The Shrinking Democratic Space

Germantown Jewish Centre is pleased to present the 2nd annual Brenda Laigaie Memorial Speakers Program.

The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) is the nation’s oldest, largest human rights organization, and the only one dealing with the entire spectrum of rights and civil liberties issues in Israel and the Occupied Territories. For almost five decades, ACRI has been committed to protecting the most vulnerable and strengthening Israel’s democracy. Sharon Abraham-Weiss, ACRI’s Executive Director, will discuss the shrinking democratic space in Israel, which is disproportionately affecting ethnic minorities, women, LGBTQI, and other such communities, and how ensuring Israel’s accountability and respect for human rights will, in turn, strengthen its delicate democracy. To learn more about ACRI, follow this link.

Attorney Sharon Abraham-Weiss took the helm of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) in May 2014. Sharon brings a wealth of experience to the job, including seven years as staff attorney at ACRI (2001-2008). Sharon represented ACRI in many principle cases, among them dealing with land issues, socio-economic dignity, and worker’s rights. Upon completion of her previous position at ACRI, Sharon founded and headed the Corporate Social Responsibility Clinic at the Academic Center of Law and Business. From 2009 to 2014,  Sharon served as the Tel Aviv and Central Israel Region Equal Employment Opportunity Commissioner. Sharon was among the founders and a board member of “Itach-Maaki – Women lawyers for social justice” for seven years. In 2005, she was featured in The Marker newspaper as one of the top 10 most influential people working for social change in Israel. In May 2014 she was featured in the Ha’Aretz newspaper as one of 66 prominent women leaders in Israel. Sharon holds a Masters degree in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School, where she was a Wexner fellow, an LL.M Magna Cum Laude from Tel Aviv University, and LL.B and B.Sc degrees from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Sharon is married to artist Yoav Weiss and they have 2 daughters. The family lives in Tel Aviv.

The Brenda Laigaie Memorial Speakers Program
At GJC we strive to build a community that is inviting and welcoming to all who come through our doors and that continually expands our capacity to learn together about the vast world of Jewish life and thought. In her years of dedication to our congregation, both in her capacity as a chair of the membership committee as well as through her presence, Brenda embodied these values in her warm engagement with everyone she met and in her continued interest in learning herself and in facilitating the learning of others. Through the generosity of Brenda’s family, Germantown Jewish Centre is honored to present the second annual program in Brenda’s memory.

Germantown Jewish Centre extends thanks and gratitude to Brenda’s family for sponsoring this program, and to the Wolf Family Foundation for their generous support in all GJC programming.

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