Host a postcard party in your Sukkah!
September 17, 2026
Dear Friend,
I’m so grateful for the High Holidays right now. Gathering with neighbors, friends, and strangers alike is an antidote to authoritarianism.
Trump and the MAGA movement have fomented so much division and fear this past decade. I know I feel it, even in my own family.
The goal of 🪬All Hands: Jews for Election Protection🪬 is to bring us together around a shared purpose and Jewish value: stopping a scared and desperate Trump from interfering with elections.
In addition to phonebanking and being a poll worker, we have another option for you: help us reach our goal of 50 POSTCARD PARTIES!
✋ You: Raise your hand by filling out this interest form to host a postcard party.
📦 We: Ship you everything you need — the postcards, stamps, pens, labels, a toolkit, and (everyone’s favorite) stickers!
Here are just a couple of postcard party ideas:
- Already gathering for Sukkot? Add postcarding to the agenda.
- You’re probably in some group chats. Message and ask if anyone wants to write postcards with you.
- Postcarding and brunch go really well together. Invite your favorite people, or open it up to neighbors.
You won’t be doing it alone. These postcard parties are part of a nationwide effort to counter Trump’s efforts to keep voters from getting to the polls, especially Black voters and voters of color.
When you sign up, you’ll get individual support from a Bend the Arc organizer who will personally reach out to walk you through our postcard party toolkit, send you all of the supplies you’ll need, and answer any questions you may have.
Open up your sukkah, kitchen table, or calendar: sign up before October 1 to host a postcard party.
If you made a Rosh Hashanah resolution to spend more time with loved ones or fight fascism, postcard parties are a great way to feed two birds with one challah.
With gratitude and in solidarity,
Rachel Laforest
Chief Campaign Officer, Bend the Arc
P.S. Our election protection work — postcard parties, phonebanks, community trainings, and more — requires resources. Can you chip in with a High Holidays gift to power this work in the critical weeks ahead?
Rosh Hashanah and 9/11: Opening the Book of Life on the Day the Towers Fell
September 11, 2026
At the age of 12, my first date was at the observation deck of the World Trade Center. The view of New York was so beautiful I said the shehecheyanu.
Years later, I still remember the unholy smell in Manhattan after the September 11th attacks — burning wires, melted concrete, organic decay.
This year, Rosh Hashanah begins on the 25th anniversary of 9/11. I shared my reflections in Common Dreams — “Opening the Book of Life on the Day the Towers Fell.”
The devastation that day continues to shake me. We lost so many lives, each a whole universe. Their memories remain a blessing. For a moment in 2001, our country came together — mourning, healing, and supporting one another through an immense tragedy and uncertain future. We could have remained in that place of solidarity.
Instead, many of us accepted lies spread by political leaders who used the machinery of division to grow their power. My Muslim and Arab neighbors experienced an era of unspeakable bigotry and violence. We saw the establishment of ICE. And many across the country, including Jews in my community, were silent.
Today, and especially in this midterm election season, I see the resurgence of this hateful right-wing strategy, and in some cases our Jewish community is still silent, or worse — participating in it.
But Rosh Hashanah and the anniversary of 9/11 are an invitation to change course.
In our election campaign 🪬All Hands: Jews for Election Protection🪬, we use the hamsa — a symbol across Judaism, Islam, and Christianity — as a reminder of our mutual connection and duty to protect one another.
As part of our teshuvah and atonement, we can recognize our failure to protect our Muslim, Arab, Sikh, Black, and immigrant neighbors after 9/11 and do better fighting the same machinery of fear and division today.
We can start by calling out smokescreen antisemitism — when our neighbors like Mahmoud Khalil and Salah Sarsour are targeted in the name of Jewish or American safety, endangering all of us and our democracy.
We can decry disgusting baseless attacks on Muslim and Arab leaders, like from those who told New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani to skip the 9/11 memorial.
We can reach for each other. We can ask for forgiveness, and forgive.
We can march forward together, in solidarity, to build our shared world to come — olam haba.
Shana tova u’metukah, wishing you and yours a sweet new year,
Eli Williams-Szenes
Director of Advocacy and Political Affairs, Bend the Arc
Rosh Hashanah starts tomorrow 🍎🍯
September 10, 2026
Tomorrow night, Jews around the world will welcome the new year, 5787, by reaching for each other and committing to a different path forward. And with Election Day less than 8 weeks away, we have the opportunity right now to build toward the future we want to see.
If you’ve been following along, you know that we’re running a national Jews for Election Protection campaign to protect our democracy for 5787 and beyond.
To continue this work at the scale required between now and Election Day, we need 180 donors to step up. Can we count on you as a Rosh Hashanah donor to help protect our elections in the critical weeks ahead?
