Common Resource, Common Need A Seder on Water Justice Jews United for Justice ▲ Social Justice Seder MARCH 31, 2019 ▲ 24 ADAR II 5779 CHEVREI TZEDEK CONGREGATION ▲ BALTIMORE, MD 2019 Social Justice Seder Sponsors Thank you to all our sponsors who made this year’s seder possible. Baltimore Hebrew Congregation Beth Am Synagogue Bolton Street Synagogue Claire Landers Hinenu: The Baltimore Social Justice Shtiebl Interfaith Power and Light Kal HaLev Lisa Firnberg Liz-Simon Higgs Michael Rubin Repair the World Baltimore at Jewish Volunteer Connection Rev. Dell Hinton Susan Russell Temple Oheb Shalom Welcome As an inclusive community centered around Jewish values and social justice, we welcome every- one to Jews United for Justice’s 6th annual Social Justice Seder in Baltimore. As is traditionally said at the Passover seder: “Let all who are hungry come and eat!” To that we add, “Let all who are eager come and act!” Your table captain (please raise your hands, table captains!) will help to guide you through to- day’s seder. Whether you have been directly affected by the water affordability and billing issues we’ll hear about today, or you’re learning about them for the first time, whether you’ve been to dozens of seders, or never attended one before, you can both contribute to and learn from today’s program. We hope to end the seder feeling like a kehillah kedoshah, a sacred community, who work together to stand up for the rights and basic needs of all our neighbors. Before we begin our discussion of Baltimore’s contemporary water justice issues and its impact on housing stability, we wish to acknowledge the physical place where we find ourselves to- day. In the name of justice, we name that we hold our seder on native lands of the Piscataway, Nentego, Lenape, Susquehannock, and Pamunkey peoples. We also wish to acknowledge and thank JUFJ’s co-host for this event, Congregation Chevrei Tzedek, who have so generously shared their space with us today. In 1988, a group of people gathered to create a lay-led and egalitarian congregation, committed to creating a Jewish com- munity engaged with social justice within the larger community. They called themselves Chevrei Tzedek, community of justice. Why A Social Justice Seder? The Passover seder serves many purposes. First and foremost, it is a ritualized celebration of the biblical Israelites’ dramatic journey from slavery to freedom. But even from its earliest days, the seder was never just about history. As the format of the seder was finalized in Mishnaic and Talmudic times (50 BCE - 500 CE), rituals were included to make each participant feel as if they personally are experiencing the journey from slavery to freedom. The Passover seder is also a lens through which to see the modern world around us. We know too well that the fight for justice and freedom is a fight that is continuous throughout history and across the globe. The Passover seder teaches us that just as we alone could not free ourselves from Mitzrayim (the narrow place, or ancient Egypt), we have an obligation to fight for the freedom of all peoples in every generation. The injustices of the world are many, but the Passover story reminds us, in the words of the ancient Jewish book of ethics Pirkei Avot: “It is not your duty to complete the work, but neither are you free to desist from it.” Together, this Passover, let us use our collective power to further the cause of justice and freedom. 1 Why A Passover Seder About Water Justice in Baltimore? Judaism, like many religious and spiritual traditions around the world, teaches us that water is sacred. In the Book of Jeremiah, God is called a “fountain of living waters.” Water is a gateway to numerous Jewish rituals, rituals that define our days, usher us into communal meals, and pu- rify us. Prayers for water are found throughout our siddurim (prayer books), and in the Passover story, Moses’ parting of the water in our journey out of Mitzrayim led us towards a future as free people. Despite the sanctity of water in so many faiths, in our modern world water is too often treated as a commodity to be purchased and to be profited off of. Injustices that the Israelites faced as slaves to Pharaoh are mirrored in our society when water is seen not as a right but as a luxury available only to those who can pay. During tonight’s seder (“order”), we will remember the role of water in our ancient search for justice and for a home. We will read and sing together from this new haggadah, the book that guides us through our Passover ritual. We will recite Passover’s traditional four questions, re- member four types of children, and as we drink four ritual cups of wine, we will