Rabbis for Human Rights groups split

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Rabbis for Human Rights-North America has changed its name and ended its financial and formal ties with Rabbis for Human Rights in Israel.

The North American group will be known as T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, as of Tuesday, the organization said in a statement.

Some 1,800 rabbis and cantors in the United States and Canada are affiliated with the 10-year-old organization, as are about 10,000 American and Canadian Jews. The Israeli group was formed in 1988.

“In recent years, both organizations have grown exponentially, and have been powerful voices in bringing Jewish values to bear on today’s human rights dilemmas,” said Rabbi Jill Jacobs, executive director of T’ruah. “We believe this transition will help both groups to flourish and to have an even more significant impact on human rights in Israel and North America.”

While the two organizations have maintained separate boards, staffs and legal status, their formal and fiscal relationship has confused supporters, T’ruah said in its statement. The transition seeks to resolve the confusion, as well as to allow each organization to focus on its own strategies and priorities, the statement said.

T’ruah is a blast of nine staccato notes blown on the shofar.