Top Jewish leader cites ‘collective responsibility’ to fight campus anti-Semitism
(JNS.org) Seventy-five percent of American Jewish students say they have witnessed or experienced anti-Semitism on their college campuses, a problem that “we have a collective responsibility to address,” said Malcolm Hoenlein, CEO of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, in an interview published Thursday by the Israeli website Ynet.
In many cases, the reason behind the anti-Semitism is “ignorance” rather than hatred, explained Hoenlein, whose Conference of Presidents represents 50 national Jewish organizations.
Hoenlein affirmed that Jewish leaders are working on the “security and safety of Jewish students, and we have lawyers who go onto campuses all over the country—many of them, by the way, non-Jews—to protect the interests and rights of Jewish students, to enlist faculty, to go after the administrations, to work with them. In many cases we find it’s ignorance, it’s the lack of understanding—it’s not hatred or anti-Semitism.”
“It’s not Europe yet, but [anti-Semitism] is definitely on the rise [in America],” Hoenlein said.
On the topic of U.S.-Israel relations, Hoenlein said he believes both President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are working to allay any current tension between the longtime allied nations.
“The American public supports Israel by an overwhelming majority, and it’s been consistent and constant. Even on the Iran issue, the American public supported the position that we advocated and expresses concern today about the Iran deal,” Hoenlein said of the now-implemented nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers.
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Austrian Supreme Court turns down appeal of Holocaust writer Stephan Templ
(JNS.org) The Austrian Supreme Court turned down the appeal of an Austrian-Jewish writer who was sentenced to one year in prison for a restitution-related crime relating to the Holocaust. Templ has insisted that he is innocent.
Stephan Templ, 55, sought reparations on behalf his elderly mother, whose family owned a building that was confiscated by the Nazis. But Templ was accused of hiding the existence of an aunt who was also eligible for the same compensation. In addition to being incarcerated, Templ was also fined 550,000 euros (more than $600,000) for defrauding the state. In its rejection of Templ’s appeal, the court said Templ’s actions resulted in his mother receiving twice the amount of money that was owed to her.
Templ is known as a prominent critic of the actions of Austria during the Holocaust. The British newspaper The Guardian recently reported that Templ’s original restitution forms from 2003, which were obtained by Templ’s legal team for his defense, did include the existence of his aunt. Her name and address were mentioned six times in the documentation.
It was “outrageous for Austria to claim that Templ hid the existence of his aunt when her name is mentioned six times in documents submitted by him to the [General Settlement Fund] panel,” Templ’s lawyer, Robert Amsterdam, told The Guardian.
Nevertheless, General Settlement Fund representatives testified during Templ’s trial that they did not know the aunt existed, and the judge ruled that Templ had deliberately withheld her existence, thereby “damaging the Republic of Austria.”
“From the first look at this case, we thought it was political, and had nothing to do with the law or a sense of justice, but everything to do with singling out this Jewish troublemaker,” Amsterdam said. “This entire case is predicated on a legal fiction—the state has never been damaged and it’s an absolutely historic obscenity for Austria to claim this is the case.”
“The indictment is in tatters, so I don’t understand why they don’t release me. Apart from the fact they should never have put the victim of the [property] theft behind bars in the first place, it’s now six weeks since this new evidence came to light and the authorities do nothing. It’s further proof of what a farce the whole case is, as I’ve said all along,” Templ told The Guardian.
A spokesperson for the General Settlement Fund has denied that the organization knew about Templ’s aunt, and Austria’s Justice Ministry declined to respond to comment requests by the British newspaper.
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$375K Ruderman grant helps people with disabilities in Conservative Judaism
(JNS.org) As Jewish communities across North America celebrate Jewish Disability Awareness and Inclusion Month in February, the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism (USCJ) is receiving a $375,000, three-year grant from the Ruderman Family Foundation for the purpose of making Conservative Jewish communities more inclusive for people with disabilities.
Sixteen USCJ-affiliated congregations had participated in the 2014-15 Ruderman Inclusion Action Community initiative. As a result of the newly announced three-year grant, the Ruderman-USCJ partnership will now support up to 20 congregations demonstrating interest and readiness on the disability inclusion issue. USCJ will use the funds to consult with affiliated congregations and help them build plans for how to make all aspects of congregational life more welcoming to people with disabilities, such in education programs, prayer services, social activities, and physical spaces like the entryway to the bimah (the raised area where the Torah is read).
“This past year, USCJ’s partnership with the Ruderman Family Foundation has shown that a concerted effort such as this one can make inclusion a spiritual and programmatic reality,” USCJ CEO Rabbi Steve Wernick said in a statement. “The Hebrew word for inclusion, hachlala, is related to vayachulu, the word used to signify the completion of creation. In the same way that creation was not complete until Shabbat was included, our kehillot (local Jewish communal structures) are not complete until all people are included.”
“Disability inclusion is an issue not just confined to one movement or denomination, it’s an issue that has no borders and we see great importance in working with every movement inside Jewish life,” said Jay Ruderman, president of the Ruderman Family Foundation.
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