To read our 2010 - 2011 Tikkun Olam: Social Action Brochure CLICK HERE
About Social Action at Temple Isaiah
For 67 years, our congregation has maintained a formidable social action program bringing to its pulpit such notables as Mme. Indira Gandhi, Senator Robert Kennedy, Eleanor Roosevelt, Martin Luther King, Jr., Rabbi Maurice Eisendrath, Senator Eugene McCarthy, Cesar Chavez, Rabbi Albert Vorspan, Rabbi David Saperstein, and many others.
For many years Temple Isaiah and the First African Methodist Episcopal Church conducted an annual pulpit exchange. The exchange program led to other cooperative ventures between the two congregations, including a joint legal-aid clinic helping thousands of clients with free legal advice.
In 1969 Temple Isaiah established a program in preventive mental health for young people in West Los Angeles. The program began under the name “Robert J. Green Contact Center” and offered self-awareness groups for teenagers, public lectures on drug abuse, parent-child relationships and a referral service for individuals, couples and families.
Temple Isaiah was one of the first congregations to join the Jewish World Watch, a multi-denomination organization which fights egregious human atrocities around the globe. Many of the founders of PATH, People Assisting the Homeless, are Temple Isaiah members. Temple Isaiah has also formed a strong supportive commitment to Beyond Shelter, which assists homeless families to find permanent low-income housing.
We continue to serve our greater community in Los Angeles through partnerships with Jewish Family Service, SOVA Food Pantries, Baby2Baby, Big Sunday and Jewish World Watch. The Temple Isaiah Green Team helps to sustain a culture of environmental stewardship, education and advocacy.
In October 2007, Temple Isaiah joined One-LA IAF, a broad-based, non-partisan organization of dues-paying member congregations, schools, unions and non-profits committed to building power for sustainable social and economic change.
In March 2013, the board resolved to support the work of the Temple’s Gun Legislation Advocacy Committee (G.L.A.C.) which, on behalf of the Temple, would support the spirit of President Obama’s plan “Now Is The Time,” and invite members to participate in letter-writing campaigns, phone banking, lobby visits, and educational forums.