It’s time to cast your confirmation of confidence for the July - Dec 2026 JVP PDX Coordinating Committee!

Please read through our amazing candidate profiles below and then refer to your email or slack for the link to show your support.

Adam Segal

he/him

  • Where did you grow up? What motivates you to volunteer with JVP? What is your personal story as it relates to who you are as an organizer to the extent you want to share it? 

    I grew up in a liberal zionist reform Jewish community in Milwaukee WI, which raised me with ostensibly progressive values of justice and acceptance that somehow did not extend to Palestinians. JVP has been a political as well as a communal home for me. I believe the organization is important for its work for Palestinian liberation, as well as for its role as a model of truly intersectional and liberatory Jewish life.

  • I want to help guide the chapter through the current challenges of our movement, when Gaza has ceased to be a central news story after years of genocide and a false "ceasefire." I want to help focus our basebuilding efforts. I also know that taking on a leadership role is one of the best ways to get myself recommitted to the work!

  • This would be my second term in the Coordinating Committee, and I've long been one of the leaders of our Basebuilding/Onboarding work. I have ample facilitation skills, including my nearly 10 years of running New Masculinities Group, a men's group based in intersectional feminist principles. I have also worked extensively with SURJ PDX, running affinity groups for white folks working against racism.

  • This is quite the big question! One answer I feel prepared to give is that I feel deeply connected with the fundamental tension of JVP organizing: as Jews we are historically threatened and marginalized, and yet many of us (as Americans, or as white people, or simply as Jews) have immense privilege within the context of Israel/Palestine and American empire. I am deeply aware of this tension, which guides me to always use my relative privilege and power on behalf of those I'm in solidarity with, whether that's Palestinians, women and nonbinary folks, or people of color.

  • I would be perfectly happy if you chose to vote for other folks over me! I plan to stick with the chapter for a while, and wouldn't mind seeing some other folks get a chance to lead us. I'll probably be around for another go later :)

Mar Zusman

they/them

  • Where did you grow up? What motivates you to volunteer with JVP? What is your personal story as it relates to who you are as an organizer to the extent you want to share it? 

    I'm a working class queer/Trans first generation Russian Jew from New York. I'm motivated to volunteer with JVP because I believe Jews play an important role in the Palestinian Liberation movement. Jews need to (continue to) loudly declare, Not in Our Name. Additionally, Judaism is an important millennia old wisdom tradition that needs to be reclaimed from Zionism and JVP is helping to create the bridge to a Judaism beyond Zionism.

  • Having just served the previous Coordinating committee term, I feel like it's a good fit for my skill set and capacity level and I'd like to provide leadership continuity for our PDX chapter.

  • I've been an active member of JVP since Feb 2024 and have provided leadership for the Community and Base-building teams as well as supported actions and ritual events. I am a current CC member since January 2026.

  • Relationships are important and I prioritize community care in my organizing methods. I also strongly believe in us being able to engage in principled struggle which supports the efficacy of our work. When we can disagree productively, we can find our way towards unity in our tactics, strategies and overall vision. We must center those most marginalized; Palestinians, Arabs, Jews of color, disabled folx, trans comrades, etc.

  • One of my prioritizes is to support JVP Portland to stay focused on our priority campaigns and projects. In addition to supporting the weekly functioning of our chapter, I will continue to put energy into growing our Oregon for Human Rights campaign and our Political Education initiatives.

Anthony Bencivengo

they/them

  • Where did you grow up? What motivates you to volunteer with JVP? What is your personal story as it relates to who you are as an organizer to the extent you want to share it? 

    I am a descendant of Jewish immigrants from Russia, Poland and Belarus. I grew up in Seattle, where I was b'mitzvahed at non-denominational meditative synagogue Bet Alef. I was first inspired to support the movement for Palestine by seeing the documentary films of a family friend who works directly with Palestinian organizers. After I moved to Portland for college in 2014, I became disconnected from the Jewish community I had in Seattle. Over the next decade, I organized with tenant unions, environmental groups and urban farmers. By 2024, several factors - my wanting a change of activist scenery, desiring to reconnect with antizionist Jewish community in Portland and my horror at the livestreamed genocide in Gaza among them - converged to inspire me to join JVP. I've been a member ever since.

  • Much of the most important work of organizing happens behind the scenes. It often consists of a lot of administrative tasks and coordination that are not fun or glamorous, but they need to be done effectively for the movement to progress. A lot of that work moves through the Coordinating Committee, and I want to do my part to make sure it gets done. I also feel that being on the Coordinating Committee and serving as a representative for JVP is a great way to learn about and build connections with other organizers (both in JVP and other groups) in the movement for Palestinian liberation, and I would like to deepen my knowledge there. I have leadership experience both inside and outside JVP (see next question) that I would like to bring to the table in ensuring JVP keeps getting stronger.

  • I have been a Coordinating Committee Chair for Portland Tenants United, an all-volunteer tenant union, and was a lead organizer supporting the campaigns of multiple building-based unions while I was there. I was political education director with the Municipal Eco-Resiliency Project, a local urban farming group, making me responsible for organizing group trainings and discussions. I served on the JVP Coordinating Committee in the second half of 2025. After taking a break to let others get experience in the role, I am now running for a second round!

  • In the time I've been with JVP, I have always deeply appreciated the culture of mutual support and respect that this organization is built on. Organizers are kind to each other and resolve disputes through discussion, all while remaining principled and disciplined on our political line. Being autistic and non-binary, I feel that JVP's commitment to diversity and accessibility is extremely important. I am committed to anti-imperialism and anti-colonialism and value the brave stands our organization takes on these issues. I also value our relationships with coalition partners, particularly our Palestinian-led partner orgs. I worked hard to maintain and advance all these positive aspects of our organizational culture during my first Coordinating Committee term, and will do so again if you elect me to a second.

  • I have considerable experience with election-related work including door-knocking and phonebanking from working with and volunteering for electoral campaigns as well as my time in tenant union organizing. I don't think that JVP should become overly focused on electorialism at the expense of other forms of organizing, but as we shift into being a 501c4 with the ability to endorse and campaign for candidates, these skills and experience could become useful.