This year’s Labor in the Pulpits and Labor on the Bimah program kicked-off at the DC Jewish Community Center on Tuesday night with an Interfaith Dialogue on Workers’ Rights, during which four panelists representing the Christian, Buddhist, Jewish and Muslim faiths discussed the topic of “caring for caregivers.” The event featured comments by a series of followed by small group text discussions. rnrn
Panelists included Rev. Noemi Mena, pastor for Hispanic Ministry at National City Christian Church in Downtown DC; Dr. Soval Tun, President of the Cambodian Buddhist Society in Silver Spring; Rabbi Greg Harris, associate rabbi at Congregation Beth-El in Bethesda; and Sister Asma Hanif, Executive Director of Muslimat Al-Nisaa, INC, a health, & shelter organization providing culturally sensitive services and programs for Muslim women and children. rnrnSmall group discussions after the panel used texts from each tradition as a starting point for discussing the treatment of workers in our communities. rnrnThe evening ended with a call to action to support workers at ManorCare nursing home facilities in Maryland and Virginia. Jews United for Justice, which organized the event with Interfaith Worker Justice of Greater Washington, has been working with SEIU to educate the community about the undignified conditions suffered by staff in ManorCare facilities. ManorCare, the largest nursing home chain in the country, was recently bought out by the Carlyle Group – and working conditions for nursing home staff have deteriorated as a result.rn
