According to the Credit Union National Association (CUNA), that is the amount of new money deposited in credit unions between September 29 and November 2. To quote the late Senator Everett Dirksen, “A billion here, a billion there, pretty soon you’re talking about real money.”
The 650,000 people who moved this money into credit unions understood something simple and significant: what we do with our money matters. They understood that if enough individuals and institutions act on this insight, together we can make a real difference.
As the Occupy Wall Street protests and the 99% movement near the two month mark this week, they have inspired hundreds of thousands of people to move from protest to policy. This shift is laudable, and to help those inspired to make their money work on behalf of a more equitable society, PJA & JFSJ has created a user friendly guide to community investing. Our hope is that this will be a valuable resource; already Rebuild the Dream has shared our guide with the more than 70,000 people who they have signed on to move their money to financial institutions that align with their values.
PJA & JFSJ has long preached what Jeffrey Dekro dubbed the “Torah of Money.” Judaism, according to Dekro, President of our Tzedec Community Investment Program, has something to say about how we use our money, and specifically that Jewish law and tradition ask us to invest in socially responsible ways and to engage in righteous giving, or tzedakah. This concept undergirds Tzedec and 8th Degree, two programs that help Jews and Jewish institutions invest in the creation of affordable housing and the growth of small businesses in underserved communities. These financial investments also complement our investments in community organizing and leadership training programs like the Jeremiah Fellowship, whose participants have been deeply involved in advocating for affordable housing and fair employment practices for years.
A recent New York Times article profiled the important work that the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia, an Isaiah Fund investor, is doing together with the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility, of which we are a member, to positively influence corporate policies and actions. You can read more here.
If you have been watching the 99% movement with interest, wondering what you can do to turn the widespread desire for a truly fair economy into tangible action, consider aligning your pocketbook with your politics. Perhaps the Jewish community can lead the way in showing what it looks like when we all invest in the American Dream.
