Yolanda Savage-Narva

Yolanda Savage-Narva (she/her) is the vice president of Racial Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (REDI) for the Union for Reform Judaism. For more than 20 years, Yolanda collaborated with Tribal governments to strengthen public health systems, promoted pedestrian safety and advocacy and coining the phrase, “Walking is a civil right,” and advancing health equity in states and territories. Most recently, Yolanda was the executive director with Operation Understanding DC, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting understanding, cooperation, and respect while fighting to eradicate racism, antisemitism, and all forms of discrimination. Yolanda is an alumna of the Union for Reform Judaism's JewV'Nation Fellowship and a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., as well as an immediate past member of the Religious Action Center’s Commission on Social Action.

Photo of a person standing at the end of a dock on a body of water with the sun setting

Crossing the Bridge from the Particular to the Universal

Yolanda Savage-Narva
This year, as Jews across the globe begin to prepare for the High Holy Days, the most sacred time of year, I personally feel a sense of deep despair and fierce urgency to enter the year of 5786 embracing the particular and the universal.
Photo of a young girl of color with her hand on top of a pile of hands in the middle of a circle

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is a Human Right

Yolanda Savage-Narva
As we prepare to commemorate Juneteenth this year, we must pause and realize that we must constantly work to maintain our freedoms and liberties. If not for us, then in service to our descendants and their descendants.
shofar laying on a prayer book

A Liberatory Elul Journey

Yolanda Savage-Narva
The month before the High Holidays, Elul, is a time of spiritual preparation and t'shuvah. This year, as we conclude a Shmita, or sabbatical year, after focusing on taking time to pause, rest and reflect, I feel a sense of urgency and the need to act.
dairy products on wheat field table torah symbols

Favorite Jewish Teachings from Leaders of Color

Yolanda Savage-Narva
In honor of Shavuot and the Giving of the Torah, I have been spending some time reflecting on some of my favorite teachings from Jewish sacred literature, both those that resonate with me, and those that feel most important or most timely.

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