, as well as comprehensive immigration reform, with Representative Carolyn Maloney; Representative Anthony Weiner; Carole Angel, Legislative Aide for the Judiciary Committee and International Relations for Representative Jerrold Nadler; and Lucy Heenan, Legislative Aide for Middle Eastern Affairs for Representative Nita Lowey. Maloney and Weiner expressed interest in learning more about AJC's Green Building Project.
Reception for Book on Polish-Jewish Dialogue
The New York Chapter, the Consul General of Poland and the Forum for Dialogue Among Nations hosted a reception on May 7 to celebrate the AJC publication, Difficult Questions in Polish-Jewish Dialogue. The book contains fifty questions asked by young Poles and Jews who have participated in youth programs in Poland. Answers are provided by distinguished Jewish and Polish experts in history, sociology, Polish-Jewish relations and religion. Krzysztof Kasprzyk, Consul General of Poland, said that the renewed effort to improve Polish-Jewish relations is "one of the most important phenomenon on the Polish public scene.” CLICK HERE to purchase the book from AJC's website.
Rabbi David Rosen Talks With New York Chapter Board
Rabbi David Rosen, AJC's International Interreligious Affairs Director, spoke to members of the New York Chapter Board on May 8 about recent developments in Jewish-Christian-Muslim relations in Israel. He stressed the importance of having religious leaders participate in the peace process, as a way of enhancing the credibility of the process and its outcomes among their followers.
Upcoming Events
(all meetings are held at AJC, 165 E. 56 Street, unless otherwise noted)
For more information or to RSVP, please contact Wanda Vargas at vargasw@ajc.org or 212.891.1443.
Wednesday, June 6, 6:00 pm New York Palace Hotel, 455 Madison Avenue
Stanley M. Isaacs Award Dinner honoring Chapter President Barry J. Alperin and former President Kenneth S. Brown
Monday, June 18, 5:30 pm
New York Chapter Annual Meeting and Elections of Officers and Board
Featured Speaker: Lieutenant Governor David Paterson
Selected AJC News From the National Annual Meeting in Washington
Annual Meeting Video, Audio Available at AJC.ORG
Several sessions from the May 2 - 5 National Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. were webcast live for the first time. Audio recordings of many of the sessions and several texts of speeches are also available. Visit AJC the website for the full list.
Former CIA Director Talks Tough on Energy Independence
"We need to destroy oil's role as a strategic commodity," said former CIA Director R. James Woolsey in a major address on energy at the Annual Meeting. Woolsey decried the dangerous dependence of the U.S. and other leading nations on oil from despotic Islamic regimes, and stressed that solutions to oil dependence must ensure that security concerns, the environment and cost are addressed. READ NEWS RELEASE. "We want a way to propel ourselves around that is secure, that is clean, and that is affordable as possible," said Woolsey, currently distinguished advisor to the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. "There are no single solutions in this business, it's a portfolio approach." LISTEN TO WOOLSEY SPEECH.
Chapter-Produced Video on AJC and the Media Shown at the Annual Meeting
The Chapter-produced video presentation of the history of AJC and the media, emceed by News Anchor Dan Rather was shown on screens lining the hallways in the conference space throughout the Annual Meeting. Kudos to Linda Senat, Hilary Cohen Singer and Board Member Martin Gold for their efforts in creating the presentation first shown during the Chapter's Centennial Anniversary Diplomatic Tour of Jewish New York. CLICK HERE to view the video.
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