learn together about four pillars of water justice we work toward for Baltimoreans: Affordability - Midrash teaches us that, in desperation, the enslaved Israelites took essential supplies from their masters before fleeing from Mitzrayim. Water is unaffordable for too many Baltimoreans. Water rates have doubled in recent years. The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) states that people should not pay more than 3% of their income for water. But a comprehensive report by Roger Colton, the country’s leading utility affordability ex- pert, concludes that by this standard, water bills are currently unaffordable for approximately one-third of Baltimore households. This proportion will rise to one-half by the end of 2019. In addition, the amount of assistance offered to low income households is insufficient; there is no assistance to renters and more than 22,000 families making around $10,000 a year are still paying 7 to 8% of their income on water bills. And, over the next 3 years, the cost of water will increase 30% for Baltimore residents. In Baltimore County rates have been rising for years, and are expected to increase another 40% in 5 years. The Right to Due Process - When Moses and the Israelites cried out against injustices, Pharaoh’s heart hardened. There was no way for them to seek justice under his rules. When Baltimoreans receive outrageous water bills, we have no process by which to dispute them, and no guarantee of responsiveness or accountability from Baltimore City’s Department of Public Works. The system is hardened against the pleas and the needs of our people. Sanctity of Housing - We once left our homes in Mitzrayim, fleeing so quickly that we had to bake bread without letting it rise, and were cast into the desert to wander. Today, if Baltimoreans can’t pay their water bills, our homes can be put up for tax sale. That means we only have a few months to try to get our homes back before losing them for good. Homeowners who have spent decades painstakingly paying their mortgages, and renters who pay their rent on time each month, are at risk. In 2017, over 8,000 Baltimore homes were placed on the tax sale list due to water bills.1 To force people from their homes is to cast them into a desert. 1 https://www.wmar2news.com/news/region/baltimore-city/bill-fights-tax-sale-of-baltimore-homes-with-unpaid- 2 water-bills Human Health - As slaves under Pharaoh’s regime, Israelite families suffered physical and mental health impacts too numerous to list. Families here in Baltimore are suffering the cruel physical and mental toll of insurmountable bills, water shut-offs, and fear of losing their homes. Parents can lose custody of their children because a property without water can be deemed unsafe. Healthcare providers are mandated to report any family with children who do not have running water in their home, which complicates relationships between healthcare providers and their vulnerable patients.2 Even with the current moratorium on water shut-offs, many Baltimoreans are afraid to use water for fear of driving up their already high water bills.3 Tonight we hope to inspire you to take action—no matter where you live—so that over the next year, and in years to come, nobody will lose their home, place of worship, or financial security because of water. Like our ancestors of old, it is time for us to cry out against injustice. Candle Lighting As we come together for Baltimore’s 6th annual Social Justice Seder, we take time to light can- dles, which serve not only to sanctify our gathering, but as a reminder throughout the night of those in search of light in this world. We also say the shehecheyanu, a blessing of thanks for bringing us together again this season. Recite together: ּבָרּוְךאַּתָהיְיָ אֱ ֹלהֵ ינּו מֶ לְֶך הָ עֹולָם אֲׁשֶרקִּדְׁשָ נּו ּבְמִ צְ ֹותָ יווְצִּוָ נּו לְהַדְ לִ יק נֵר ׁשֶ ליֹום טֹוב Baruch atah adonai, eloheinu melech ha-olam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu l’hadlik ner shel Yom Tov. “Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Sovereign of the universe, who makes us holy with mitzvot and commands us to kindle the light of the festival day.” ָ ּברּוְך ָה אַיְיָ ּתאֱ ֹלהֵ ינּו מֶ לְֶך הַ עֹולָ ם ֶהֶחֱ ׁשיָנּו וְקִ יְמָ נו וְהִ גִ יעָ נּו לַזְמַן הַ זֶ ּה Baruch atah adonai, eloheinu melech ha-olam, shehecheyanu vekiyemanu vehigianu lazeman hazeh. “Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Sovereign of the universe, who has granted us life, sustained us, and enabled us to reach this occasion.” Table Discussion Havruta is a Jewish practice of deeply studying a text together with another person to learn what that text can teach us.