The Jewish Institute for Liberal Values (JILV) is a free-speech advocacy group that advances classical liberal principles such as free expression and opposes “critical social justice” in Jewish communities. 1 2
Hundreds of Jewish leaders signed onto a petition by the JILV that stated that people should speak freely, debate robustly, and judge people individually rather than collectively. 3
Background
The Jewish Institute for Liberal Values (JILV) says it supports the free expression of ideas and helps Jewish organizations that care about “true social justice prevent the encroachment of the Critical Social Justice.” 4 The “liberal” in the name is a reference to classical liberalism and support for free expression. 5
The JILV argues that critical social justice is an ideology which “holds that individuals bear collective moral guilt or innocence based on the current conception of group identity.” 6 The group says it does not discount the view that bias and bigotry embedded are in society’s structures, but contends that is not the only viewpoint that should be aired. 4
The JILV says some Jewish groups endorse critical social justice, others oppose and others are silent. The JILV says its goal is to have constructive conversation on the matter. 7
Left-wing Jewish newspaper The Forward reported that JILV is a project of a foundation tied to Republican donor Adam Beren. 6 When the JILV was launched in 2021, it directed online donations to the Combat Hate Foundation, which had founded the Combat Antisemitism Movement, a movement that has drawn members of Congress and mayors, and more than 300 Jewish coalitions. 6
Campaigns and Activities
Jewish Institute for Liberal Values (JILV) founder David Bernstein argued that diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs “indoctrinated a generation of young people in this oppressor-oppressed ideology.” To counter anti-Israel ideologies, he called for banning DEI programs, cutting foreign funding to universities, and encouraging universities to “create centers for open inquiry that allow academics with different points of view to teach in an intellectually open way.” 8
Hundreds of Jewish leaders signed a petition by the JILV saying people should speak freely, debate robustly, and judge people individually rather than collectively. 3
A JILV survey in 2022 found that 78 percent of progressives and 81 percent of “very liberal” voters believe that white Americans, which includes most Jews, have “unfair advantages.” It also found that about half of progressives said Israel is an “occupier/colonizer,” while just 16 percent viewed Israel as the historical Jewish homeland. 9
In June 2024, the JILV teamed with the Combat Antisemitism Movement to launch the “Teach Diversity, Not Hate” petition campaign. The campaign was a response to the curriculum in ethnic studies programs in California and spreading to other states that promotes an oppressor/oppressed framing. The petition asks state cabinet secretaries, governors, elected officials, superintendents, school administrators, and educators to oppose the implementation of this curricula. 10
In August 2004, the JILV released a report titled “How Teachers Unions and Associations are being radicalized,” that argued rising anti-Israel sentiment in teachers’ unions made its way into K-12 classrooms. It noted both the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers had approved anti-Israel resolutions. 11
Funding
The Nagen Project gave $50,000 in 2022 to the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values (JILV) to help fund Jewish groups in opposition to “critical social justice.” 1
The National Philanthropic Trust contributed $25,000 in 2022 to the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values. 1
The Jewish Community Foundation for the Jewish Federation Council of Greater Los Angeles contributed $25,000 to the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values. 1
Goals
The Jewish Institute for Liberal Values (JILV) says its goals include empowering Jews that support liberalism to oppose the imposition of critical social justice, to raise awareness for mainstream Jewish groups about the complexities of social justice, to ensure Jewish social culture will not be dominated by one ideology, and to educate the Jewish community on the dangers of adopting critical social justice. The JILV also contends that critical social justice fuels forms of anti-Zionism and antisemitism. 7
Leadership
David Bernstein is the founder and CEO of the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values (JILV). 1 Bernstein was previously president and CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs. He is a former executive director of the David Project, and is author of Woke Antisemitism: How a Progressive Ideology Harms Jews. 7
Daniel Newman is the chief operating officer for the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values. 1 He previously operated tech departments and startups for 20 years. 7
Natan Ostro is the comptroller for the JILV. He holds a master’s degree in accounting and a bachelor’s in business administration from Miami University. 7
