Soviet Jewry Movement Education Project
formerly known as Soviet Jewry Movement Archives Project
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FAQ

WHO IS SJMEP?

The Soviet Jewry Movement Education Project was formed to preserve and share the history of the Soviet Jewry Movement in North America. SJMEP’s founders are former leaders in the movement and Jewish organizational veterans. Our vision is: Generations of proud, empowered Jews who understand their heritage as one of triumph, not just survival—equipped with historical knowledge, practical advocacy skills, and unshakeable confidence that they too can change the world for the better.

The Soviet Jewry Movement Education Project is organized under IRS code 501(c)(3) and gifts are tax-deductible as provided by law.

SJMEP is a virtual hub available to everyone through our website. SJMEP itself has no physical structure, rather all of the historical records are located in archives, historical centers, and universities and are curated for your use at sovietjewryarchives.org.

We were originally named Soviet Jewry Movement Archives Project, with a primary focus on preserving the story of the movement supporting others to tell that story. In 2025, in recognition of the fact that so little is being taught about the movement throughout the field of education, we changed our primary focus to education/turning these archive materials into living educational resources. Hence the name change to Soviet Jewry Movement Education Project. 

SJMEP brings the Soviet Jewry Movement to life, showing how “students and housewives” built a grassroots campaign that freed three million Jews, influenced U.S. foreign policy through the Jackson-Vanik Amendment, and helped topple the Iron Curtain. We deliver impact through three integrated strategic pillars:

1. Digital Archive & Educational Resources

We are building a comprehensive digital archive containing more than 10,000 documents, photographs, audio recordings, and video testimonies from the Soviet Jewry movement. With AI-enhanced search tools and interactive timelines, decades of history will become instantly accessible to educators, students, and researchers around the world. This living archive will be at the heart of all future learning experiences, preserving priceless first-hand accounts and artefacts, and so inspiring generations of learners.

2. Evidence-Based Curriculum for All Ages

Our vision is to create curricula spanning elementary school through university that transform historical victories into practical advocacy tools. Students learn the movement’s core strategies — speaking truth to power, building broad coalitions, grassroots organizing, applying sustained pressure, maintaining hope — and apply them to confronting today’s challenges. Every curriculum undergoes rigorous field testing and impact measurement to ensure educational effectiveness.

3. Educator Training & Community Partnerships

Equipping educators with the tools and training to bring this history to life is critical to the success of this initiative. Our pilot community partnerships ensure curricula meet real needs, demonstrate measurable impact, and create scalable models for adoption nationwide. Each trained educator becomes a long-term multiplier, reaching hundreds of students throughout their career.

The story of Soviet Jews and the international effort to free them

  1. Is an important lesson — for all — in the ongoing fight for human rights and against oppression.
  2. Has tremendous meaning and educational potential for the enhancement of Jewish identity and Jewish solidarity.
  3. Remains, more than thirty years later, a mostly untold story and an untapped resource.

Collective action at the local level to affect change. 

Beginning in the early 1960’s the Soviet Jewry movement in North America was started by concerned individuals, first in Cleveland and then in NYC. These grassroots efforts spread around the world, bringing in the organized Jewish community to impact public and political advocacy on behalf of the Jewish community in the Soviet Union.