NewGround's Comprehensive Approach to Muslim-Jewish Relations

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In the 18 months NewGround has reached over 3500 people with our fellowships, public programs and private lectures and discussions.  As part of our comprehensive approach to strengthening Muslim-Jewish relations in Los Angeles, NewGround has partnered with more than 35 Muslim and Jewish organizations to reach a broad cross-section of the two communities in Los Angeles and beyond.  Our programs break the mold of expected interfaith engagement.    

Muslim-Jewish High School Leadership Council

The Muslim-Jewish High School Leadership Council offers a select group of Muslim and Jewish high school students the opportunity to, build their leadership skills, create lasting relationships across faith boundaries and have an impact on important social issues in Los Angeles.

An Advisory Board of Muslim and Jewish communal professionals under the leadership of Rabbi Sarah Bassin of NewGround and Soha Yassine of the Islamic Center of Southern California have built a partnership to provide this opportunity for a cadre of teen leaders in Los Angeles.  The City of Los Angeles Human Relations Commission is proud to support the project.For more information, see www.muslimjewishleadership.org.   

Sinai Akiba-New Horizon Exchange

 Sixty 7th and 8th graders attending Muslim and Jewish days schools learned about the other faith community through more than a text book this year.  With the help of NewGround, these schools integrated visits to each other's campuses to learn firsthand about the practices and practitioners of Islam and Judaism.     

American Muslim and Jewish Identity in Art

The Koplin del Rio Gallery in Culver City hosted a panel convened and moderated by NewGround's Executive Director Rabbi Sarah Bassin.  Sandow Birk, creator of the "American Qur'an" collection, Will Deutsch, creator of the "Notes from the Tribe" collection, and Ali Mir, Director of Muslim Student Life at USC engaged in a conversation about what the lens of religious minorities has to offer American culture at large.  This event was hosted in conjunction with the Six Points Fellowship for emerging Jewish artists.   

Who Have Our Programs Reached In 2013?

  • 14 Civic and religious leaders from Afghanistan and Pakistan learning about civil society in the United States through the State Department
  • 400 Angelenos at mosques, synagogues, and religious schools across Los Angeles with the Carnival Against Hunger put on by the students of Muslims and Jews Inspiring Change.  See media coverage here.
  • 40 International religious leaders at the Doha International Center for Interfaith Dialogue 10th annual conference in Doha, Qatar where NewGround presented a paper on "Making The Personal Public: The Use of Personal Stories in Interfaith Engagement"
  • 65 Muslims and Jews at a screening of "The Light In Her Eyes" at Temple Isaiah where the Jewish filmmaker documenting a traditional religious school for girls in Syria explored the larger implications for such a school.  
  • 150  Israeli American and Jewish young professionals at BINA LA on "Are American Jews Ready for 2050?"- a talk about the transforming demographic realities of the United States and it impact on Jewish community relations.
  • 200 Angelenos at the Hammer Museum Forum on Islamaphobia featuring NewGround Board Chair Edina Lekovic, NewGround Director Rabbi Sarah Bassin and NewGround alumnus Ali Mir.  
  • 10 Reform Jewish Youth Educators at the Youth Educators Conference on best practices in interfaith engagement with youth.  
  • 50 National Federation of Temple Youth (NFTY) Teenagers as part of the NFTY National Convention where students learned about the model of the Muslims and Jews Inspiring Change (MAJIC)- a high school leadership council.   
  • 10 Saudi Arabian government officials and academics visiting with the State Department to learn about effective American models of pluralism and collaboration between government and non-profit entities.
  • 40 National Federation of Temple Youth Group Students at the NFTY Social Justice Kallah to learn about the role of interfaith in social action.
  • 30 University student leaders from around the country at the Challah for Hunger Summit on how to incorporate interfaith collaborative work into efforts to combat hunger.

Who have our Programs Reached in 2012?

