The Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA) presents its prestigious Tikkun Olam Awards annually to individuals who have displayed extraordinary efforts to make the world a better place and a passion for civic engagement and justice.  The 2020 honorees include David Bohm, Jason Flom, Allison Flom, and Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi.  The Tikkun Olam Awards will be presented at a reception on Sunday, February 9 at 6:00 pm in the Regency Ballroom at the Omni Shoreham Hotel, Washington D.C. as part of the JCPA national conference.

“It is with great admiration that we present the 2020 Tikkun Olam awards to David, Jason, Allison and Jennifer for their amazing work on behalf of suicide prevention, criminal justice reform, LGBTQ advocacy, and people with disabilities, respectively.  The community relations field highlights those who devote their time, energy and talent to tackling the most important issues of the day,” says JCPA Chair Michael Fromm.

Awardees include:

David Bohm, a St. Louis attorney and principal at Danna McKitrick, P.C., and long-time JCPA Executive Board Member and Policy Advisory Committee Chair. David has drafted several bills that have been enacted as state statutes including a suicide prevention and awareness bill requiring all school districts in Missouri to adopt this plan suitable for each district.

Jason Flom, founder and CEO of Lava Music Publishing and internationally recognized expert on criminal justice issues. He is the founding board member of the Innocence Project and serves on the boards of numerous criminal justice reform organizations. He hosts the podcast Wrongful Conviction, featuring interviews with those who have spent decades in prison for crimes they did not commit, some even sentenced to death.

Allison Flom, Writer/director, investigating the role of storytelling in social change. Allison’s writing hopes to replace judgement with curiosity, explores the themes of justice and identity and focuses on women. She and her father are the co-authors of Lulu is a Rhinoceros, a children’s adventure exploring identity.

Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi, President of RespectAbility, a nonprofit organization fighting stigmas and advancing opportunities for people with disabilities. Working closely with national, state and local policy leaders, employers and faith-based organizations, Jennifer has focused on expanding employment opportunities. She is the co-author of Disability & Criminal Justice Reform: Keys to Success, which raised attention on the school-to-prison pipeline for people with disabilities. She is a leading advocate for Israel and the founder and past president of  The Israel Project.

JCPA will also be awarding the prestigious Albert D. Chernin Award to Nathan Lewin, renowned First Amendment rights advocate. The Award, named for JCPA’s Executive Vice Chair Emeritus Albert D. Chernin, is given to Jewish leaders whose life work best exemplifies a commitment to freedom and the protection of the U.S. Bill of Rights.

The Tikkun Olam Awards Reception is part of the JCPA annual national conference with the theme: “The Power of Community Relations.” Alongside leading policy makers and advocates, attendees will explore how to harness the power of community relations to tackle Antisemitism, criminal justice reform, immigration, gun violence, BDS, Black-Jewish Relations and more.