Radicals and Robber Barons: How Jews Both Perpetuate and Fight Inequality in America

We will look at the roles Jews have played fighting and intensifying inequality in America -- focusing on our becoming white, building unions, becoming CEOs, and joining the American elite. At the same time that we went from being a discriminated minority to being disproportionately represented in business, politics, law, and medicine, we also became disproportionately represented as environmentalists, unionists, and progressives of all kinds. We’ll discuss how that happened, what was gained and what was lost in the process.

Brent Chaim Spodek is a rabbi in Beacon, NY. In recent years, he’s been the Rabbi in Residence at American Jewish World Service and the Marshall T. Meyer Fellow at Congregation B’nai Jeshurun in New York. Brent has taught extensively about spiritual approaches to justice work, Judaism and human rights, and other topics in a wide variety of settings.

Zach Teutsch directs the National Labor College/AFL-CIO’s financial literacy project. Previously he worked as a union educator, campaigner, and strategic researcher at AFSCME, Change to Win, and SEIU. He graduated from Brown University where he received degrees in Economic Sociology and Organizational Behavior.