There are two things that stand out for me about Marcia Freedman, The first was her sharp analytical mind and her firm grasp of the details. She was amazing to watch at her public speaking engagements as she was able to win over many skeptics. She systematically laid out her argument on how Israel was failing both its own people and the Palestinian people. I greatly appreciated her sincere commitment to give her all to our peace work at Brit Tzedek v’Shalom, which required her to spend many weeks on the road in the early days.
The other thing was how she backed me. She spearheaded the decision to hire me as the founding executive director of Brit Tzedek v’Shalom even though I had never worked in the Jewish community nor run a start-up non-profit, especially one with such bold aspirations and a board of strong-willed grassroots activists. She arranged mentors to tutor me in needed skill areas and trusted me to do the hard work it took to implement her vision of what she called “the most successful activism of her life” in an oral history interview I conducted with her in 2015. As a result, I grew in my confidence and leadership skills during my tenure at Brit Tzedek and have been unafraid to delve into all sorts of startup projects since then. Marcia’s backing, in part, made possible the life I have today.
May your memory be a blessing dear Marcia.
Aliza Becker
Aliza Becker, and former MKs Stav Shaffir & Marcia Freedman, J Street Conference Sept 2013
Aliza Becker & Marcia Freedman August 2015
← Back to Marica Freedman Remembrances