Partner Spotlight:
Jewish Community Relations Council
of Greater Phoenix
A Jewish Community Unwinds Disinformation
The Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of Greater Phoenix has been active in supporting voting rights and practices since 2020 – and today, they are ensuring that others in Arizona can have faith in local election systems.
Amid unfounded allegations of election impropriety, the JCRC of Greater Phoenix led a tour of the Maricopa County tabulation center to help provide a clearer understanding of local election processes and reduce misinformation.
“We do a lot of public diplomacy and strategic communications, and we understand our role is to help amplify and empower voices in the community,” said Executive Director Paul Rockower. “That’s why we’re giving leaders in the community the tools to push back on misinformation and disinformation, so they can speak with authority on what the election process entails.”
The tour was the brainchild of Rabbi Suzy Stone, who established the JCRC’s voting rights committee and saw an opportunity to support the democratic process in one of the nation’s most closely-contested states – especially in an environment where lies about mishandled election processes can create a furor.
Strategic Priorities: Civic Learning; Free, Fair, Safe, and Accessible Elections
Network Commitment: The JCRC of Greater Phoenix organized election office tours for community members to gain a better understanding of election mechanics and reduce misinformation.
Partner since: 2023
The 40-person tour included both Jewish and non-Jewish local leaders, as the JCRC wanted to make sure other communities could benefit from the opportunity to learn more about how elections work in Maricopa County.
“We had leaders from the African American community, the LGBTQ community, the Latino community,” said Executive Director Paul Rockower. “All of us were able to see the reality behind the election cycle so that we can help make clear what is fact and what is fiction.”
Rockower sees this work as critical to the safety of the Jewish community in Arizona and across the United States.
“The Jewish community is safest when we have a healthy civil society and strong democratic norms and values,” said Rockower. “When conspiracy theories are rife, when there’s mistrust, that’s where antisemitism flourishes.”
By illuminating reality at the local level, the JCRC can support productive conversations that aren’t tainted by national discord.
“Our work is local, local, local,” said Rockower. “So much of what we do at JCRC involves trying to disconnect the national tenor from the local reality. The truth is that we have a very professional elections process here at the local level – so the more we can ground people’s fears around elections and voting and give them thorough information, the better.”
“Our goal was to provide community and faith leaders a platform to learn about the myriad of ways Maricopa county is ensuring free, fair and protected elections,” said Stone. “They already have a voice as trusted advisors to the communities they lead, and they could have an exponential effect on disseminating trusted information ahead of the 2024 election.”
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What is transpartisanship?
We believe that protecting and strengthening American democracy is not a partisan issue.
That's why we pursue our work in a spirit of transpartisanship, which rejects the "us vs. them" mindset that characterizes so many political conversations.
We believe that whatever issues we care about individually – from religious freedom to climate change to fair elections – we all have a stake in American self-governance. Engaging effectively in self-governance requires respect and compromise, and we can only exercise these muscles when we focus on what brings us together rather than what sets us apart.
Ultimately, transpartisanship is both an approach and a commitment – to ourselves, to each other, and to future generations.