Our plan for protecting this year’s election was crafted in consultation with leading democracy experts, but we need your support to make it real. Your Rosh Hashanah gift today will help Jews for Election Protection:
✋ Recruit poll workers (the backbone of our elections)
☎️ Phonebank to get out the vote
🗣️ Run election preparedness trainings
📬 Host postcard parties around the country
💻 Reach tens of thousands of progressive Jews every day
🔥 Respond rapidly to fight election interference
If everyone who got this email donated right now, we’d easily pass our goal. Make a Rosh Hashanah gift of $10, $18, $36, or any other amount today to power All Hands: Jews for Election Protection.
We can’t protect our democracy without you.
Shana tova u’metukah, wishing you and yours a good and sweet new year.
Jamie Beran
CEO, Bend the Arc
PS: Visit allhands2026.org to learn about more ways to get involved in our Jews for Election Protection campaign in 5787!
LAUNCHING 🪬All Hands: Jews for Election Protection🪬
September 8, 2026
🪬All Hands: Jews for Election Protection🪬 has a brand new look!
Welcome to our election campaign, where Jews and allies join together to defend our democracy under our shared symbol of protection: the hamsa. We're going to do even more this year to fight back — especially in the states where election crises are most likely.
FIRST: We recruit poll workers — it takes 1 million of them to run an election. Without poll workers, people can't vote.
THEN: We train up our movement to fight disinformation and protest election interference, including smokescreen antisemitism.
AND OF COURSE: We get out the vote, making sure people have a voting plan and know their vote matters.
Join Jews and allies to protect our elections: Sign up for a volunteer shift or training at AllHands2026.org today.
This election is an all-hands moment, and if we all pitch in to contribute, we can save our democracy.
Forward together,
Eli Williams-Szenes
Director of Advocacy & Political Affairs
Solidarity with our Haitian Neighbors in Springfield, Ohio
September 3, 2026
We stand as Buckeyes and as Jews in solidarity with our Haitian neighbors, who are being directly targeted by the Trump administration’s cruel immigration policies. Our Jewish values and Jewish history demand we take action.
After the Supreme Court’s decision ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian immigrants across the country, ICE has increased detention and deportation raids specifically in Springfield, Ohio. We are seeing neighbors and community members outfitted with ankle monitors, forced to stay home from work and school, and an entire city besieged by roving bands of ICE agents.
We recognize ICE’s tactics of humiliation and creating fear from other dark moments of history. Just this week we saw the very real results of these conditions with the tragic death of Pierre Damas Bel, a young Haitian man in Springfield with dreams of studying medicine. May his memory be for a blessing.
Here are four actions we can take as a network of Jewish progressives at this moment to stand in solidarity with the Haitian community in Springfield:
Call Ohio elected officials and demand the immediate release of two Springfield pastors.
Share this clergy letter addressed to elected officials with rabbis, cantors and faith leaders.
Support the Haitian Support Center as they provide much-needed on the ground resources to those experiencing this violence and trauma in Springfield.*
Phonebank with Bend the Arc on Tuesday, September 8 to help recruit poll workers in Ohio and ensure we have a democracy where all of us, regardless of status, are safe and can thrive.
In Solidarity,
Elliot, on behalf of Bend the Arc: Ohio
P.S. Outraged about Christian nationalism in Ohio? Concerned that antisemitism is being used as a smokescreen for authoritarianism? Worried about the state of electoral democracy this fall? Bend the Arc is bringing together Jewish progressives across the state to organize for the election and beyond. Email [email protected] to learn more and connect with a chapter leader.
*the Haitian Support Center is not affiliated with Bend the Arc or any of its entities; we’re providing this link for informational purposes only.
Let’s talk about AIPAC: join our next training on September 15
September 2, 2026
Thanks to resounding support from people like you all around the country, we met our AIPAC training fundraising goal!
It is clear there’s real hunger for this training in our communities. Jews and allies need to be able to call out the tactics AIPAC uses to avoid valid criticism. But we need to do that without fueling antisemitism.
Talking about AIPAC's influence and tactics can be a challenge for Jews and non-Jews alike, so we are bringing this popular training back. With election season upon us, our movements need these skills now more than ever.
In this training, you’ll learn:
- who AIPAC is and what it does
- why AIPAC’s strategies contribute to real antisemitism
- when criticizing AIPAC is antisemitic, and when it isn’t
- how to talk about AIPAC without fueling antisemitism
I hope you’ll join us to skill up in time for the 2026 midterms. Reserve your spot today for "How to talk about AIPAC without fueling antisemitism" on September 15.
In solidarity,
Carrie Sterns
Director of Education & Praxis, Bend the Arc
“When will this training be offered again?”
