Building on History: An Interview on Social Justice and Religious Liberty with Nancy Kaufman
By Sally Steenland | June 28, 2013
This interview is part of a series profiling leaders of the Faith and Reproductive Justice Leadership Institute, a project of CAP’s Faith and Progressive Policy Initiative. The institute provides faith-based leaders working on reproductive justice with training and resources in order to strengthen and raise the visibility of their work. You can learn more about this project here.
Nancy Kaufman is the CEO of the National Council of Jewish Women, or NCJW, a grassroots organization of volunteers and advocates who turn progressive ideas into action. Inspired by Jewish values, NCJW strives for social justice by improving the quality of life for women, children, and families and by safeguarding individual rights and freedoms. Nancy has had a distinguished career as a public servant, advocate, and nonprofit leader. She’s worked for the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston, with the Governor’s Office of Social Policy in Massachusetts, and for Health and Human Services agencies. Nancy is a graduate of Brandeis University, and she received a master’s degree in community organization and social planning from the Graduate School of Social Work at Boston College, as well as a master’s degree in administration from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
Sally Steenland: Welcome, Nancy! I want to ask about the National Council of Jewish Women, which is more than 100 years old. Bring us back to when the organization was started. What were some of the most important issues when NCJW was new, and how about today?
Nancy Kaufman: NCJW was founded in 1893 and was one of the first national Jewish organizations. It even predated the first Jewish federation. It was founded in Chicago, Illinois, when a woman by the name of Hannah G. Solomon, a wealthy, German-Jewish immigrant, was invited to the Academy of World Religions at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893. She was invited as a volunteer, and when she got there, she was asked to pour the tea. She said that Jewish women could do more than pour tea.
http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/religion/news/2013/06/28/68394/building-on-history-an-interview-on-social-justice-and-religious-liberty-with-nancy-kaufman/
http://www.americanprogress.org/projects/faith/view/?tag=reproductive-justice
Audio at link.
