TELL April-May 2019

{SPEAK UP IN THE FACE OF INJUSTICE}
Donna Jacobs Sife
Of the many and various ideas that arise from the festival of Pesach, I find one
particularly compelling. The sages tell us that the syllables of the word Pesach each
represent a word in their own right: "Pe" means "mouth" and "sach" means "speaks".
When I was 12, I became a ‘selective
mute’. I stopped talking for several
months. And now, when asked how
I became a storyteller, this image of
a mute young girl comes to mind.
Perhaps I became a storyteller so
that my words would be heard. And
I suspect also that my penchant
for social justice and speaking up
also has roots in that young girl.
However, the imperative to speak
up in the face of injustice also has
its roots in Judaism. The midwives
Puah and Shifra spoke up when
they refused to follow the orders
of the Pharaoh and chose to save
a little baby boy. The Pharaoh’s
daughter spoke up when she saw
that little baby floating down the
river in a basket. Moses stood
before the Pharaoh and spoke up in
the name of his enslaved brethren.
We are a People today, because
others chose to speak and not
remain silent in the face of injustice.
It is in our origins, in our genesis.
Dissent gave birth to us as a nation.
Think of Abraham, when faced
with the injustice as he saw it
of the destruction of Sodom
and Gomorrah by God. Even
to the highest authority,
Abraham was not deterred.
“Will You sweep away the innocent
along with the guilty? What if there
should be fifty innocent within the
city; will You then wipe out the
place and not forgive it for the sake
of the innocent fifty who are in it?”
Abraham points out that there
are innocent people living in
Sodom and Gomorrah who do
not deserve punishment. He
begins bartering with God, asking
how many innocent people there
would have to be for the cities to
be spared. He ultimately bargains
18
down to 10 innocent people
before the episode concludes.
As Abraham says,
“Far be it from You to do such a
thing, to bring death upon the
innocent as well as the guilty,
so that innocent and guilty fare
alike. Far be it from You! Shall
not the Judge of all the earth
deal justly?” (Genesis 18:25).
Elie Wiesel
We know that Sodom and
Gomorrah were not spared. But we
also know by Abraham’s example, in
the words of the Pirkei Avot: You do
not have to complete the task, but
neither are you free to desist from it.
Of course, there are many in this
troubled world who are silenced,
because to speak up is a dangerous
thing. To be silenced is to be
controlled, oppressed, subdued. We
know that in countries governed
by despotic dictators, any hint of
rebellion could be punishable by
death. In 2015, the Australian
parliament passed a law concerning
workers and medical officers at
the detention centres. It became a
criminal offense for them to reveal
to outsiders what is happening to
asylum seekers, with a potential
penalty of job loss and two years
in prison. When refugees speak
of their experience in public,
they do so understanding that
it could very likely adversely
affect their immigration status.
In Australia, for the most part,
we are free. We can express our
concerns, our criticisms, our
protests, without fear of retribution.
And yet, because this freedom is a
given, we tend to take it for granted,
and forget how lucky and privileged
we are to live in such a country.
And consequently, we do not use
that privilege in the way that our
ancestors have modelled to us. We
forget that freedom and speaking
up, pe-sach – are indelibly linked.
Elie Wiesel in his acceptance
speech for his Nobel Peace
prize in 1986 put it this way:
I swore never to be silent whenever
and wherever human beings endure
suffering and humiliation. We must
always take sides. Neutrality helps
the oppressor, never the victim.
Silence encourages the tormentor,
never the tormented. Sometimes
we must interfere. When human
lives are endangered, when human
dignity is in jeopardy, national
borders and sensitivities become
irrelevant. Wherever men or women
are persecuted because of their
race, religion, or political views,
that place must – at that moment –
become the center of the universe.
This Pesach, I hope to continue to
speak up in the face of injustice,
and to remember that I am one
of the privileged few in this
world who is free to do so.
Tzdek Tzedek tirtof – Justice,
Justice You shall Pursue.