Dear Friends,
Slavery... continues to be an ongoing discussion.
This summer, we have heard discussions of removing offending statuary, and of reparations across the airwaves, and in some political conversations. In short, the reparations argument is that the United States of America benefited economically – and unfairly and immorally - from hundreds of years of slavery, in which the unpaid labor of millions of persons – African slaves – was essentially expropriated and enriched not only slave owners, but the entire economy of America. The reparations argument contends that our nation owes a moral and economic payment, perhaps to the descendants of those slaves, or to social, educational and cultural institutions which benefit the African-American community.
And, slavery is addressed in a brief two-verse snippet, in this week’s Torah portion. We read,”You shall not turn over a slave who seeks refuge with you from that master. Such individuals shall live with you in any place they may choose among the settlements in your midst, wherever they please; you must not ill-treat them. (Deut. 23:16-17)
Clearly, Torah had an uncompromising ethical position on the freed slave: Pharaoh was charged to let our people go, the Israelite was commanded elsewhere to redeem an Israelite slave, and our passage protects the future of a slave seeking refuge. While admittedly, Torah did write of accepted slavery elsewhere, it was commonly in the form of an indentured servant who gave a certain number of years of labor in exchange for an unpaid debt. Yet, in that case, the “owner” did not own the person, but only the labor of that individual. Slavery remained anathema to Torah, which explained why most Jewish Americans in the pre-emancipation period also opposed slavery in our nation.
Especially, this issue was triggered for our wider public by the feature last year in The New York Times addressing 1619 – the 400th anniversary of the first slave ship coming to our shores in that year. We all have had countless conversations, from grade school through college to adulthood, on the legacy of slavery in America. And, we are stalemated. America does not know how to proceed with the stain on our history.
Yet, Torah offered a clear response. In our verses, we read that an unambiguous moral stance is vital. Even if we do not know how to advance reparations or financial considerations, it is imperative that we not be morally ambiguous. If a practice such as enslaving another, or Jim Crow, or racism, is abhorrent – say so, and proper behavior and decisions should follow… eventually.
Yes, we are in a stalemate or a quagmire. Let’s at least stand up with a clear moral posture – provide for those who seek our refuge – even centuries later.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Douglas Kohn
Slavery... continues to be an ongoing discussion.
This summer, we have heard discussions of removing offending statuary, and of reparations across the airwaves, and in some political conversations. In short, the reparations argument is that the United States of America benefited economically – and unfairly and immorally - from hundreds of years of slavery, in which the unpaid labor of millions of persons – African slaves – was essentially expropriated and enriched not only slave owners, but the entire economy of America. The reparations argument contends that our nation owes a moral and economic payment, perhaps to the descendants of those slaves, or to social, educational and cultural institutions which benefit the African-American community.
And, slavery is addressed in a brief two-verse snippet, in this week’s Torah portion. We read,”You shall not turn over a slave who seeks refuge with you from that master. Such individuals shall live with you in any place they may choose among the settlements in your midst, wherever they please; you must not ill-treat them. (Deut. 23:16-17)
Clearly, Torah had an uncompromising ethical position on the freed slave: Pharaoh was charged to let our people go, the Israelite was commanded elsewhere to redeem an Israelite slave, and our passage protects the future of a slave seeking refuge. While admittedly, Torah did write of accepted slavery elsewhere, it was commonly in the form of an indentured servant who gave a certain number of years of labor in exchange for an unpaid debt. Yet, in that case, the “owner” did not own the person, but only the labor of that individual. Slavery remained anathema to Torah, which explained why most Jewish Americans in the pre-emancipation period also opposed slavery in our nation.
Especially, this issue was triggered for our wider public by the feature last year in The New York Times addressing 1619 – the 400th anniversary of the first slave ship coming to our shores in that year. We all have had countless conversations, from grade school through college to adulthood, on the legacy of slavery in America. And, we are stalemated. America does not know how to proceed with the stain on our history.
Yet, Torah offered a clear response. In our verses, we read that an unambiguous moral stance is vital. Even if we do not know how to advance reparations or financial considerations, it is imperative that we not be morally ambiguous. If a practice such as enslaving another, or Jim Crow, or racism, is abhorrent – say so, and proper behavior and decisions should follow… eventually.
Yes, we are in a stalemate or a quagmire. Let’s at least stand up with a clear moral posture – provide for those who seek our refuge – even centuries later.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Douglas Kohn
