At the Harlem Stage I was particularly impressed by the the imperative to give voice to the untold stories and to create a new history.  Yes – this began with the Harlem Renaissance – and it is a rebirth.  

This is what I am hoping for with Jews as well – a rebirth that unifies and dignifies all people.  I want us to rise above our own differences, rise above the hatred around us, and teach ourselves and others that we can be proud without degrading the other.

When the recent soldiers were returned from Gaza they were asked about how they were treated – and what struck me most was not the cages, the beatings, the torture, the starvation, the deprivation of light, of sensation, of news, but the stories of being beaten by the general population, being thrown into a crowd on the street and randomly beaten.  The hatred of an entire people on an individual.  

This is the first rule that we as Jews should create now for ourselves – that we must overcome the hatred that twists the mind and overcomes the possibility to think rationally.