Welcome to OurSpace
Each year, the elected and appointed youth leaders in NFTY’s regions bring a cadre of ideas, goals and plans they want to implement during their time in office. And while they work diligently towards achieving those goals and making those ideas become realities, they also have to be open-minded enough to realize that every so often, a challenge comes up that diverts them from their planned course, and takes them on a path they could not have anticipated.
Throughout last year, that issue was ethical online blogging. With online sites such as MySpace, Facebook, LiveJournal, Xanga, YouTube, Google Video and more, NFTY’s North American leaders found themselves overwhelmed with the sheer scope of how NFTYites were using online spaces, and what became the apparent dichotomy between how teens were choosing to share information about themselves and about NFTY as an organization in the same online space. This initiative became paramount to our current NFTY Board, who have committed to continuing this conversation through regional and local programming and education.
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History
This past June, NFTY’s General Board, the regional leaders from all 19 of NFTY’s regions, 140 teens from across North America, came together at the URJ’s Kutz Camp for Mechina, a five day program of ‘preparation’, that helps equip them with many of the tools necessary for a successful year on regional board. Each year at Mechina, the outgoing NFTY Board creates and implements a program which highlights some Jewish, societal or teen issue relevant to the work we do. This year, the program was based upon our obligations as Jews in online forums. The program was called, “Welcome to OurSpace”. Under the direction of then NFTY President Andy Shoenig, this initiative was brougt to the forefront of NFTY's attention.
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The Program
“Welcome to OurSpace” was created to heighten awareness and give NFTY’s regional leaders an opportunity to voice their opinions on behalf of this issue. As participants entered a large open theater-style room, many were stunned to see the entire building wallpapered from ceiling to floor with printouts of NFTYites online pages, blogs, images and videos. Over 5000 sheets were printed, assembled and hung throughout the room. None of the pages printed required a special password or login to see, they all simply existed as public domain, and in some way, referenced NFTY.
The large group shared quotes found within those pages, while also listening to readings about the concept of lashon hara in Jewish history. The large group was later broken into four smaller groups, each one addressing one fundamental question: 1. What makes this a pressing issue now?, 2. What is the history that has brought us to this place?, 3. What can we recommend to our constituents and future leaders?, and 4. Who are we, and why is this important to us?
Once group discussions, based on a mix of Jewish texts and American pop culture, completed the large group reassembled. Now under the direction of incoming NFTY President Dean Carson, the group began to work together, as Dean facilitated a town-hall discussion. With a laptop and large screens at the front of the room, these four essential questions were answered, and simultaneously crafted in to a recommendation by the leaders of the movement.
The Recommendation
To ensure that the process was thoughtful and fair, the next day, at our Asefah, plenary session, the OurSpace Recommendation was brought to the floor. It was thoughtfully argued on the pro and con side of the debate, and ultimately, went to a vote. OurSpace: Recommendation Regarding Maintaining NFTY's Sanctity in Online Spaces was passed overwhelmingly.
Follow-up Education Materials
Subsequently, Ben Levine, NFTY’s Programming Vice President, in partnership with the NFTY Board, created a partner program to be implemented by our regional leaders within each of our 19 regions. The Recommendation that was created and passed by NFTY’s General Board is an essential teaching element in the regional program.
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