Rabbi Allen Secher (born February 14, 1935) is a rabbi, civil and human rights activist, radio host, television producer, actor, author and public speaker.
Early life
Allen was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His father was Jack Secher, and his mother was Eleanor Steiner. He has one sister, Linda and three children, Judith, Debra and Adam. Allen grew up in Pittsburgh and Butler, Pennsylvania.
Allen's father, Jack, graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1925 and from Columbia University in 1927 with a Master of Social Work. While at the University of Pittsburgh, Jack performed social work at the Irene Kaufmann Settlement and, along with his wife, ran a puppet theater there. After graduating from Columbia University, he opened and ran a series of restaurants and delicatessens in Pittsburgh.
Allen received a Bachelor of Philosophy from Brandeis University, was ordained by New York's Hebrew Union College in 1962, and earned his honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Hebrew Union College in 1987.
While attending Brandeis University, Allen served as Eleanor Roosevelt's driver for five days in June 1955."Driving Mrs. Roosevelt". Allen Secher. Montana Public Radio. September 18, 2014.
Rabbi
Allen Secher served congregations in New York City, Mexico City, Los Angeles, Chicago and Montana between 1962 and 2013. In the 1960s, Secher pioneered multi-media worship services at Temple Ahavat Shalom Northridge in Los Angeles."Temple Ahavat Shalom"
After leaving his congregation in Los Angeles and moving to Chicago, Secher started, ran, and closed an audio recording business for conferences and meetings. The company was first named Aviva and then renamed Butterfly Media Dimensions. The name Butterfly was in honor of "I Never Saw Another Butterfly," a collection of Jewish children's art and poetry from the Theresienstadt concentration camp.
In 1991, Rabbi Secher founded Makom Shalom,"Makom Shalom" makomshalom.com Chicago's first Jewish Renewal congregation, with his wife, Ina Albert, bringing traditional and holistic paths (mysticism, meditation, gender equality) toward spiritual intimacy."Working Out the Kinks". Connie Lauermann. Chicago Tribune. September 27, 1993. He also served on the board of Aleph, the umbrella organization for Renewal Judaism.
Secher moved to Whitefish, Montana, in 2000. In 2008, there were only about 1,000 self-identified Jews in Montana, a state with a population of about 900,000. For many years, Secher was the only resident rabbi in Montana. He traveled between Whitefish, Missoula, Helena, Bozeman, Billings and Great Falls congregations and was known as the "Lone Rabbi of Montana". Secher retired from congregational life in 2013."Unorthodox rabbi serves Montana". Kurt Wilson. Associated Press. Billings Gazette. May 5, 2007. "Fruit of life: Montana's only resident rabbi encourages congregations to widen the 'narrow places' in their lives". Michael Jamison. Missoulian, April 30, 2007. "As Montana Rabbi Retires, Big Sky Jews Ponder Viability of Big Tent Synagogue". Bridget Kevane Traxler. Forward. June 18, 2008.
Civil and human rights activist
In the early 1960s, Secher was one of the Freedom Riders during the civil rights movement."Shared Dreams: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Jewish Community". Rabbi Marc Schneier. Jewish Lights. 1999." "The Naked Rabbi and Dr. King: 50 Years Later, A Freedom Rider Tells His Story". Cathleen Falsani. Sojourners. January 13, 2012. "Civil Rights Rabbis Commemorate 50 Years". Tristan Scott. Flathead Beacon. June 16, 2014. "The Freedom Rider". PRX. December 1, 2011
In August 1962, Dr. King called the clergy to join him on a prayer pilgrimage to Albany, Georgia, to support the civil rights movement. Dr. King had three requirements to participate—each person needed to have bail money, they could not have anything on their arrest record that would embarrass the civil rights movement, and they all had to commit non-violence. Secher traveled to Albany and was part of a group of clergy that held a prayer service on August 28, 1962, in front of the Albany city hall. Four hundred onlookers watched as all 75 clergy were arrested and taken to 4 surrounding jails."In Summer of '62, Living King’s Challenge". Ralph Loyd Ray. New York Times. January 15, 2009.
Dr. King wrote a "Letter from the St. Augustine Jail" to Rabbi Israel S. Dresner, urging him to recruit rabbis from the Central Conference of American Rabbis to come to St. Augustine, Florida and take part in the demonstrations being held in St. Augustine. Secher responded to the appeal and traveled to St. Augustine to participate in the demonstrations. Sixteen rabbis, including Secher, arrived and attempted to integrate the whites-only pool and restaurant with a group of civil rights organizers at the Monson Motor Lodge on June 18, 1964. The protesters and rabbis were arrested."Fifty years ago, rabbis answered MLK's 'clarion call for help' in St. Augustine". Matt Soergel. The Florida Times-Union. June 14, 2014. "Rabbi part of pivotal pool protest in Florida in 1964". Lynnette Hintze. Daily Inter Lake. June 14, 2014. "50 years later, rabbis jailed in civil rights protest return to St. Augustine". Dina Weinstein. Jewish Telegraphic Agency. June 24, 2014.
While in a segregated holding cell at St. John's County Jail, the clergy wrote a group letter titled "Why We Went: A Joint Letter from the Rabbis Arrested in St. Augustine.""Why We Went: A Joint Letter from the Rabbis Arrested in St. Augustine". Jewish Women's Archive. June 19, 1964. "16 Rabbis Arrested as Pool Dive-In Sets Off St. Augustine Rights Clash". John Herbers. New York Times. June 19, 1964. The day after the demonstration Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 on June 19, 1964, after an 83-day filibuster.
