The Workers Circle

The Workers Circle (formerly The Workmen’s Circle / Der Arbeter Ring) is a New York City-based Jewish nonprofit founded in 1900 by Eastern European Jewish immigrants who fled poverty and persecution. For over a century it has combined Jewish cultural engagement with a strong tradition of labor and social-justice activism, growing from a mutual-aid fraternal society offering health, sick, and death benefits into a national organization with community branches across the United States.

Today the organization powers progressive Jewish identity through a 360-degree approach that includes vibrant Yiddish language classes and programs, secular Jewish schools for children and families (including its flagship Manhattan and New York Workers Circle Schools), multigenerational education, cultural programming, and interactive activities rooted in Jewish holidays and history.

Alongside its educational and cultural work, The Workers Circle runs strategic social justice initiatives, including democracy protection and voter engagement campaigns, continuing a legacy of activism that spans suffrage, labor rights, and civil rights movements. It welcomes people of all backgrounds and heritages into its activist community, which is dedicated to building a better and more beautiful world for all.