Rise Up

Rise Up envisions a world in which those who have been disconnected or marginalized from Judaism’s ancient and contemporary practices can find reconnection, well-being, and new opportunities rooted in social justice.  More than ever, Jews are showing up for racial justice, immigrant justice, workers’ rights, climate change, a new frame on Israel/Palestine and more with a Jewish lens.

Today, many Jews — including those who identify as Black, Indigenous, or People of Color (BIPOC) — are hungry for ways to integrate their religious and spiritual lives with their commitments to social justice. Rise Up provides grants to fund the emerging ecosystem of leaders and community-builders. Since its inception in 2019, Rise Up has granted over $600,000 to 23 organizations reaching thousands of people as they build new chapters and communal structures of Jewish life to further the work of justice. More than 30% of Rise Up grantees are Jews of Color and the white-led work Rise Up supports is explicitly advancing racial justice.

Rise Up grantees are shaping an emerging ecosystem of leaders, community-builders, activists, and citizens. In doing so, they are illuminating new access points and creating structures born of a commitment to liberation, all in a deeply relational framework that enables a solidarity that transcends the traditional fault lines which often divide the Jewish community.

Rooted in a transformational approach to tikkun olam, one that brings Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel’s notion of “prophetic consciousness” into being, Rise Up is giving rise to the vast spectrum of Jewish diversity while nourishing Jewish wisdom and centering the value of working for a better world.