NORTHAMPTON — Eight state legislators gathered at Congregation B’nai Israel for the Tikkun Olam Committee’s Seventh Annual Legislative Luncheon to discuss social justice issues with the synagogue’s members on Friday.
Sen. Eric Lesser, D-Longmeadow, emphasized the importance of bringing together legislators and community members.
“We’re living in very challenging times, and people need to feel empowered,” Lesser said. “They need to know that their voice matters, their opinions matter, and that there are elected officials from our region that care deeply about bringing change to our communities. It’s a great dialogue. We heard many different perspectives, and I really enjoyed it.”
While lunching on salad, fruit and pastries, congregants spoke intimately with lawmakers — including Lesser, Sens. Jo Comerford and Adam Hinds, and Reps. Lindsay Sabadosa, Natalie Blais, Dan Carey, Mindy Domb and Aaron Vega — about topics directly affecting the community. Following introductions by each legislator, the event opened up to a Q&A session. The speakers stressed the need for collaboration.
“We need to work together, and we need to fight together to get things done,” said Carey, D-Easthampton.
The session focused on seven topics relevant to the community and the committee: criminal justice reform, economic justice, environmental justice, food justice, health care reform, immigration, and protecting democracy and people. “Tikkun olam” means “repair the world” in Hebrew.
Questions primarily revolved around taxes, health care, and guarding democracy. The event has grown from around 50 attendees in its first year to around 100 on Friday.
Pamela Schwartz, co-chair of the committee, has witnessed the effects that the event has had over the years.
“We have seen substantial progress in various priority areas, such as criminal justice reform, our economic justice platform (increase in minimum wage, family paid medical leave), food justice, and so on,” Schwartz wrote in an e-mail to the Gazette.
“It energizes people; it brings people together,” Amy Wolpin, a member of the committee, said of the event. “I worked on several of the campaigns for these legislators. It’s great to see them in their new roles and to have the opportunity to speak to them as our legislators, not just as candidates.”