The Radical Jewish Union (RJU): Jewish Education Then and Now
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JOIN US FOR A VIRTUAL SYMPOSIUM: RJU Members with Jewish Community Professionals and Educators
Sit-In for Jewish Education at the SF Jewish Community Federation 50 Years Later : Jewish Education Then and Now
On Friday afternoon, April 30, 1971, approximately 40 members of the Berkeley-based student group, the Radical Jewish Union (RJU), occupied the Federation offices in San Francisco. They presented their demands for dramatic increases in support for Jewish education including community-supported day schools and teen programs – demands that deemed radical at the time. After the Federation officials were dissuaded from calling the police, the RJU’niks stayed overnight, celebrating Shabbat. They left peacefully after Havdalah. Many of the RJU members went on to become significant figures in Jewish education, formal and informal, from early childhood to university and adult education.
