Left to Right: BBI Executive Vice President Daniel S. Mariaschin, President Moishe Smith, and Honorary President Seymour Reich (far right) presenting William Korey with his award.

The 2008 B'nai B'rith International (BBI) Policy Conference took a comprehensive look at "B'nai B'rith at 165: Meeting the Needs of a Changing World." The sessions concentrated on issues affecting both local and global communities in these uncertain times. The conference took place in New York City, Dec. 7-9.

Highlights of the conference included visits to the historic Museum at Eldridge Street on the Lower East Side and the United Nations building; and speeches from The Forward newspaper's Editorial Director J.J. Goldberg; Institute for the Analysis of Global Security Executive Director Gal Luft, Ph.D.; U.N. Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs B. Lynn Pascoe; and Mexican U.N. Ambassador Claude Heller.

Recognition            

At the U.N. Day events on Dec. 9, Pascoe read a letter from U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who was unable to attend. "You are good partners of the Organization," Ban stated in his letter, "and indeed have been with us since our very founding, and I welcome your active engagement in our work."

The secretary-general also acknowledged two anniversaries coinciding with the conference—the 60th anniversaries of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the United Nations' adoption of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. To read the rest of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's letter, click here.

On Dec. 8, B'nai B'rith presented the inaugural award for Outstanding Contribution to Relations with the Jewish People to Father Patrick Desbois, secretary for Relations with Judaism of the French Conference of Catholic Bishops and president of Yahad—In Unum; and to Eugene Fisher, former associate director of the Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Desbois has been internationally recognized for his extraordinary efforts to identify and preserve Holocaust-era massacre sites across Ukraine, while Fisher has long served as the United States' only full-time professional focused on the transformed engagement between Catholics and Jews.

Also on Dec. 8, William Korey, Ph.D., B'nai B'rith's first director of its United Nations office and a former head of BBI policy and research, was given the Champion of Human Rights award for his decades of work toward ensuring human rights for all peoples internationally.

In addition, BBI awarded a certificate of recognition to Warren Miller for his efforts to protect and preserve various sites important to the foreign heritage of Americans through the United States Commission on America's Heritage Abroad.

Back to Our Roots

The three-day event opened with a narrated bus tour of New York's Lower East Side, including stops at the tenement at 97 Orchard Street, which housed an estimated 7,000 immigrants from 1863-1935; the old offices of The Daily Forward, a Yiddish language newspaper catering to the newly arrived Jewish population; and the corner of Hester and Essex streets, the former home of Sinsheimer's Café, where B'nai B'rith was born.

Left to Right: Hasia Diner, Mariaschin, and Cornelia Wilhelm at the historic Museum at Eldridge Street.

The tour concluded at the Museum at Eldridge Street, a landmark synagogue on the Lower East Side where many immigrants came to worship. Anne Pollard, author of the newly released book "Landmark of the Spirit: The Eldridge Street Synagogue," provided details on the importance of the synagogue to the community in the early 20th century. BBI Executive Vice President Daniel S. Mariaschin opened the conference with a discussion of the principals B'nai B'rith was founded upon and how those ideals remain today.

Cornelia Wilhelm, Ph.D., author of "German Jews in America: Civil Self-Awareness and Jewish Identity in the Fraternal Orders B'nai B'rith and True Sisters, 1843-1914," and a visiting professor at Rutgers University, addressed the conference, touching upon B'nai B'rith's history and the organization's impact on the Jewish community and civil society. Hasia Diner, Ph.D., director of the Goldstein-Goren Center for Jewish History, followed with a lecture on the historical presence of German Jews in the Lower East Side, a topic which has not been studied much in academia.

United States Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) talked about the importance of bringing peace to the Middle East through education and oil independence, while a representative spoke on behalf of Rep. Yvette D. Clarke (D- N.Y.), who could not attend the event.

Pressing Issues and Changing Perspectives

Left to Right: BBI Associate Executive Vice President Mark D. Olshan; chair of the Center for Senior Services Rosalind Klein; senior advocate Natalie Gordon; Assistant Professor Michael K. Gusmano of the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center; and Director of Faithful Reform in Health Care Rev. Linda Hanna Walling.

The Dec. 8 program featured speakers discussing shifting policies, both domestically and abroad. Goldberg of The Forward noted the challenges facing the incoming U.S. presidential administration in the foreign policy arena, with a focus on how current economic struggles will affect diplomacy. Luft presented his ideas on how America can improve its foreign relations by lessening its dependence on foreign oil, both through the use of electric cars and the installation of "flex fuel" run cars, which would utilize a combination of alcohol and gasoline.

A panel comprised of Brother's Brother Foundation Director Luke Hingson; B'nai B'rith World Center Director and IsraAID board member Alan Schneider; and Vice Chair of the B'nai B'rith Cuban Jewish Relief Project Stuart Cooper, discussed involvement in humanitarian issues. Next came a discussion focusing on how to ensure healthcare for the future. The panel included senior advocate Natalie Gordon; Assistant Professor Michael K. Gusmano of the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center; founder and Director of Faithful Reform in Health Care Rev. Linda Hanna Walling; and BBI Associate Executive Vice President Mark D. Olshan, Ph.D.

Focus on the U.N.

On Dec. 9, the focus of the conference shifted to the United Nations. Two panels on U.N. affairs began the day. The first was led by Ambassador Joseph E. Harari, BBI chair of United Nations Affairs; Aaron Etra, BBI vice chair of United Nations Affairs; and Sybil Sanchez, BBI director of United Nations Affairs. William Korey then moderated a discussion on improving the effectiveness of the U.N. Human Rights Council between B'nai B'rith Canada Senior Legal Counsel David Matas; Israeli Mission to the U.N. Counselor Meirav Elon Shachar; and U.S. Special Representative for Social Issues Ambassador Grover Joseph Rees.

Left to Right: Ambassador Joseph E. Harari, BBI chair of United Nations Affairs; Aaron Etra, vice chair of United Nations Affairs; and Sybil Sanchez, director of United Nations Affairs.”

The B'nai B'rith Jess and Mildred Fisher Memorial Endowment Fund luncheon at the United Nations building was the scene of two special luncheon speakers. Following the reading of Secretary-General Ban's letter to B'nai B'rith, Mexican Ambassador to the U.N. Heller spoke on his country's agenda at the U.N. Security Council, U.N. reform, combating terrorism, and the situation in the Middle East.

After the luncheon, a delegation of B'nai B'rith members visited the Canadian mission to the United Nations, meeting with top officials to discuss issues ranging from the Iranian nuclear situation to the horrors in Darfur. Mariaschin extended the organization's gratitude to the Canadian government for its principled stand against the Durban II conference.

The Policy Conference was followed by the New York Global Round Table, a discussion forum comprised largely of Jewish young leaders held under BBI auspices. The evening's focus, "When Disaster Strikes: The Challenges of Humanitarian Assistance," was led by speakers Pat Banks, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Human Affairs (OCHA) chief of advocacy and information; Patrick Gordon, OCHA advocacy and information technical coordinator; Gerald Martone, International Rescue Committee director of humanitarian affairs; and BBI's Director the World Center in Jerusalem, Alan Schneider.