“Every human being— documented and undocumented, trans and cis, male and female and nonbinary, Black and brown and white, working class and wealthy, abled and disabled, religious and secular— every human being is made in the divine image. At West End Synagogue, we will continue to affirm and protect the dignity, safety and inherent worth of every human being who comes through our doors.” – Rabbi Emily Cohen

West End Synagogue is a progressive community where people from every background are welcome. Our membership includes LGBTQ+ individuals, people of color, interfaith families, Jews by choice, people from Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox traditions, Ashkenazi, Sephardi, and Mizrahi Jews, non-practicing Jews, atheists, and agnostics as important and active parts of our family.

While we celebrate the diversity of our community throughout the year, we also take deliberate opportunities to highlight specific issues and peoples both during services and in learning opportunities. For example, throughout the month of June, at Shabbat we feature writings from LGBTQ+ members of the community, culminating in Pride Shabbat at the end of the month. WES has also hosted a Racial Justice Salon to engage with and discuss readings by and about racially marginalized peoples.

Along with other Reconstructionist communities, we recognize that we have much more work to do, and are committed to pursuing ways to expand access to Jewish life and community.

lhuttner [at] gmail.com (Please let us know) if you have any ideas that you’d like to explore, or if you are interested in furthering our efforts in any areas of diversity and inclusion.