Written by Jean Meltzer Maskuli

Tosefta, Bava Kamma 10:14 states, “It is worse to steal from the many than to steal from an individual; for one who steals from an individual can appease him by returning the theft: one who steals from the many, however, cannot (since he does not know all the people from whom he stole.”

Today, I am ashamed to be Jewish.

.           For those of you unfamiliar with Chase Community Giving, the program is designed to help small (and sometimes struggling) charities garner much needed grants and funding in a difficult and turbulent economy.

It is a fantastic program with a simple concept. Utilizing Facebook, the charity with the most single-use votes can win prizes ranging from twenty-five thousand to one million dollars.  Charities are responsible for using their online communities, as well as enlisting the help of their friends and families, to garner these votes. At the end of the voting round, the money goes to the charity, who may use the grant as they see fit.

That being said, if you think Chase Community Giving is merely online pocket change, the program doles out close to five-million dollars a year – making it a formidable player both in the online (and offline) world of giving.

So, what went wrong?

I won’t attempt to re-hash all the gory details of the discovery here, but I invite you to discover for yourself where the story began here.  And, where the story ultimately ended here.

In summary, members of the Jewish community decided that the easiest way to guarantee their votes and a successful win was to pay people to vote.  For 14-28 credits a piece at EasyCash! on Facebook – five Jewish schools received nearly a million dollars in tax-free grants.

What is the point of teaching Torah if we do not practice it and model it ourselves? To be clear, there are so many Jewish laws on business ethics and fair dealings with ourselves and our neighbors. There is the concept of geneyvat da’at – or “stealing a persons mind” and relates to false packaging and false labeling. There is the commandment regarding accurate weights and measures, in Leviticus 19:35-36. And, there is the commandment not to deceive your neighbor in Leviticus 25:14 which states, “When you sell anything to your neighbor, or buy anything from your neighbor, you shall not deceive one another.”

Whatever Chase Community Giving will ultimately decide regarding VoteFive.Com is irrelevant, because what really counts to me in this situation, is that a fellow Jew has left an indelible and ugly mark on my Jewish experience.  A fellow Jew has stained my relationship with my community and my non-Jewish neighbor.  A fellow Jew has hurt me… and countless others… for a gym.

“The Rabbis taught:  A person should not remove stones from his domain into the public domain.  It once happened that a man was removing his stones from his domain into the public domain, and a hasid found him.  The hasid said to him, “Empty-headed!  Why do you remove stones from a domain that is not yours into a domain that is yours?  The man laughed at him.  A few days later, the man needed to sell his field, and he was walking in that same part of the public domain, and he tripped over those same stones.  He said, “That the hasid said rightly to me:  why do you remove stones from a domain that is not yours to a domain that is yours.”  (TbBQ50b)

All private domain is public.  Our actions always count.  And, when we remove the stones from our fields, and place them in the pathways of others, we build the stumbling blocks that we will trip over.

The actions of those who sold votes will change how non-profits function online in the future.  It will change how non-profits seek to utilize social media to garner support for and fund project. And, it has begun a nasty and problematic precedent for manipulating social media towards victory – which will affect every single non-profit (Jewish and otherwise)  in the future.

Unfortunately, Jewish law does not allow me to apologize for the actions of others. But to all those who worked tirelessly to support their given charities on Chase Community Giving, I hope this post relates my deep embarrassment, shame and appreciation for your honesty and hard work.

And, I hope those who engaged in buying votes under deceptive practices will reflect on how their behavior has hurt everyone, both in the Jewish community and beyond. And, I hope they will take the appropriate steps to make Teshuvah, between man and man… remembering that the gate of tears (to Heaven) is still open.

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