Marcy Braverman Goldstein is the director of academic affairs at the JILV. She earned a doctorate in Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She has taught more than 20 years, including at University of North Carolina-Charlotte, the University of California Riverside, American Jewish University, and Davidson College. 7
Rabbi Mark Cohn is the national program coordinator for the JILV. He is rabbi emeritus of Temple Emanuel in Winston-Salem, North Carlina. He has been the rabbi of Temple Sholom in New Milford, Connecticut. 7
Brandy Shufutinsky is the director of education and community engagement for the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values. 1 She is a social worker, writer, and researcher. 7
Clifford Smith is the director of national advocacy for the JILV. He is an attorney and former Congressional staffer. 7
Jonathan Greenberg is the chairman of the board for the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values. 1 He is the director of the Freedom Initiatives at the Jack Miller Family Foundation. Greenberg is a former Midwest political director at AIPAC. He was ordained a rabbi at Hebrew Union College in 2006. 7
Misha Galperin is a board member for the JILV. Galperin is the president of Zandafi Philanthropy Advisors and CEO of the National Museum of American Jewish History. He was previously the CEO and president of Jewish Agency International Development. He was also a former CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington. 7
Samantha Harris is a board member of the JILV. She is a founding partner at Allen Harris PLLC. 7
James Kirchick is a board member of the JILV. He is a widely published journalist, a senior fellow with the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, and author of Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington. 7
Rebecca Roiphe is a member of the board of JILV. She is a trustee professor of law and co-dean for faculty development at the New York Law School. 7
Dr. Pamela Paresky is a psychologist, consultant, and writer. She is a visiting senior research associate at the Stevanovich Institute on the Formation of Knowledge at the University of Chicago. She is a senior scholar at the Network Contagion Research Institute. 7
Christina Hoff Sommers is a board member of the JILV. She is a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and author of Who Stole Feminism? and The War Against Boys. 7
Bret Stephens is a board member of the JILV. He is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, and columnist for the New York Times. 7
David J. Wolpe is a board member of the JILV. He is the Max Webb Senior Rabbi of Sinai Temple. He was named the most influential rabbi in America by Newsweek and one of the 50 most influential Jews in the world by the Jerusalem Post. 7
References
- “Jewish Institute for Liberal Values.” Cause IQ. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/jewish-institute-for-liberal-values,873619728/
- “Contact.” Jewish Institute for Liberal Values. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://jilv.org/#contact
- Troy, Gil. “Jews for liberal values: Critical thought not thought control.” Jerusalem Post. May 11, 2021. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://www.jpost.com/opinion/jews-for-liberal-values-critical-thought-not-thought-control-opinion-667880
- “Jewish Institute for Liberal Values.” LinkedIn. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/company/jewish-institute-for-liberal-values/
- Shufutinsky, Dmitri. “A new book challenges progressive Jews.” JNS. January 1, 2023. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://www.jns.org/a-new-book-challenges-progressive-jews/
- Rosenfield, Arno. “Jewish ‘Harper’s letter’ tied to opaque foundation, Republican megadonor.” Forward. May 7, 2021. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://forward.com/fast-forward/469112/jewish-institute-liberal-values-harper-letter-beren-kurtzer/
- “About.” Jewish Institute for Liberal Values. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://jilv.org/about/
- “Stop ‘ideological indoctrination’ of DEI, says Jewish Institute for Liberal Values head.” JNS. December 28, 2023. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://www.jns.org/stop-ideological-indoctrination-of-dei-says-jewish-institute-for-liberal-values-head/
- Tress, Luke. “Did US Jews wake up on the wrong side of ‘woke’ progressive politics?” Times of Israel. December 28, 2022. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://www.timesofisrael.com/did-us-jews-wake-up-on-the-wrong-side-of-woke-progressive-politics/
- Press Release. “Combat Antisemitism Movement Launches ‘Teach Diversity, Not Hate’ Petition Campaign in Partnership With Jewish Institute for Liberal Values.” Combat Antisemitism. June 18, 2024. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://combatantisemitism.org/cam-news/combat-antisemitism-movement-launches-teach-diversity-not-hate-petition-campaign-in-partnership-with-jewish-institute-for-liberal-values/
- Cohen, Haley. “Anti-Israel activism spreading in teachers’ unions, education schools, new report outlines.” Jewish Insider. August 5, 2024. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://jewishinsider.com/2024/08/jewish-institute-for-liberal-values-report-teachers-union-anti-israel-activism/