Jews in the News: February 8, 2019

By Donald H. Harrison

Donald H. Harrison

NATIONAL/ INTERNATIONAL – Ronald S. Lauder and Robert Singer, president and executive vice president respectively of the World Jewish Congress, told a European Parliament committee on Thursday “to pick after Jews or go after Jews is not just wrong — it is dangerous for all Europeans. … Anti-Semitism eventually consumes everyone and everything.  We need to form one solid line of defense against today’s evil.” A review of the votes cast on Senate Bill 1, which provided financial aid to Israel, and also confirmed the right of states to refuse to do business with companies boycotting Israel, shows that 22 No votes were cast by Democrats.  They included three Jews — Dianne Feinstein of California, Bernie Sanders of Vermont, and Brian Schatz of Hawaii, and in addition to Sanders, these 2020 presidential candidates: Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, and Kamala Harris of California.  Also voting ‘No’ was the 2016 Democratic vice presidential candidate, Tim Kaine of Virginia.  The lone Republican senator to vote against the bill was Rand Paul of Kentucky. Jewish Democrats who voted in favor of the measure were Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Benjamin Cardin of Maryland, Jacky Rosen of Nevada, Chuck Schumer of New York, and Ron Wyden of Oregon.  The bill was approved by the Senate by a vote of 77-23 and now is pending before the House of Representatives. … San Diegan Elias Newman, an educator and musician, condemned in The Forward those Jewish groups that praised President Trump’s State of the Union message, saying Trump’s praise for Holocaust survivors and a survivor of the Tree of Life Synagogue was “cover” for his “bigotry” against immigrants and abortion. … While praising Trump’s recognition of the Holocaust and Tree of Life Synagogue massacre survivors, American Jewish Congress President Jack Rosen issued a statement saying, “President Trump spoke about the tragedy in Pittsburgh and the heroism of the SWAT officer who ended it, but he spoke about the shooting like it was an isolated incident. In actuality, the Pittsburgh shooting was the worst of an expanding pattern of anti-Semitic hate crime and violence. Violence against Jews has continued since that attack. President Trump mentioned neither these other attacks nor anti-Semitism nor white supremacy. Out of respect for those who were murdered in Pittsburgh, we must not neglect the broader picture.” … Ron Klein and Halie Soifer, respectively chairman and executive director of the Jewish Democratic Council of America, said if the President really wants to be a friend to the Jews, he should “unequivocally denounce white nationalism; disassociate his actions and rhetoric from the “nationalist” movement; work with Congress to pass legislation to prevent and combat anti-Semitism; and commit to discourse that recognizes and affirms the humanity of minorities, political opponents, the press, persons with disabilities, and immigrants.” … Former New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson has conceded that some of the unattributed passages in her book Merchants of Truth were too similar to works previously published by others, and said that she would edit and amend the book.

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ENTERTAINMENT NEWS – Filmmaker Woody Allen is suing Amazon for canceling a four-picture movie deal.  According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, the deal was canceled “after old accusations against him resurfaced in the press” about him allegedly molesting Mia Farrow’s 7-year-old daughter, Dylan, in 1992.

SAN DIEGO COUNTY – San Diego City Councilwoman Barbara Bry has issued this priority list for construction projects in her 1st Councilmanic District: Completion of the SR-56 bike path; South University Community Library expansion;  Full funding for Marcy Park in University City; Traffic signalization at Del Mar Heights School crossing route; Realignment of Durango Drive; Handrail on the south end of the Marine Room Restaurant; Fully funding the improvements from Coast Boulevard south to the Children’s Pool Plaza; and Improvements to the North Comfort Station in Kellogg Park

SAN DIEGO ARTS & CULTURE – The San Diego International Jewish Film Festival, now in progress, will honor filmmaker Roberta Grossman, who directed and co-produced Who Will Write Our History.  The movie deals with Warsaw Ghetto residents who buried artifacts in the hope that they would be unearthed after the Nazis were defeated and inform the world about what life was like there.  Grossman will receive the festival’s Beacon Award on Wednesday, Feb. 13.  According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, another celebrity making a personal appearance will be former San Diego Padre Cody Decker who played for Team Israel in the 2017 World Baseball Classic.  A movie about the team’s experiences Heading Home: The Tale of Team Israel, will be shown to teens at 6 p.m. Feb. 12 and to general audiences an hour later. Decker will meet with the teens. … Steven Snyder, president and CEO of the Fleet Science Center, says that two full galleries will be devoted to the world-premiere exhibition “Pause/Play” in which adult and juvenile visitors are encouraged to learn scientific facts while playing in a sandbox, on a seesaw, on a merry-go-round, in a ball-filled pool, while shooting basketball hoops, riding a tricycle with square wheels, and playing a glowing game of hop scotch.  Snyder said the exhibit “allows visitors to engage in full-body interactives, while using science, resulting in a completely unique experience.”

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Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World.  He may be contacted via donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com