JCUA Votes Leadership

Board of Directors

Benetta Mansfield, Co-Chair

Benetta Mansfield (she/her) is a lawyer with more than 30 years of experience as an advocate and mediator. During her professional career in Washington, D.C., Benetta served as the Chief of Staff of the Amalgamated Transit Union, which represents more than 185,000 bus operators, maintenance and clerical employees throughout the U.S. and Canada. Previously, she was the Chief of Staff of the National Mediation Board and was appointed by a federal judge to direct the election of international officers for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Upon retirement, Benetta returned to her hometown of Chicago, where she lives today with her husband, Kalman Resnick. She previously served as Vice President of the Board of Arise Chicago and Chair of the Board of Operation Understanding in Washington, D.C. She is also a Board member of the Mansfield Family Foundation, a longtime supporter and Board member of Avodah.

Andie Linker, Co-Chair

A lifelong Chicagoan, Andie Linker (she/her) believes in the power of her neighbors to elect local politicians who truly serve the public good. She is so proud of the work JCUA Votes has already done to elect awe-inspiring leaders to City Hall and looks forward to working with those elected officials to get the necessary legislation for our issue-based campaigns passed. When Andie is not knocking doors and organizing the Jewish community, she’s a master’s student at UIC studying urban planning & policy.

Max Yenkin, Treasurer

Raised in the northern suburbs, Max Yenkin (he/him) is a resident of Edgewater and is the treasurer for the JCUA Votes Board. In his professional life, he has worked in political campaigns’ field operations. He currently works for ONE Northside as a Housing Justice organizer. For fun he spends his time cooking, biking, and taking transit around Chicago to find delicious spots to eat!

Hilary Johns Felton

Hilary Johns Felton (she/her) was born and raised in Northern California and made her way to Chicago for law school. After 20 years, she knows her true home is, and always will be, Chicago. She works for the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services in the Office of the General Counsel. She is passionate about the equitable administration of government programs and services, ensuring that every person she works with is treated with respect, and feels heard and understood. Hilary spends her free time reading, rooting for her California sports teams and spending time with her run club.

Rabbi Suzanne Griffel

As a resident of Uptown, Rabbi Suzanne Griffel (she/her) has been inspired to work for affordable housing and against gentrification and displacement with JCUA and ONE Northside. She participates in JCUA’s campaigns for immigration and public safety, and she is excited to serve on the Board and Political Committee for JCUA Votes to help elect leaders with whom we can co-govern to advance our issue work. While she has also served as a rabbi in Hillel and congregational settings, Suzanne’s primary professional identity is as a chaplain, and she looks forward to using her “superpower” of deep listening to support fellow JCUA Votes (and JCUA) members through our work together.

Emily Isaacson

The organizing origin story for Emily Isaacson (they/them) began at JCUA as a former participant in JCUA’s youth organizing programs, now more than 10 years ago! In 2018-2019, Emily was JCUA’s Avodah Organizer. Since then, while continuing to be an active JCUA member, Emily has worked in a number of organizing and political roles in both staff and volunteer capacities. This includes being both a local Chicago and national organizer with the youth climate organization Sunrise Movement and the Campaign Manager (and now Chief of Staff) for Angela Clay of Chicago’s 46th Ward. Through all of these experiences and more, Emily has focused their skills on relational organizing and leadership development, direct action and advocacy, and electoral politics. When not in organizing mode, Emily loves communal singing, collaging, and jumping into Lake Michigan when the weather allows!

Greg Rothman

Greg Rothman (he/him) is deeply committed to civic engagement and social justice. He is dedicated to philanthropy that promotes understanding and equity and leads to social change. In addition to his longtime work with JCUA, his affiliations include JStreet, the ACLU, American Jewish World Service, Bend the Arc, and more. In addition to working with his family’s company, NAMTOR, Greg is an accomplished actor, scuba diver, and photographer with a passion for adventure.

Political Committee

Veranda Armstead

Veranda Armstead (she/her) is a student at the University of Illinois at Urbana – Champaign! She is originally from the West side of Chicago. She is excited to be a part of the JCUA Votes Political Committee because local elections affect people’s everyday lives and can bring about the most change in Chicago.

Rachel Doherty

Rachel Doherty (she/her) works at the North Suburban Legal Aid Clinic, where she is a Department of Justice partially-accredited representative. She has been a member of JCUA since she participated in the College Organizing Fellowship in 2018-2019. Since then, she has become a leader in the Immigration Justice Committee. This year, she was recognized by Jewish United Fund Chicago as a 36 under 36 honoree. Rachel has a bachelor’s degree in political science from Northwestern University. She is excited to be part of the JCUA Votes Political Committee because she sees JCUA Votes as the next step in building our community’s power in the Chicago area, and hopes to make powerful demands of politicians, amplify progressive Jewish voices, and get our own organizers informed and elected.

Rabbi Suzanne Griffel

Kira Felsenfeld

Kira Felsenfeld (she/her) is from New York City and has lived in Chicago for the past four years, where she’s worked in housing justice and wealth redistribution spaces. Having previously worked with Jane Addams Seniors in Action, she is excited to be on the JCUA Votes Political Committee to imagine what is possible when we bring progressive Jewish voices to the electoral sphere. Kira is energized by base building, co-governance, and baking sourdough bread.

