Pledge of Allegiance to the Family of Earth, by Bella Abzug & Mim Kelber (Women's Foreign Policy Council, 1989)

Source Link: https://opensiddur.org/?p=53304

Date: 2023-11-10

Last Updated: 2025-05-04

Categories: Earth, our Collective Home & Life-Support System, 🌐 Earth Day (22 April)

Tags: 20th century C.E., 58th century A.M., American Jewry of the United States, Cold War (1985–1991), earth pledges, eco-conscious, eco-feminism, universalist

Excerpt: The "Pledge of Allegiance to the Family of Earth" was offered by the Women's Foreign Policy Council (co-chaired by Bella Abzug and Mim Kelber). The earliest publication of the pledge that we were able to located is as found in the article, "Earthlings Unite" by Nina Combs in Ms. Magazine, vol. 18:1&2 (July/August 1989), p. 19. . . .

Content:

Translation (Hebrew)	Source (English)
אֶשְׂבַּע אֱמוּנִים לְכַדּוּר הָאָרֶץ, הָאֲדָמָה הַשָּׁמַיִם וְהַיָּם וְלַצִּמְחִיָּה, וּלְבַעֲלֵי חַיִּים וְחַיֵּי אָדָם שֶׁהוּא מְקַיֵּם, כּוֹכָב אֶחָד, בִּלְתִּי נִתָּן לַחֲלֻקָּה, עִם אֲוִיר, מַיִם וַאֲדָמָה בְּרִיאִים, וְעִם צֶדֶק כַּלְכָּלִי, שִׁוְיוֹן זְכוּיוֹת וְשָׁלוֹם לַכֹּל.	I pledge allegiance to the Earth, and to the flora, fauna and human life that it supports, one planet, indivisible, with safe air, water, and soil, economic justice, equal rights and peace for all.

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The “Pledge of Allegiance to the Family of Earth” was offered by the Women’s Foreign Policy Council (co-chaired by Bella Abzug and Mim Kelber). The earliest publication of the pledge that we were able to located is as found in the article, “Earthlings Unite” by Nina Combs in Ms. Magazine, vol. 18:1&2 (July/August 1989), p. 19. If you have any further information on this pledge, please leave a comment (or contact us).

For Earth Day 2025 I offered the Hebrew translation, revised with input from Shaul Vardi. (Thank you!) –Aharon Varady

Source(s)

Pledge of Allegiance to the Family of Earth (Women’s Foreign Policy Council July-August 1989), Ms. Magazine p. 19

 

Contributor: Aharon N. Varady (translation)

Co-authors:

• 
  Name: Aharon N. Varady (translation)
  Bio: Aharon Varady (M.A.J.Ed./JTSA Davidson) is a volunteer translator for the Open Siddur Project. If you find any mistakes in his translations, please let him know. Shgiyot mi yavin; Ministarot Naqeni שְׁגִיאוֹת מִי־יָבִין; מִנִּסְתָּרוֹת נַקֵּנִי "Who can know all one's flaws? From hidden errors, correct me" (Psalms 19:13). If you'd like to directly support his work, please consider donating via his Patreon account. (Varady also transcribes prayers and contributes his own original work besides serving as the primary shammes for the Open Siddur Project and its website, opensiddur.org.)
  Website: https://aharon.varady.net
  Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/aharon-varady-translation
• 
  Name: Aharon N. Varady (transcription)
  Bio: Aharon Varady (M.A.J.Ed./JTSA Davidson) is a volunteer transcriber for the Open Siddur Project. If you find any mistakes in his transcriptions, please let him know. Shgiyot mi yavin; Ministarot naqeni שְׁגִיאוֹת מִי־יָבִין; מִנִּסְתָּרוֹת נַקֵּנִי "Who can know all one's flaws? From hidden errors, correct me" (Psalms 19:13). If you'd like to directly support his work, please consider donating via his Patreon account. (Varady also translates prayers and contributes his own original work besides serving as the primary shammes of the Open Siddur Project and its website, opensiddur.org.)
  Website: https://aharon.varady.net
  Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/aharon-varady-transcription
• 
  Name: Mim Kelber
  Bio: Mim Kelber (1922-2004) was a writer, editor, and feminist -- a lifelong activist on behalf of women's rights. She served as policy adviser and speechwriter for Congresswoman Bella Abzug and as policy director for President Carter's National Advisory Committee for Women. She was a co-founder with Bella Abzug of Women USA Fund, Inc. and served as editorial director of the Fund's Women's Environment and Development Organization in New York City. She coauthored Gender Gap: Bella Abzug's Guide to Political Power for Women (1984).
  Website:
  Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/mim-kelber
• 
  Name: Bella Savitzky Abzug
  Bio: Bella Savitzky Abzug (July 24, 1920 – March 31, 1998), nicknamed "Battling Bella", was an American lawyer, politician, social activist, and a leader in the women's movement. In 1971, Abzug joined other leading feminists such as Gloria Steinem, Shirley Chisholm, and Betty Friedan to found the National Women's Political Caucus. She was a leading figure in what came to be known as eco-feminism. In 1970, Abzug's first campaign slogan was, "This woman's place is in the House—the House of Representatives." She was later appointed to co-chair the National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year created by President Gerald Ford's executive order, presided over the 1977 National Women's Conference, and led President Jimmy Carter's National Advisory Commission for Women. Abzug was a founder of the Commission for Women’s Equality of the American Jewish Congress. Active in the UN Decade of Women conferences in Mexico City (1975), Copenhagen (1980) and Nairobi (1985), Abzug became an esteemed leader of the international women’s movement. In 1975 she challenged the United Nations General Assembly "Zionism is Racism" Resolution 3379 (revoked in 1991 by resolution 46/86). Long active in supporting Israel, especially in Congress and in Israeli-U.S.-Palestine peace efforts, she insisted that Zionism was a liberation movement. In November 1991, WEDO convened the World Women’s Congress for a Healthy Planet. Fifteen hundred women from eighty-three nations met in Miami, Florida, to produce the Women’s Action Agenda for the twenty-first century. This agenda became the focus of UN conferences throughout the preparations for the UN Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing in 1995 and created an international women’s caucus that transformed the thinking and policies of the UN community. Abzug promoted the program around the world.
  Website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bella_Abzug
  Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/bella-abzug

Featured Image:

Title: Earthlings Unite! (Nina Combs, July-August 1989), Ms. Magazine p. 19
Caption: