Chevra,

Aliza Becker has compiled an extremely useful report on Jewish actions concerning the unkosher meatpacking plant in Postville, Iowa.  (The Shalom Center remains the only Jewish organization that has urged the US government to pursue law violations by the owners. We encourage you to do so.)  Her report follows:

Shalom, AW

July 22, 2008
We are writing you today because we believe that the rash of problems at Agriprocessors, Inc, the nation's largest Kosher slaughterhouse, exemplify many concerns that Jewish clergy --- regardless of denominational affiliation -- - ought to be grappling with before our congregations and the greater Jewish community.

Below, please find a brief summary of the situation at Agriprocessors' plant in Postville, Iowa, a list of activities conducted by Jewish organizations to date that address the problems there, and additional reference materials. 

Most of the actions against Agriprocessors have dealt with:
    -  the relationship between kashrut and worker rights;
    -  the relationship between kashrut and the ethical treatment of animals;
-  the social welfare of families separated by the immigration raid carried out there in May; and,
    -  a call for reform of the nation's immigration system.
All lend themselves to sermons and social action committee activities. 

If you would like to continue to receive occasional updates on immigration-related issues, please email either one of us. Thank you.

L'shalom,

Rabbi Bruce Elder, rabbi@...         Aliza Becker, azbecker@...
Glencoe, IL                        Chicago, IL

BRIEF SUMMARY
In 1987, the Rubashkin family of Hassidic Lubavitchers relocated from Brooklyn, NY to the small town of Postville, Iowa to open an industrial scale, state-of-the-art Glatt Kosher meatpacking plant.  It was initially considered an economic lifeboat to the depressed, Midwest community.  However, stories soon emerged of cultural tensions between the Hasidic newcomers and the established community.  These were followed by accusations of unsafe working conditions, use of child labor, sexual harassment, failure to pay wages, the active hiring of undocumented workers, and cruelty to animals. In 2006, Agriprocessors paid a $600,000 settlement to the Environmental Protection Agency to resolve wastewater pollution problems, and in March it was assessed $182,000 in fines for 39 state health, safety and labor violations.

The situation at the plant became a national news story when the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) conducted its largest immigration raid in American history on May 12, 2008, detaining some 390 employees, largely indigenous Guatemalans. The raid not only gave rise to numerous humanitarian problems by separating families and jailing breadwinners, but was also used as a laboratory for a new approach by the federal government to prosecute undocumented workers using false documents to obtain work. Instead of being treated as civil violators of immigration laws and immediately deported, those detained were shackled and charged with a felony as criminal offenders. Most were sentenced to five months in jail to be followed by deportation in a rarely used legal tactic. If they appealed their case, they faced a two-year sentence prior to deportation. This re-categorization will enable the government to significantly bolster its war-on-terror statistics through the deportation of "criminal aliens."  (For more information on the raid and its aftermath as told by a government interpreter, see: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/11/us/11immig.html?_r=1&oref=slogin).

OVERVIEW OF ACTIVITIES

ORTHODOX COMMUNITY
*Rabbi Menachem Genack, administrator of the Orthodox Union's (OU) kashrut department and the largest kosher certifier of Agriprocessors, said that if Agriprocessors is found to be criminally liable, that the OU will withdraw its hashgachah (kashrut certification). He claimed that the OU did not have the expertise to develop standards and monitor issues related to safety, employment and environmental concerns. In regards to the immigration issue, Genack stated that the issue of factories hiring workers with illegal documentation was widespread and that a faulty American immigration policy was to blame.
http://www.jstandard.com/articles/4355/1/OU-weighs-in-on-Agriprocessors-scandal

*The Rabbinical Council of America, an organization of Orthodox rabbis, issued a statement on June 3 that expressed concern at news reports but also a reminder that "both Jewish Law (Halacha) and civil law require a presumption of innocence by all parties" and "it would be inappropriate to rush to judgment before all relevant facts are clarified."
http://www.rabbis.org/news/article.cfm?id=105319

*Uri L'Tzedek -  http://uriltzedek.webnode.com - an Orthodox social justice organization started by students at Yeshivat Chovevei Torah, initiated a boycott campaign of Agriprocessors, Inc. (later rescinded) to give "voice to thousands of observant Jews who believe that the standards of kashrut of our food be matched by the kashrut of our ethics."  They cite the 1949 essay, "Glatt Kosher - Glatt Yosher," by Rabbi Yossed Breuer as spiritual guidance for their work: "God's Torah not only demands the observance of  kashrut and the sanctification of our physical enjoyment; it also insists on the sanctification of our social relationships."