Hilary Johns Felton

Emily Isaacson

Beth Lange

While Beth Lange’s (she/her) professional work has been in website content management for nonprofit organizations, user-centered design, and software development her true passion is doing advocacy with JCUA Immigration Committee as part of an amazing coalition of organizations. Big wins happen when we meet with our legislators and they know that we’re prepared and persistent. She’s excited that JCUA Votes will deepen our members’ impact on who are our elected officials. Beth has done precinct work, phone banking, and voter registration for many years and believes that JCUA Votes will be an important force by making endorsements and engaging in campaign work. Year-round Beth spends time in nature taking long walks and gardening at an Evanston bird sanctuary, and she’s currently studying Spanish.

Dalya Lessem Elnecave

Dalya Lessem Elnecave (them/them) is a former intern and member of JCUA’s Youth Organizing Caucus. They are currently a freshman at Brandeis University. Dalya was previous the youth liaison to JCUA’s Housing and Economic Justice Committee and the Youth Co-Lead of JCUA’s Queer Youth Caucus. They are also a member of 39th Ward Neighbors United. They also really like talking about juries and building Jewish political power in Chicago.

Martin Levine

A lifelong advocate for progressive social change, Marty Levine (he/him) founded the Jewish Alliance for Economic Justice. He serves currently as a Coordinating Committee member of the Chicago chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace, is a member of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (CAARPR), served on the CPAC negotiating committee, and has been active with the Jewish Council for Urban Affairs’ Fair Tax and Police Accountability campaigns. A social worker by training, Marty helped lead the Jewish Community Centers of Chicago for 40 years until he retired in 2016. Since he stepped down, he has consulted and helped build the strength of small community service organizations from Gary to Waukegan. He is excited to do the the work of better aligning our elected officials with our vision of a just society.

Iszy Hirschtritt Licht

As a member of JCUA and the Immigration Committee, Iszy Hirschtritt Licht (he/him) knows the power of coalitions. Alongside our partners, we have been able to create policy change through direct action, lobbying, education, phone banking, canvassing, social media posts, and more. He’s excited that JCUA Votes is expanding our tools to create change and enabling us to directly develop relationships with elected officials. More importantly, he sees JCUA Votes as a way to grow our community and our voice. JCUA Votes will bring in and reengage members, foster a community that is actively learning and building political identity, and empower us to advance justice throughout our city, our state, and our nation.

Tex Pasley

Tex Pasley (he/him) lives in Uptown with his spouse, Rachel, their son Ezra, and their two rambunctious cats, Maya (Angelou) and bell (hooks). When he is not volunteering with JCUA, he concocts home fermentation experiments and explores Chicago’s ethnic food scene. He also cares deeply about nature and the environment, and enjoys reading about natural history and exploring the freshwater ecosystems of the Midwest (in all weathers). By day, Tex works as a lawyer for a small law firm, representing plaintiffs in complex class actions and creative impact litigation. Tex joined JCUA after moving to Chicago in 2019 and volunteered extensively with the 2020 Fair Tax campaign to pass a graduated income tax in Illinois. He is excited to be a part of the JCUA Votes Political Committee because he believes that direct engagement with electoral politics is essential to implementing JCUA’s progressive vision for the city and state.

Alison Plott

Born and raised in California, Alison Plott (she/her) has been in Chicago for the better part of a decade working in nonprofit research across several sectors including education, community programming, human services, and the arts. She’s worked extensively as an actor in Chicago and regionally, as well as teaching contact improv, Shakespeare, audition technique, and physical performance. She was a member of the 2021 EMILY’s List Ignite Change Fellowship, the 2017 Development Leadership Consortium Cohort, and an active member of the campaign to unionize staff at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (and we won!). Alison is thrilled to be on the JCUA Votes Political Committee because she believes strongly in the power of community, choice, tikkun olam, and voting to uplift the many and not the few.

Ethan Ramsay

Ethan Ramsay (he/him) has been an active JCUA member for the last seven years, participating in campaigns such as Fair Tax, Empowering Communities for Public Safety, and #EraseTheDatabase. He currently works as an organizer at Austin Coming Together and is in graduate school for urban planning. He believes that supporting progressive movement candidates running for local office can help us build people power and win issue based campaigns. He is excited to be a part of JCUA Votes Political Committee and develop the processes necessary for this organization to be member-led and dynamic for years to come.

Ruby

Ruby (they/them) is a born-and-raised Hyde Parker. They’re a third-generation Rodfei Tzedek member and a recent graduate of Kenwood Academy High School. They have been organizing with JCUA for five years. They love to read, write, and argue. With primary self-interest in the Community Safety Committee, Ruby is a part of several youth spaces at JCUA. They’re interested in architecture, choral music, and wacky earrings. They are excited that JCUA Votes will give youth organizers a chance to be more intimate in understanding what we want from our politicians so that when it comes time for us to be able to engage in democracy, we are more confident. Youth voices are incredibly valuable at JCUA Votes: the politicians we elect now will be my generation’s leaders in the future.