Shelter Rock Jewish Center

Like many of you, I have lately been focused intently on the goings-on at the Agriprocessors plant in Postville, Iowa, which is one of the largest kosher meat processing facilities in the United States. We have known some of the story for some time. In fact, some of you may have read Stephen G. Bloom’s 2001 book, Postville: A Clash of Cultures in Heartland America, which I highly recommend. It is not pleasant reading. Nor is it as entirely evenhanded as the author probably wished it to be. But it is still something very worthwhile to buy, to read, and to ponder.

Now, seven years later, the situation is incrementally worse. You can read about the May 12 raid on the plant in dozens of places on the ‘web, but the article by Ben Harris of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (which you can find here: http://www.jewishexponent.com/article/16202/) is as good a place as any to find the developments neatly summarized. This is not pleasant reading either. Nor should it be.

But you don’t have to rely on news reports by people I can’t personally vouch for, because now my colleague, Rabbi Harold Kravitz, representing the Rabbinical Assembly, has journeyed personally to Postville to see what is going on and to report back to us. I have, as of this morning, his personal permission to share with you all the letter he sent to the members of his own congregation, the Adath Jeshurun congregation in Minnetonka, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis. I will abridge his remarks slightly, but rather than tell you what wrote, I prefer to let him speak for himself. I am very open to discussing the implications of this letter, and of the whole incident with you as a congregation and individually. And I want to put the whole hekhsher tzedek concept (discussed briefly in Rabbi Kravitz’ letter) on the table for discussion at Shelter Rock as well. I’ll be writing more about that particular concept in the next little while. But, at least for today, it will be plenty just to read and digest what Rabbi Kravitz has to say.

You won’t enjoy reading what he has to say. That’s a lot of unpleasant reading I’m recommending in just one e-letter. But I wrote in the June bulletin about all the things I hope to enjoy reading this summer. This will just have to be the other part of things, the reading that, sobering, bracing, and shocking though it may be, is crucial to our coming to understand where we stand, and what we stand for.

Rabbi Kravitz’ letter follows.

Sincerely yours,

Rabbi Martin S. Cohen

May 31, 2008 / 26 Iyar, 5768　

I had a heart-rending experience this past Wednesday. My wife, Cindy, and college age daughter, Talia, drove down to Postville, Iowa (3 ½ hours from the Twin Cities) with Rabbi Morris Allen and his daughter, Leora, and with Peter Glick, co-chair of Beth Jacob’s Social Justice Committee. We went to see firsthand what has been happening in Postville with Agriprocessors, in the aftermath of the largest federal immigration raids in US history.

We were met there by Avi Lyon. Avi is an experienced labor organizer from New Jersey, who served two years ago on the Conservative movement’s initial Commission of Inquiry investigating Agriprocessors that lead up to the establishment of Heksher Tzedek. Heksher Tzedek is the initiative of the Conservative movement spearheaded by Rabbi Morris Allen, and assisted by Jewish Community Action of Minnesota, that is working for a respectable standard of ethical conduct in the Kosher food industry.

While in Postville we visited with several representatives of the UFCW (United Food and Commercial Workers International Union) who are there assisting workers stunned by what has happened (see http://www.eyeonagriprocessors.org/). We met with former Rubashkin employees who are awaiting deportation. Most of them are women whose husbands and brothers have already been jailed and whose sentences are delayed so they can care for their minor children, some of whom are US citizens. We talked to local religious leaders of other faiths who are overwhelmed trying to support these people. St. Bridget’s, the Catholic Church in Postville, is a gathering point for those in need. The Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA) has appropriately declared Postville a human disaster area and is providing assistance. We distributed　contributions that our congregants had entrusted to us for this purpose.

We spent hours hearing about appalling working conditions and the abuses that have taken place at Agriprocessors. We heard allegations of all kinds of abuses: underage workers; the poorest pay of any slaughterhouse in Iowa; supervisors who demanded payments and sexual favors in exchange for jobs or particular assignments. Workers consistently described being cursed at and screamed at to work faster and harder. We heard of people working in demanding and dangerous jobs with no training. We heard two stories of workers being struck. We repeatedly heard workers describe how a lead supervisor would demand that they buy a used car from him for more than its value in order to get a job at the plant, even though they were not eligible for a driver's license. The people we talked to are in the process of being deported. They had nothing to gain or lose from what they now say about their experiences. They are simple folk who answered questions directly without apparent embellishment. (Some of us know enough Spanish to attest that we were getting fair translations.)　

It was heartbreaking to see mostly young women with electric shackles around their legs worrying about how they would now provide for their families. They were upset about losing their freedom and their opportunity to continue to work in this country. It is a shanda to hear firsthand the ways this business has been run and the unethical ways people have been treated. Additionally, it was also a powerful encounter with the absurdity of what is happening with immigrant workers in this country upon whom we have all come to rely. For the first time illegal immigrants are being charged as criminals. This will prevent them from ever returning to the US.

It is clear that the northeastern corner of Iowa depends on this business for its well-being. What could have been a great story of revitalization of a small town is instead a huge embarrassment to the Jewish community and to the institution of Kashrut. I appreciate the statement that came out of our Conservative movement last week urging consumers to consider seriously whether to continue purchasing Agriprocessors products that are sold under the Rubashkins, Aaron’s Best, and David’s brand names until these allegations are properly addressed. The situation in Postville is a complex one and we will continue to look to the Conservative movement’s Rabbinical Assembly and the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism for guidance (http://rabbimorrisallen2.blogspot.com/2008/05/you-shall-not-abuse-needy-and-destitute.html) .

Hebrew National used to advertise, "We answer to a High Authority." From what I can see the Rubashkins have badly damaged this claim of Kashrut. What has been happening in Postville in the very definition of Hillul HaShem. We heard that 16 Federal and State agencies are now investigating Agriprocessors. In response to my sermon this past Shabbat about our movement’s press release, I had numerous congregants say to me, "Where there's smoke there's fire." Having been to Postville I will tell you that this is more than smoke. This is fire!

As Jews we have an obligation to care about that which is holy and that which is good. Properly observed, the institution of Kashrut embodies both of these values. It was reassuring to hear from Avi Lyon during our visit that there are numerous Kosher meat providers who do live up to these standards. We look forward to having Heksher Tzedek establish means for consumers to determine if appropriate standards are being met.

We have stood by enjoying our kosher meat and chicken from Agriprocessors, which dominates the market locally and nationally. It has become increasingly clear that this has been at the expense of simple folks who have been severely mistreated and whose lives are now in utter disarray. We have a responsibility to speak out. We must speak to the providers and distributors of Kosher food about our concerns. We must urge all quarters of the Jewish community to respond to this travesty.

Sincerely,　

Rabbi Harold J. Kravitz

Adath Jeshurun Congregation

10500 Hillside Lane

Minnetonka, MN 55305