Blog Posts Related to the American Jewish Community

At First Meeting, President's Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships Takes Up Issue of Human Trafficking

The President's Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships meets in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on July 31, 2012. From left: The Most Rev. Dr. Katharine Jefferts Schori, Presiding Bishop, Episcopal Church; Council Chair Susan K. Stern, American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee and Jewish Federations of North America; and Joshua DuBois, Special Assistant to the President and Executive Director of the Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships. July 31, 2012. (by Millicent Cripe)

Every year tens of millions of people around the world are victims of human trafficking.

Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery where traffickers profit from the control and exploitation of other people.  It fundamentally boils down to somebody held in compelled service for someone else’s profit-- from commercial sex to forced labor.  Every year, human traffickers generate billions of dollars in profits by victimizing millions of people around the world – including right here in the United States.

The issue of trafficking in persons and modern day slavery will be the focus of the President’s Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.  This year’s President’s Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships held its first meeting Monday and Tuesday, July 30-31^st at the White House.  The Advisory Council is a group of diverse religious and non-profit leaders appointed to give recommendations to government on forming effective partnerships with faith-based and community groups. 

“Here is what trafficking looks like in the real world,” Alison Friedman, Deputy Director of the State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, shared in opening remarks, “It’s a kid who was forced to dive for fish since he was five—beaten over the head with oars if he surfaces too quickly and when he makes it to the shelter and is taught to sing ‘If You’re Happy and You Know It,’ but he doesn’t know how to smile.  It’s a woman in Texas forced into prostitution by a group of men who targeted single mothers through their children’s daycare. It’s the boy I met in Northern Thailand who became a child soldier because he could not come up with a $14 bribe to pay off the police, so they sold him.”

President Obama Signs the United States-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act

President Barack Obama signs S. 2165, the United States-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act in the Oval Office, July 27, 2012. With the President from left are: Richard Stone, Chairman, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations; Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.; Howard Friedman, past Chair of the Board, American Israel Public Affairs Committee, (AIPAC);, Rep. Howard Berman, D-Calif., and Lee Rosenberg, Chairman of the Board, AIPAC. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

This morning, President Obama signed the United States-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act with an eye toward helping to strengthen the military edge Israel currently enjoys.

"I have made it a top priority for my administration to deepen cooperation with Israel across the whole spectrum of security issues -- intelligence, military, technology," the President said. "And, in many ways, what this legislation does is bring together all the outstanding cooperation that we have seen, really, at an unprecedented level between our two countries that underscore our unshakeable commitment to Israel security."

The cooperation between the United States and Israel includes joint training exercises, offering access to U.S. military hardware, and direct foreign military financing.

To learn more, check out the fact sheet.

President Obama Again Pushes Congress to Act on Student Loans

President Barack Obama, with Education Secretary Arne Duncan, delivers a statement on college affordability and interest rates on student loans, in the East Room of the White House, June 21, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

Time is running out for Congress to take actions to stop the rates on federal student loans from doubling on July 1.

That's why President Obama spoke today from the East Room of the White House about the importance of keeping college affordable.

"If Congress does not get this done in a week, the average student with federal student loans will rack up an additional $1,000 in debt over the coming year," he said. "If Congress fails to act, more than 7 million students will suddenly be hit with the equivalent of a $1,000 tax hike. And that’s not something that you can afford right now."

In his remarks, the President also stressed the importance of taking this step for the broader economy. It's not just that those students will suddenly have less money to spend -- it's that we need to have the best educated workforce in the world, and keeping higher education affordable helps to make that possible.

After the event with the President, Mark Zuckerman, the deputy director of the Domestic Policy Council, took to Twitter to answer your questions about student loans and college affordability in a White House Office Hours.

You can see that discussion on Storify.

Learn More

• President Obama Asks Students to Tell Congress: #DontDoubleMyRate