Shmira: A Better Playlist

Foundation for Jewish Camp’s Shmira Initiative is dedicated to making our camps a safe place for all who enter them. In order to do that, we need to have real conversations with our campers and staff around what safe and positive behavior and interactions look like – “A Better Playlist” is just one approach to having these conversations.

We are all constantly taking in media messages and learning through societal examples. We know that our campers and staff are watching movies, reading books, and listening to music that give them examples of how to, and how not to, act. The 12 songs that make up this playlist represent a variety of situations and provide some sort of message around consent. Consent is permission for something to happen or agreement to do something. By studying songs about consent as we would a Jewish text, we, and our campers and staff, can have conversations around suitable behavior, while also providing sex-positive messages.

It is up to your digression which songs you’d like to explore based on your camp culture and the age groups you want to engage. We have actively not provided suggested audiences for this material, as it will differ from community to community.