The Washington State Jewish Historical Society SHOWCASES SUCCESSFUL HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN at the University of Washington Hillel

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 7, 2019
Media Contact: Lisa Kranseler, Executive Director
Washington State Jewish Historical Society
LisaK@wsjhs.org or 206-774-2277

Seattle—The Washington State Jewish Historical Society is proud to present Power of Protest: The Movement to Free Soviet Jews, a traveling exhibition created by the National Museum of American Jewish History and exploring one of the most successful human rights campaigns to date. The panel exhibition showcases Americans’ efforts in the late 1960s through 1990 to free refuseniks—Jews who lived in the Soviet
Union and were denied the rights to live freely, practice
Judaism, or leave the country due to their Jewish identity.
It is on view at Hillel at the University of Washington from
the community opening on March 12, 2019 through April
26, 2019. Please see our website at wsjhs.org/pop for
more information and to register for the community
opening.

“This is our first national traveling exhibit,” says WSJHS
Executive Director Lisa Kranseler, “and we are one of the
only cities our size without a Jewish history museum, so this
is especially important to our region. We have also chosen
to curate a local companion exhibit, The Soviet Jewish
Experience: Washington State Stories. These stories feature Seattle Symphony first violinist, Mikhail Shmidt, among others. In addition, the WSJHS will feature a complete digital exhibit on the Soviet Jewish Experience on our Washington Jewish Museum at washingtonjewishmuseum.org.”

Ivy Barsky, CEO and Gwen Goodman Director at the National Museum of American Jewish History, states, “The successful movement to free Soviet Jews has compelling connections to
modern-day advocacy, highlighting how grassroots efforts can have an enormous impact. This exhibition serves as a reminder of how individuals can help preserve, protect, and expand America’s unique promise of religious freedom, even for individuals on the other side of the world.”

Power of Protest: The Movement to Free Soviet Jews walks visitors through the human rights campaign that took place on behalf of Soviet Jews, one that brought together organizations,
student activists, community leaders, and thousands of individuals—and reached the highest echelons of the American government. Americans staged public demonstrations across the country, held massive rallies, and called for politicians to speak out. The exhibition celebrates the struggles and successes of this movement, as well as the experiences of Jewish emigrants from the U.S.S.R. who came to the United States and have contributed in countless ways to
American society and culture.

Their stories of courage offer meaningful opportunities for conversations and activism surrounding immigration, the reception of refugees, and the continuing limits on political and
religious freedom placed on minorities around the world. A 1981 letter written by Sheryl Sandberg (now COO of Facebook) to her bat mitzvah “twin” exemplifies the thousands of
American children who “twinned” their Jewish coming-of-age ceremonies with Soviet peers denied that experience.

The National Museum of American Jewish History was awarded a generous $150,000 grant by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to support the exhibition’s development. The grant is part of IMLS’s Museums for America program, which backs projects that strengthen the ability of an individual museum to serve its public.

The exhibition is organized by the National Museum of American Jewish History’s Chief Curator, Director
of Exhibitions and Interpretation Josh Perelman and content coordinator Yigal Kotler.

Power of Protest was created by the National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia. The exhibition is
supported, in part, through a Museums for America grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, a
government agency dedicated to advancing innovation, lifelong learning, and cultural and civic engagement. Additional support provided by Alkemy X, the Charlestein Family in memory of Malvina and Morton Charlestein, and the Genesis Philanthropy Group.

About the National Museum of American Jewish History
The National Museum of American Jewish History, located on historic Independence Mall in Philadelphia, brings to life
the more than 360-year history of Jews in America. Tracing the stories of how Jewish immigrants became Jewish
Americans, the Museum invites visitors of all backgrounds to share their own stories and reflect on how their histories
and identities shape and are shaped by the American experience. An open door for all, NMAJH honors the past and
contributes to a better future by sharing the power of imagination and ideas, culture and community, leadership and
service, in ways that turn inspiration into action.

The local program will be available for travel and is generously supported in part by:

4Culture, Humanities WA and Hillel UW, The Rachel & Nissim Altabet Memorial Fund, The Loeb Family Charitable Foundation, Henry M. Jackson Foundation, The Rita and Herbert Rosen Family Foundation, Alfred & Tillie Shemanski Trust Fund.

Washington State Jewish Historical Society is dedicated to discovering, preserving, and disseminating the history of the Jews of Washington state and promotes interest in and knowledge of the life, history, and culture of the Jewish people and communities through publications, exhibits, displays,
speakers, tours, and performance. For more information, please visit www.wsjhs.org.