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From:Rabbi Ilana Goldhaber-Gordon <br />To:publiccomment <br />Subject:Supporting Sanctuary Status <br />Date:Monday, November 25, 2024 7:17:29 AM <br />You don't often get email from rabbiilana@gmail.com. Learn why this is important <br />Dear Esteemed Council Members, <br />I am writing to express my support for the proposed ordinance to designate RedwoodCity a sanctuary city. <br />I write to you as a rabbi, as the granddaughter of immigrants, and as a citizen. <br />As a rabbi, I do not claim to write on behalf of the synagogue community. Oursynagogue, Congregation Beth Jacob, is politically diverse. Some of my congregantsagree with me on this issue, and some do not. Our diversity is our strength, and Itrust that this ordinance will not pass without a robust conversation. <br />And, as a rabbi, I am guided by the repeated, insistent demands of our sacred texts, <br />that we show kindness to the foreigner. Use of communal resources to imprison <br />individuals whose only crime is their foreign status, seems to me a violation of Jewish <br />ethics: "The foreigner who lives among you, you shall love as yourself" (Leviticus <br />19:34.) <br />As the granddaughter of immigrants, my story is typical of many in the Jewishcommunity. Had this country not taken in my grandparents, my family would likelyhave perished. Now I must speak up in defense of the next generation of immigrants. <br />And as a local citizen, this ordinance just makes sense to me. I do not reside in <br />Redwood City, but I work there nearly every day. I want Redwood City to remain a <br />safe and welcoming place. Our government agencies depend on relationships of trust <br />with the local community. When that trust erodes, everyone suffers. <br />With gratitude and appreciation,Rabbi Ilana <br />-- <br />Sometimes my inbox gets very full and I don't respond to emails right away - please <br />don't take it personally. If you don't hear back, don't hesitate to call or follow up. <br />Rabbi Ilana Goldhaber-Gordon, PhD <br />Associate Rabbi Congregation Beth Jacob, Redwood City, CA <br />https://www.bethjacobrwc.org/ <br />Cell: 650-440-2412 <br />Schedule a phone call with me here.