The 1964 St. Augustine actions, focusing on Alan Secher's exeperience in the context of his lifetime of civil rights work, was the topic of a one-person play "When the Rabbis Came to Town." In 2026 the play was performed in St Augustine in an event commemorating the anniversary. Secher, the last surviving rabbi from that time, traveled there to read aloud the "Why We Went" letter and to participate in a discussion after the performance.
In January 2005, Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer appointed Secher to the Montana State Human Rights Commission and reappointed him in 2009."Montana Human Rights Commission" erd.dli.mt.gov"Rabbi Allen Secher takes place on Human Rights Commission". Heidi Geiser. Daily Inter Lake. May 21, 2005. In November 2011, Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer appointed Secher to the Montana Arts Council."Governor Announces Appointments to Various Boards and Councils". Targeted News Service. November 3, 2011. insurancenewnet.com
In 2008, Secher, his wife, Ina Alpert and two others co-founded Love Lives Here in Whitefish, a non-profit organization dedicated to diversity and equal treatment for all citizens, in response to some white nationalist film showings."Love Lives Here" loveliveshereflathead.org "Whitefish celebrates 'Love Lives Here'". Seaborn Larson. Great Falls Tribune. January 16, 2017. Love Lives Here worked with other Whitefish community members to try to get the Whitefish City Council to enact diversity, tolerance and anti-discrimination legislation. In 2015, the Whitefish City Council approved an anti-discrimination ordinance."Whitefish Residents Appeal to City Council for Anti-Hate Law". Tristan Scott. Flathead Beacon. November 18, 2014. "Whitefish Council Adopts Resolution Supporting Diversity, Tolerance". Tristan Scott. Flathead Beacon. December 2, 2014. "Whitefish Celebrates Two-Year Anniversary of Diversity Resolution". Tristan Scott. Flathead Beacon. November 29, 2016. "Whitefish pushes back against alt-right leader Spencer". Vince Devlin. Montana Standard. November 27, 2016.
In 2015, Richard B. Spencer, a spokesman for the "alt-right," lived part of the year in Whitefish. Richard and his mother, Sherry Spencer, own property in downtown Whitefish. Sherry claimed that a local Jewish realtor attempted to force her to sell her property because Richard was her son."Does Love Really Live Here?". Sherry Spencer. Medium. December 15, 2016. "Montana rabbi speaks out on anti-Semitic harassment". Eitan Arom. Jewish Journal. December 23, 2016.
On December 16, 2016, the website The Daily Stormer asked its readers to unleash "an old-fashioned Troll Storm" on Montana's Jews and provided contact details for five Whitefish residents, including Secher, his wife, two others and a local child. The post also included photographs of some residents, superimposed with a yellow Star of David bearing the word "Jude," the German word for Jew."Neo-Nazi Website Targets Jews in Whitefish, Montana". Rachel Dicker. US News. December 19, 2016. "White supremacist site posts personal details of Jews in Montana and urges 'call for action'". Rachael Revesz. Independent. December 18, 2016. "Jewish leaders in Richard Spencer's home town targeted in posting on neo-Nazi website". Katie Mettler. Washington Post. December 19, 2016."Hate Screech". Snopes. December 20, 2016
The events in Whitefish became part of a larger national dialogue about the alt-right, White nationalism and antisemitism."In Montana, Activists and a Rabbi Resist the Resident White Supremacist". Sam Kestenbaum. Forward. December 15, 2016. "The Rise of the 'Alt-Right'". Tristan Scott. Flathead Beacon. November 22, 2016 "How the town of Whitefish defeated its neo-Nazi trolls — and became a national model of resistance". Andrew Romano. Yahoo News. January 19. 2017. "Whitefish Residents Take Aim at White Supremacist Group". Mackenzie Allen. ABC Fox Montana. November 19, 2016. "In Montana, Activists and a Rabbi Resist the Resident White Supremacist". Sam Kestenbaum. Forward. December 16, 2015. "Montana governor, legislators condemn plans for white-nationalist march". David Weigel. Washington Post. December 27, 2016.
Secher also served on committees at North Valley Hospital in Whitefish and Kalispell Regional Medical Center in Kalispell, Montana.
Radio and film From 1967 to 1997, Allen A could be heard weekly on more than 450 Armed Forces Radio stations worldwide. His internationally syndicated show, East of Eden, featured interviews, poetry, music, and perspectives on various subjects. East of Eden was rated No. 1 in its category and had a weekly audience of millions of listeners. Some guests included Ray Bradbury, Dalton Trumbo, Maya Angelou, John Cassavetes, Elie Wiesel and Rod McKuen. At one point, it was the longest-running show on the Armed Forces Radio Network.
In 2002, Secher hosted a radio show called Nice and Easy featuring Frank Sinatra on KOFI, a local station in Kalispell. In September 2007, Secher hosted a new show called You Must Remember This on Montana Public Radio. The show is a monthly hour-long program featuring performers, compositions, and composers of the Great American Songbook, music from the 1930s to 1950s."You Must Remember This". Montana Public Radio"For Valentine's Day, Secher Spins Vintage Love Songs" Dan Testa. Flathead Beacon. February 5, 2009. "Under the M: MTPR musical series celebrates 100th episode with Tom Brokaw". Kurt Wilson. Missoulian. May 30, 2016.
A longtime voice actor, Secher is the voice of The Dude Abides audiobook."The Dude Abides: The Gospel According to the Coen Brothers". Cathleen Falsani. Zondervan. 2009. "Finding God in 'The Big Lebowski'". Claudia Koerner. Orange County Register. November 27, 2009.
In the early 1970s, Secher served as a consultant for the CBS television sitcom Bridget Loves Bernie. The show depicted an interfaith marriage between a Jewish man and an Irish Catholic woman (played by the actors David Birney and Meredith Baxter, who married in real life after the show ended in 1973).