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Frequently Asked Questions
How was SEA Change conceived?
SEA Change was conceived by two DMV (District of Columbia,
Maryland and Virginia) synagogues and developed in partnership with
JOIN for Justice in 2020. While the primary focus was on racial equity
in congregational spaces and in the wider world, in practice, SEA Change
principles apply to inclusion and belonging in the fullest sense.
SEA Change is grateful to the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington
and the Tov Fund of Washington Hebrew Congregation for supporting and funding JOIN training and consultations.
What does SEA Change stand for?
SEA Change stands for Study, Engage, Act. This describes the recurring
cycle of the work: studying to learn more about the history, context, and
complexities of the inequities and social justice challenges we face,
engaging with other congregants and with other synagogues and partners and those in the most impacted communities to build relationships, and acting with partners and other activists to achieve systemic change.
What is SEA Change's organizing focus?
SEA Change focuses on organizing synagogues, as they are the
heart and soul of Jewish communities.
SEA Change’s goal is to encourage synagogues to adopt SEA
Change principles and values as an integral part of their
mission, values, and culture, and to put these principles into
action in their internal functions and in their roles in the wider
community, both the Jewish community and beyond.
Is SEA Change a project, an initiative, or an organization?
SEA Change provides a framework for each synagogue to
achieve racial justice, equity and inclusion for all.
SEA Change values and principles have the potential to cut
across and infuse every aspect of congregational life both
internally and externally.
SEA Change is NOT merely an initiative, program,
committee or part of any existing organizations, although each
congregation has a SEA Change Steering Committee to
oversee SEA Change related activities.
What's different about SEA Change from what synagogues and existing Jewish organizations already do?
SEA Change is unique in that it is a framework whose values and principles cut
across and infuse every aspect of congregational life both internally and
externally.
The SEA Change framework calls for relationship building and community
organizing by congregants within their own synagogues, among SEA Change
synagogues across denominations and throughout the wider community to work
towards equity and inclusion.
Although most synagogues have existing committees that focus on service projects
to address community needs and many have social justice/action committees that
advocate for systems change in the community, SEA Change is different in that
it threads through such existing programs and structures and brings a
community organizing lens to justice and inclusion work both within and
beyond the walls of a synagogue.
A SEA Change synagogue is one that is intentionally working towards an
organizational culture shift to become a community whose members consistently
work together, across SEA Change congregations and with community partners to
identify and address systems that need changing.
Why and How is SEA
Change based on
relationship building
and community
organizing?
SEA Change is based on a proven “power with” model that is
founded on relationship building, rather than a “power over”
model. This approach is grounded in a relational and trust-based
culture, that is achieved by infusing opportunities for people to
build relationships into every aspect of synagogue life.
Examples of how this can be accomplished include consistently
opening all meetings and gatherings with relational questions
that inspire personal connections, and by encouraging synagogue
members, members across SEA Change synagogues, and across
partner organizations to have “One to One” conversations about why the work is important.
Through this relationship building, people can identify common
issues and initiatives that they want to address together in an
environment that gives them the latitude, skills and tools to do so
rather than a few leaders at the top driving strategy and initiatives.
What’s the connection
between individual work,
internal congregational
work and work in the larger
community within the
SEA Change network?
SEA Change is founded on a set of principles that can be adapted to align
with the priorities and concerns of each congregation and meet the needs
of the synagogue where it is currently. All SEA Change synagogues
commit to the fundamental SEA Change elements, but each
congregation may find that a different starting point is relevant for
their work.
For example, there are SEA Change congregations that have emphasized internal inclusion and belonging i.e. LGBTQ+, Jews of Color, or
access for congregants with disabilities.
Some congregations prioritize the external work and are deeply involved
with SEA Change DMV partners in advocating at the state, county,
and/or municipal level on issues relating to housing affordability,
combatting climate change, or protecting immigrant families. Each
SEA Change congregation is invited to define its own social justice path.
How does the network
of SEA Change
congregations work?
The network of SEA Change DMV synagogues works together to address
inequity and social justice challenges across denominations and
geographic boundaries.
The SEA Change DMV network leverages the experience, talents, and
collective power of participating synagogues without requiring
congregations to follow a particular process or set up a specific structure.
This gives synagogues flexibility and enables the network to
accommodate a range of congregations in terms of size, denomination,
location, resources, etc.
What is involved in being a
SEA Change synagogue?
A SEA Change DMV synagogue commits to:
-Obtaining clergy/board/staff support for the SEA Change vision mission, values, methods and outcomes.
-Designating representatives to the cross congregational SEA Change Core Team (1-2 congregants).
-Providing training opportunities for congregants, staff and clergy on the historical legacy of racism and hate and the basic skills and strategies of community organizing.
-Implementing relationship building and community organizing approaches in pursuit of change.
-Convening a Steering Committee to oversee SEA Change related activities which include those related to working toward equity and inclusion within their congregation and in the wider community.
-Posting SEA Change information on congregation website.
-Undertaking periodic assessments of progress toward achieving the SEA Change mission.
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