Timeline:
--On May 23, Uri L'Tzedek sent an open letter to Aaron Rubashkin, signed by over 1000 Jews on behalf of the "Kosher meat consumers of America," expressing deep concern at evidence of worker mistreatment and abuse of animals at Agriprocessors and calling for a boycott of their products until systematic changes were instituted.
http://uriltzedek.webnode.com/information-on-the-agriprocessor-effort/sign-the-letter-to-agriprocessors/
--On June 16, Uri L'Tzedek leadership met with Rubashkin family members and high level corporate representatives to find ways to encourage and support Agriprocessors to make needed changes. At the meeting, Agriprocessors announced their hire of a new Chief Compliance Officer to set in place procedures and personnel to ensure that the compliance effort is "continual, robust, and permanent." http://jspot.org/showDiary.do?diaryId=1911
--On July 8th Uri L'Tzedek rescinded their call for a boycott based on initial progress, but will continue to monitor the situation to assure that problems are addressed appropriately.

CONSERVATIVE COMMUNITY
United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism (USCJ) and the Rabbinical Assembly (RA), the two main arms of the Conservative movement, put out a statement on Agriprocessors, Inc. entitled, "You Shall Not Abuse a Needy and Destitute Laborer: Deuteronomy 24:14."  It requests that individual consumers "evaluate whether it is appropriate to buy and eat meat products" from Agriprocessors, but stops short of endorsing a broad-based boycott.  It states: "The allegations ... have shocked and appalled members of the Conservative movement as well as all people of conscience.  As kashrut seeks to diminish animal suffering and offer a humane method of slaughter, it is bitterly ironic that a plant producing kosher meat be guilty of inflicting any kind of human suffering." To read the full statement: rabbinicalassembly.org/press/docs/hekhsher2008.doc

Hekhsher Tzedek http://hekhshertzedek.org/ is referred to in the statement.  The project is a shared effort between the Rabbinical Assembly and the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism to display a seal on already designated kosher foods that reflect production benchmarks consistent with Jewish ethical standards, including how companies treat their employees.  Accompanying it is a study, "Hekhsher Tzedek Al Pi Din," written by Rabbi Avram Reisner. http://rabbinicalassembly.org/law/kashrut.html
http://jta.org/cgi-bin/iowa/news/article/20061220Conservativemovemen.html

Rabbi Morris Allan, http://rabbimorrisallen2.blogspot.com, director of Hekhsher Tzedek and founder of the movement that advocates for animal and worker welfare in kashrut, has been addressing concerns with Agriprocessors since 2006.  He formed a commission of inquiry with the support of the Conservative movement's leadership that visited the Iowa plant and made recommendations to its owners. His complaints: "Pregnant women working on their feet all day were denied bathroom breaks; injured workers lacked proper medical care; and, accounting machinations deprived workers of payment for all clocked hours."  After the raid, Rabbi Allan returned to Postville to meet community leaders, clergy, and workers awaiting deportation.

GREATER JEWISH COMMUNITY
*After People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) released recent, undercover video footage of  systematic animal abuse at Agriprocessors - footage that caught the attention of the U.S.D.A.- a petition was circulated to rabbis calling on the company to stop moving animals or performing any procedure on them after shechita and before loss of  consciousness.  It also urged "the Orthodox Union and other kosher certification agencies to institute specific, public guidelines for the humane treatment of animals in all the facilities they certify."
http://www.goveg.com/feat/agriprocessors/index.asp

*American Jewish Youth Organizations and summer camps that joined the boycott of Agriprocessors meat include: BBYO, Habonim Dror, Ramah, Camp Interlaken JCC, and Young Judaea.

