The Albert D. Chernin Award is presented each year to an American Jew whose life work best exemplifies the social justice imperatives of Judaism, Jewish history, and the protection of the Bill of Rights, particularly the First Amendment. This award celebrates the achievements of its recipient, whose ideals symbolize the principles embodied by the work of JCPA. This award is named after Albert Chernin, Executive Vice Chair of the National Jewish Community Relations Advisory Council (now the Jewish Council for Public Affairs) from 1975-1990. Chernin’s leadership created a far-reaching impact on American policy in the areas of church-state, civil rights, immigration, Israel, and Soviet Jewry.
Past Recipients
1990 Albert D. Chernin
1991 Senator Howard Metzenbaum
1992 Al Vorspan, Union of American Hebrew Congregations (UAHC)
1993 Arnold Aronson, founder, Leadership Conference on Civil Rights
1994 Hyman Bookbinder, American Jewish Committee
1995 Jacqueline Levine, NJCRAC Past Chair
1996 Earl Raab, San Francisco JCRC
1997 Senator Carl Levin
1998 William Maslow, General Counsel of American Jewish Congress
1999 Leonard “Leibel” Fein, UAHC
2000 Theodore Mann, JCPA Past Chair
2001 Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat
2002 Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
2003 Rabbi David Saperstein, Union for Reform Judaism
2004 Dr. Alan Dershowitz
2005 Deborah E. Lipstadt, Emory University
2006 Ruth Messinger, American Jewish World Service
2007 Senator Frank Lautenberg
2008 Bernard “B” Rapoport, Bernard & Audre Rapoport Foundation
2009 Professor Laurence Tribe
2010 Professor Nadine Strossen
2011 Senator Ron Wyden
2012 Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie, Union for Reform Judaism
2013 Judith Lichtman, National Partnership for Women and Familites
2014 Abraham Foxman, Anti-Defamation League
2015 David Luchins
2016 Senator Barbara Boxer
2017 Marcia Greenberger, National Women’s Law Center
2018 Floyd Abrams, Cahill Gordon & Reindel
2019 Nancy Kaufman, NCJW
2020 Nathan Lewin, Esq.