The Mitzvah of Voting, Part 3

Welcome to the third and final entry in our series, The Mitzvah of Voting. It's October 2020 your favorite Jewish kidlit authors want all eligible US citizens to vote in the upcoming Presidential election, and listeners around the world to vote in their own local elections. My author guests will be sharing why they vote and they'll give you some recommendations for ways to keep democracy healthy. This time, we will leave you with some musical inspiration to carry you through Election Day. Listen to PART 1 | PART 2

One of today's guests, Sarah Aroeste, is not only an author, she's also a singer songwriter who performs in Ladino, the Judeo-Spanish dialect that became the tongue of Spanish Jews after their expulsion from Spain in 1492. We'll hear Gracia, a tribute to the medieval Sephardic heroine, Doña Gracia Nasi who lived in the 1500s and saved hundreds of Jews from the Inquisition. The main idea of the song is that activists of the past inspire us to activism in our own time. See the lyrics below. 

 

Guest authors include:

• Gail Carson Levine, author of Ella Enchanted and A Ceiling Made of Eggshells
• Lesléa Newman, author of Gittel's Journey: An Ellis Island Story
• Evan Wolkenstein, author of Turtle Boy
• Sue Macy, author of The Book Rescuer
• Sarah Aroeste, author of Buen Shabat, Shabbat Shalom and singer/songwriter of Gracia
  

 Resources mentioned by guests include:

• The Matthew Shepard Foundation
• SURJ: Standing Up for Racial Justice
• Reclaim Our Vote
• Doña Gracia Nasi
  

CLICK HERE TO READ THE TRANSCRIPT

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE PODCAST

ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF GRACIA: 

You give us grace
You give us life
You give us promise
You give us bravery
You give us strength
You give us defiance

You give us command
You give us voice
You give us inspiration
You give us esteem
You give us value
You give us admiration

Chorus:
Because of you we have the
Honor, fight, effect;
Because of you we stand with
Power, height, respect

Some have the deeds, some have the fame–
You have both and the same.

CREDITS:

• Produced by: Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel  
• Theme music: The Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band   
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