Youth play an important role in shaping history

By Adrienne Jacobson, Chairperson, Cape SAJBD

June marks the midpoint of our calendar year, the winter solstice when day and night are in equilibrium, the weather is chilly, nature goes into hibernation and we spend more time indoors. 

It’s a good time to pause and take stock, realign, refresh and refocus if necessary. It’s a good time to reflect on the goals and commitments we set for ourselves as a Board during our January induction and strategy workshop — are we on track?

The King’s Coronation saw a gathering of the world’s great leaders and contributors to humanity. King Charles III’s leadership pledge of Service, Equality, Diversity and Visionary Sustainability speaks of community building, the protection of religious rights and freedom of worship.

During the event, the Archbishop of Canterbury said, “Service is love in action”. Well, I wonder if anyone slipped him the notes from our induction session with Ian Fuhr on Cultureneering where we focused on building a strong team culture and community understanding that lays the platform for great community service. As leadership, we pledge the following: we are here to serve, build community, and protect religious rights and freedoms. The five most relevant values that we identified are, like His Majesty: ethical leadership, relationship- and community-building, accountability, and sustainability. 

Our Antisemitism and Legal subcommittee, under the capable leadership of vice-chair Simone Sulcas, has been at the forefront of protecting our civil rights. We are creating positive change by fighting hate speech and antisemitism, and shifting narratives into peace, tolerance and respect for all. 

16 June marks National Youth Day with the 47th anniversary of the student uprising in Soweto, which ended tragically when hundreds of young, peacefully-demonstrating students were brutally killed. To advocate for a right not to have Afrikaans imposed as a medium of instruction, and against apartheid laws of segregated education was simply to ask for a space to be educated appropriately where one could grow, learn and make a positive impact — a right that is supposed to be fully and constitutionally entrenched today at all educational institutions across South Africa. 

As we commemorate the contribution of those brave students who gave their lives in the struggle for liberation from Apartheid South Africa, I can’t help but reflect with sadness on the recent Israel Apartheid Week that took place on UCT campus. It was a particularly difficult and intimidating week for our students as they faced a barrage of hate, hypocrisy and distortion of facts around apartheid, and encountered events and protests where fundamentalist organisations crossed a line with terrorist organisations addressing students and promoting conspiracist, hate-filled and antisemitic narratives. 

Our executive committee is meeting regularly with UCT Leadership, together with our talented youth leader Erin Dodo, Chair of SAUJS for the Western Cape, to maintain and build a working relationship to address this, where playing fields can be levelled and rules of engagement enforced. We are working together to put firm boundaries in place where meaningful and respectful engagement can occur, and open, empathetic and honest relationships can develop. 

We need to learn a lesson from the Soweto uprising, about the important role that youth leadership should be playing in the fight against hate, intolerance and prejudice, and creating safe spaces for learning at university campuses. By working together and promoting tolerance and understanding we can build a better future for all. 

A Mazal Tov to the new Student Leadership Council at Herzlia. Wishing you all a meaningful and growth-filled term and looking forward to interacting and seeing the exciting projects to come. 

Wishing all our community members a June midpoint of taking a breath and recalibrating, realigning with your personal goals and a good mid-year break. 

May we celebrate spending time with our youth, children, grandchildren, young adults and family. May we kleib nachas from their talents and achievements, and watch with pride as they create meaningful change for our future.

Cape SA Jewish Board of Deputies website: www.capesajbd.org, Instagram, and Facebook page.


• Published in the June 2023 issue – Click here to start reading.

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