Here’s the latest news from Uri L’Tzedek, the modern Orthodox organization that circulated a letter in the days following the Agriprocessors raid calling for higher standards of justice and ethics from Agri (and by extension other kosher food producers). It’s a powerfully-written letter – definitely worth the read. Find the back story here.

Friends,

Yeshar kochechem.

Thanks to your efforts, over 1200 kosher consumers, rabbis, educators, and activists have no signed on the petition. Our collective call for justice has been heard by the synagogues, day schools, hillels, and summer camps that have stopped purchasing Rubashkins meat. It’s being in heard in the debates raging in Jewish listserves and blogs about immigration, workers’ rights, and kosher food. It’s being heard in the coverage of this movement in the Forward, The Nation, The JTA, The Jewish Week The Des Moines Register, and other national media outlets.

We are making our voices heard, and we are making change. But there is still critical work left to do.

Meeting with Agri
Last week, Uri L’Tzedek leadership met with Rubashkin family members and high level corporate representatives to find ways to encourage and support Agriprocessors to make serious, needed change. The executives promised they would present us with a document about their workers’ rights policy, a document we can hold them accountable to as we move forward, and they promised us they would detail exactly how they are planning on instituting corporate compliance under their new compliance officer, Attorney Jim Martin. Mr. Martin, the Chief Compliance Officer, contacted us last week and heard our questions.

We’re waiting for answers. We’re waiting to see change in Agri’s operations, so we can be confident the workers who make our meat are safe, fairly compensated, and afforded all their legal rights and protections US and state law provides. We want to be assured a chillul Hashem like this won’t happen. As we wait though, hundreds of Agri worker families are still suffering. Children are still separated from their parents. Mothers don’t know where the money for the next meal will come from. As we wait, Agriprocessors continues to run advertisements recruiting for workers in Guatemalan newspapers.

Moving Forward
Today is June 15, the day we announced three weeks ago that we signers would officially stop purchasing Rubashkins meat until Agriprocessors demonstrates it is committed to protecting its workers. On our website (uriltzedek.webnode.com/information-on-the-agriprocessor-effort/), you will find a webpage with the beginnings of lists of alternative kosher meat suppliers and restaurants.

We need your help.

It’s time. Call your local kosher restaurants, butchers, Hillels, synagogues, supermarkets, and caterers and ask who supplies their meat. If it is Rubashkins, inform them politely that we are waiting to see that Rubashkins is committed to treating its workers according to US and Jewish law before we buy Rubashkins products again. Inform them of the other kosher meat suppliers. Inform them that as a consumer of kosher meat, we are concerned about the Torah prohibition of oshek, mistreatment of workers (Devarim 24:14, Vayikra 19:13). Please be polite and invite them to partner with this movement, but please be firm. Take 30 minutes out of your week until this is resolved to show the world where you stand. If they would like to sign the petition, direct them to the website.

You have a role to play in this, whether its through researching your local establishmets, lobbying your synagogue board, distributing the petition, talking to friends, or supporting this project in other ways. This is an historic opportunity for the Jewish people to build a kosher industry that makes us proud. Let’s do it together.

Tizku l’mitzvot, and be in touch.