*HIAS President and CEO Gideon Aronoff issued a statement at a Postville Immigration Raid Press Conference calling "for an end to the current de facto illegal immigration system. This system only results in chaos and death on the borders, exploitation and insecurity in communities throughout the country, and haphazard state and local laws. Instead of this illegality, we are calling for federal immigration reform."
http://www.hias.org/news/statement-gideon-aronoff-president-amp-ceo-hias-postville-immigration-raid-press-conference

CROSS-DENOMINATIONAL
*The Shalom Center, directed by Rabbi Arthur Waskow, prominent advocate of the eco-kashrut movement (applying ecological standards to the consumption of food, coal, oil, etc.) has on its website original commentary and Agriprocessors-related resources. They offer a template letter to the editor: "I urge that Federal authorities take vigorous action against the owners to the full extent of the law, while dropping criminal charges against workers caught in this oppressive bind." To read the complete letter and send, fill in your zip code: http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/602/t/4180/letter/?letter_KEY=985

Agriprocessors Resources http://www.shalomctr.org/taxonomy/term/164

JEWISH SOCIAL JUSTICE ORGANIZATIONS
*The Jewish Labor Committee issued a statement that says, in part: "We call on Agriprocessors to live up to the responsibilities of corporate citizenship, end its campaign of worker abuse, and respect the rights of its employees including their legal right to union representation. Until Agriprocessors establishes its commitment to these responsibilities, we urge consumers of kosher meat products to seek alternatives to the Rubashkin labels." http://www.jewishlaborcommittee.org/2008/05/agriprocessors_jlc_policy_stat_1.html

*A Consortium of Jewish Social Justice Groups issued a press release on the plight of immigrant workers. "As Jews, our history compels us to stand up for justice, whether it affects us directly or indirectly.  We stand by immigrant communities who - much like our own - have come to this country seeking a better life for themselves and their families, oftentimes escaping violence, war, and crushing poverty.  Together, we are organizing communities for comprehensive federal immigration reform and to avert future raids."

Organizations included: Hekhsher Tzedek; Jewish Community Action of St. Paul, MN; MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger; Hazon; KOL Foods; Jewish Council on Urban Affairs; Jews United for Justice; and, the Progressive Jewish Alliance. 
http://www.hazon.org/go.php?q=/food/agriprocessorsStatement.html

*Jewish Council on Urban Affairs (JCUA) of Chicago launched a relief campaign to help provide food, housing, and legal assistance for some 250 families, including 500 children, affected by the raid in Postville.  They also are organizing members of Chicago's Jewish community to travel to Postville, Iowa for a solidarity rally and march on July 27 in support of workers at Agriprocessors. 

JCUA Statement on Postville immigration raid
http://www.jcua.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=5319

JCUA's Agriprocessors Fact Sheet
http://www.jcua.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=5320

Relief Campaign
https://secure2.convio.net/jcua/site/Donation2?idb=1070744612&df_id=1241&1241.donation=form1&JServSessionIdr009=lfxikysy71.app14a

*Jewish Community Action (JCA) of St. Paul is also collecting funds for humanitarian assistance for workers and their families affected by the raids and organizing members of the Twin Cities Jewish community to participate in the July 27 rally and march in Postville.  They have extensive information about Agriprocessors including an FAQ on their website: http://www.jewishcommunityaction.org.
   
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Agriprocessors, Inc. Website: http://www.agriprocessor.com/

National Commission on ICE Misconduct and Violation of 4th Amendment Rights
http://www.icemisconduct.org/icemisconduct/about_the_commission/index.cfm

"Liberal Jewish groups organizing immigration rally at Iowa kosher plant," by Ben Harris, jta.org, July 1, 2008
http://jta.org/cgi-bin/iowa/news/article/2008072120080721agrirally.html

"Interpreting after the Largest ICE Raid in US History:  A Personal Account," by Erik Camayd-Freicas, PH.D, Florida International University, June 13, 2008
http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/crimprof_blog/2008/07/interpreting-af.html

"Immigration Raid Jars a Small Town," by Spence S. Hsu, Washington Post, May 18, 2008
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/17/AR2008051702474.html

"Kosher Slaughterhouse Hit With Lawsuits," by Nathaniel Popper, Forward, May 18, 2007 http://www.forward.com/articles/kosher-slaughterhouse-hit-with-lawsuits/

"In Iowa Meat Plant, Kosher 'Jungle' Breeds Fear, Injury, Short Pay," by Nathaniel Popper, Forward, May 26, 2006
http://www.forward.com/articles/in-iowa-meat-plant-kosher-'jungle'-breeds-fea/

Postville: A Clash of Cultures in Heartland America, by Stephen G. Bloom, Harvest Books, 2001

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