August 27, 2026
After last month’s “How to talk about AIPAC without fueling antisemitism” training, we got tons of emails asking: when will this training be offered again?
There is hunger in our communities for a training like this, where Jews and allies can learn to call out smokescreen antisemitism — especially from organizations like AIPAC that claim to speak for us. And with election season upon us, our movements need these skills more than ever.
But here’s the financial reality: each training costs $1,800 to put on, and we only had the budget for one 2026 training on this topic.
In order to offer this training again, we need to raise $1,800 before next week. Can you help us reach our goal so we can run “How to talk about AIPAC without fueling antisemitism” again in September?
Your gift of $5, $10, $18, or any other amount today will help cover:
🧑🏫 bringing in an expert trainer,
✏️ creating materials,
🖥️ Zoom licenses to host hundreds of people,
🚀 digital promotion,
❤️ staff time,
✨ and more.
With gratitude and in solidarity,
Carrie Sterns
Director of Education & Praxis, Bend the Arc
PS: Here’s what people said about our first “How to talk about AIPAC without fueling antisemitism” training:
- Your training on antisemitism and AIPAC was one of the best webinars I ever attended.
- It was one of the most informative webinars I have attended this year.
- Thank you to Bend the Arc for another great educational session!
Learn more and chip in here to help us run the training again in September!
BREAKING: Trump’s latest attack on our elections
August 25, 2026
I have good news and bad news.
The bad news: A scared and desperate Trump is trying to interfere in our elections to protect his power. And yesterday, the Supreme Court upheld one of those attempts.1 We’re also facing a national poll worker shortage, and critical jurisdictions are high-risk for election crises to emerge.2
But here’s the good news: Election protection is built on people power. That's why our movement of Jews and allies is coming together to ensure that this election is free and fair — no matter what Trump tries.
This is an all-hands moment. Can you take action today to help protect the 2026 elections? Here are three things you can do right now:
🗓️ RSVP: Join a Jews for Election Protection phonebank TONIGHT (August 25), Wednesday, September 2, or Tuesday, September 8. Together, we’ll call fellow Jews to recruit poll workers and poll monitors, the backbone of our electoral system. RSVP here for an upcoming phonebank!
✋ Sign up: Raise your hand to join poll workers in your community on Election Day. Fill out this short form to learn more and get plugged in with our friends at Power the Polls!
💸 Chip in: All of Bend the Arc’s election protection work — phonebanks, textbanks, postcard parties, canvasses, de-escalation trainings, and more — requires resources. Help scale up our Jews for Election Protection campaign with a gift of $5, $10, or $18.
No matter where you live, you have an important role to play in this election.
The stakes are high and our democracy is on the line. But when we all pitch in to contribute, we can do amazing things. Our movement has risen up to win big before, and we’ll do it again now.
With gratitude,
Jillian Lipman
Campaign Organizing Manager, Bend the Arc
Sources:
1. Supreme Court upholds Trump's order to overhaul mail-in ballots, Axios
2. 2026 Election Risk Heat Map, Voting Rights Lab
“One of the most gratifying phone banks ever”
August 18, 2026
“This was the most positive phonebank experience I’ve had.” That’s what volunteers are saying after last week’s Jews for Election Protection phonebank. Now we need your help to keep up the momentum on our 2026 election protection work.
Can you make it to an upcoming phonebank? Together, with volunteers from all across the country, we’ll be calling Bend the Arc members in Pennsylvania and North Carolina to recruit poll workers and poll monitors — the people who will help ensure free and fair elections this November.
Jews for Election Protection Phonebanks
🗓️ TONIGHT! Tuesday, August 18
6 – 8pm ET
🗓️ Thursday, August 20
2 – 4pm ET
🗓️ Tuesday, August 25
6 – 8pm ET
Our calls are making a difference and volunteers are having a great time:
"I’ve done a lot of phonebanking and never have I had such a high ratio of people who agree to take action. I will certainly be joining next week."
- Deborah I.
“People understood the urgent need to protect the election and were relieved by the practical asks we made.”
- Madeline R.
“This was one of the most gratifying phone banks ever! Even people who weren't able to sign up for something were happy to be called.”
- Debby R.
Here’s the best part: you’ll be calling fellow Bend the Arc members — people who are already committed to making sure the 2026 elections are free, fair, and just. Whether you’re a first-time caller or a seasoned phonebanker, you’ll get trained live, have meaningful conversations, and fill a critical gap to help protect the 2026 elections.
So don’t miss it: sign up for an upcoming phonebank and see what all the hype is about for yourself.
Hope to see you there,
Jillian Lipman
Campaign Organizing Manager, Bend the Arc