  • 200 Angelenos at "Home: True Stories from LA's Muslims and Jews" Cultural Event"
  • 12  Azusa Pacific University students in an intercultural communications class with a lecture and discussion on the civic impact of interfaith engagement. 
  • 500 Angelenos as a finalist in Social Innovation Fast Pitch.  
  • 12 Muslims and Jews with a Cultural Walking Tour of Jewish Los Angeles
  • 60 Jews with a NewGround alumni panel after a Wilshire Boulevard Temple screening of "The Other Son."
  • 15 Jews of an independent chavurah with a text study on Jewish paradigms for interfaith relations
  • 16  High school students through the Muslim-Jewish High School Leadership Council- a year long program to help students build Muslim and Jewish based civic engagement
  • 200  Angelenos at an panel discussion of interfaith leaders at the IMAN Cultural Center with special guests Congresswoman Judy Chu and Sheriff Lee Baca
  • 225 Muslims and Jews at NewGround's second annual iftar hosted by IKAR and cosponsored by MECA SoCal, Young MALAC, Wilshire Boulevard Temple and Bend the Arc
  • 100 Religious and civic leaders at the first iftar ever hosted at City Hall by the Mayor's Office and the Human Relations Commission.  NewGround was featured as an example of stellar civic engagement in the Muslim community.  
  • 15 Jews of a Temple Isaiah Chavurah with Breakdowns and Breakthroughs: The History of Muslim-Jewish Relations in Los Angeles
  • 100 LA Muslims and Jews at A Night to Inspire, NewGround's celebration of the King Fahad-Temple Emanuel Fellowship hosted at King Fahad Mosque 
  • 100 American Jewish Committee young professionals at the ACCESS 20/20 conference in Washington D.C.
  • 15  Seniors at the Palms Court Retirement Community in Culver City on the history of Muslim-Jewish relations in Los Angeles
  • 30 UCLA undergraduate students in the Introduction to Islam class in a session on contemporary Muslim-Jewish relations
  • 600 educators at the Los Angeles Religious Education Conference held by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles through the panel  "Global Events/Local Events: Religious Perspectives of a Jew, a Catholic and a Muslim."
  • 18 people at a private film screening and discussion of the 2007 Israeli film Strangers.  
  • 30  lay leaders of Jewish organizations at "Beyond Tolerance: How Muslim-Jewish Collaboration Can Strengthen Los Angeles"
  • 12 members of a Leo Baeck Temple Chavurah on the history of Muslim-Jewish relations in Los Angeles
  • 24 Muslims and Jews at a Dialogue Facilitation Training Session to equip people with the skills to run interfaith dialogue
  • 20 Muslims and Jews through the King Fahad-Temple Emanuel Fellowship to further strengthen the relationship between the two communities
  • 90 Muslims, Jews and interfaith leaders at the screening of "My So-Called Enemy"
  • 50 people through workshops on building skills in communication and conflict resolution  at Limmud LA
  • 30 clergy and staff at Department of Mental Health’s Clergy Advisory Committee on how NewGround's model for other intergroup relationships
  • 60 middle school students though the Sinai Akiba-New Horizon Middle School Exchange Program
  • 60 people at "American Muslim and Jewish Identity in Art"- a panel discussion hosted by Koplin del Rio Gallery about what the lens of religious minorities has to offer American culture


2011
  • 160 Muslims, Jews and City Officials at NewGround's Iftar hosted at the Silverlake Independent Jewish Community Center  
  • 18 Muslim academic leaders from Cairo’s Al Azhar University studying civic society in the United States
  • 14 Muslim, Christian and Jewish civic leaders on a delegation from Israel and Palestine
  • 25 undergraduate students at American Jewish University
  • 150 Muslim and Jewish young professionals at NewGround's true storytelling event on the theme of "Relationships"
  • 50 Muslims and Jews at Congregation Shomrei Torah in Santa Rosa, California with "Breakdowns and Breakthroughs: The History of Muslim-Jewish Relations Through a Los Angeles Lens"
  • 70 residents of the Fountainview Jewish Home for the Aging with "Breakdowns and Breakthroughs"
  • 50 Jewish women at a the first Southern California Jewish Women’s Conference with the social justice imperative for interfaith relations
  • 20 members of Leo Baeck Temple’s men’s club with a text study titled, "Jewish Paradigms of Relating to the Other"
  • 16 Muslim and Christian Eastern European civic leaders with AJC’s Promoting Tolerance Delegation on overcoming tensions in intergroup relations
  • 5 Rabbis at the Pacific Area Reform Rabbis Convention on "Moving Forward: How to respond to tense situations in Muslim-Jewish relations"

                                                             To see historical highlights from 2006-2010, click here.