Just a few months later, the rabbis began to gather signatures for a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in protest of the Israeli government's policy of demolition of the homes of Palestinians.
[14] In a press release on January 15, 2013, RHR-NA announced that it ending its formal affiliation with its sister organization in Israel, and would subsequently go by the name T'ruah: the Rabbinic Call for Human Rights.
"[7] T'ruah works to raise awareness and advocate for human rights of both Israelis and Palestinians in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza.
It does not reject outright the strategic, targeted use of boycott and divestment in justice campaigns, but here T’ruah focuses on the lack of distinction within the official BDS movement between Israel proper and the occupied Palestinian territories that points to a potential rejection of Israel’s right to exist, a right recognized by the United Nations and other international bodies.
Bowing to pressure from T’ruah, the Jewish National Fund office in the United States included in its annual financial report a detailed breakdown of its investments in projects overseas starting in 2016.
In 2016, T’ruah organized California rabbis and cantors to support SB1143, which ended long-term solitary confinement for juveniles, and represented the rabbinic community in a statewide coalition.
T’ruah works as part of an interfaith network to mobilize synagogues and other Jewish communities to protect those facing deportation or other immigration challenges.
Through a partnership with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, T'ruah started the "Tomato Rabbis" campaign to oppose low wages and trafficking of farm-workers in Southwest Florida.
[34] T'ruah and the CIW have urged restaurant chains and grocery stores to sign Fair Food Agreements and buy only from growers that "legally commit to higher ethical standards.
[35] In 2018, T'ruah began organizing Jewish communities to ask Wendy’s to join 14 major corporations in doing the same, and is partnering with the coalition to expand the Fair Food Program into additional states and crops.
[38] Throughout the Donald Trump campaign and administration, T’ruah opposed several policy positions and actions including the "Muslim ban" that resulted in arrests of T’ruah rabbis during protests of these policies,[39] the detention of migrants in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities, including after the COVID-19 pandemic began; and the separation of children from their parents at the southern border.
Ahead of 2020 Election Day, T’ruah led trainings to offer a ministerial presence in case violence erupted before or after results were announced.
Previous efforts have included urging the Jewish National Fund to issue a public statement that it would no longer engage in property transfers and evictions over the Green Line;[45] working to end discrimination against Bedouin citizens of Israel;[46] speaking against the deportation of African migrants and the legislation surrounding it;[47] and joining with a coalition of interfaith religious organizations working in solidarity with Muslims.
T'ruah has led delegations of clergy and lay leaders on trips to Israel and the occupied territories, to witness firsthand and to take action on human rights issues.
Nevertheless, while left-wing groups like J Street and T'ruah have long been comfortable criticizing the Israeli government or defending Palestinian rights,Ari Gross, Judah (March 2, 2023).