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May is Jewish American Heritage Month 2023

 
DANA DEROUCHEY
May is Jewish American Heritage Month 2023
by DANA DEROUCHEY - Tuesday, May 2, 2023, 4:28 PM
 

Jewish American Heritage Month

In recognition of this year’s Jewish American Heritage Month, Team AgLearn is providing information and resources to encourage engagement with this important annual commemoration.

Background 

On April 20, 2006, President George W. Bush proclaimed that May would be Jewish American Heritage Month. The announcement was the crowning achievement in an effort by the Jewish Museum of Florida and South Florida Jewish community leaders that resulted in resolutions introduced by Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida and Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania urging the president to proclaim a month that would recognize the more than 350-year history of Jewish contributions to American culture. The resolutions passed unanimously, first in the House of Representatives in December 2005 and later in the Senate in February 2006.

The month of May was chosen due to the highly successful celebration of the 350th Anniversary of American Jewish History in May 2004, which was organized by the Commission for Commemorating 350 Years of American Jewish History. This coalition was composed of the Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives External Link, the American Jewish Historical Society External Link, the Library of Congress External Link and the National Archives and Records Administration External Link.

Leading the way in implementation of the annual celebration is the Jewish American Heritage Month Coalition, formed in March 2007 and convened by United Jewish Communities, the Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives, and the American Jewish Historical Society.

AgLearn Resources

 
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