SAN DIEGO — Following are some of the stories of Jewish interest that hit our editor’s computer mail box at editor@sdjewishworld.com on Tuesday, June 19. We are interested in local, national, and international news of Jewish interest, and welcome comments from members of the Jewish community about these news items.
Bernie Sanders blasts family separations at border
U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt) has issued a statement criticizing the U.S. government’s separation of children from their parents upon crossing the border. His statement, in part, read:
“The Trump administration has reached a new low. After having nothing but praise for Kim Jong Un, the leader of the most despotic government on Earth, Trump has now initiated policies in our own country that are unprecedented in their cruelty.
“Like you, I have watched with horror and disgust the countless stories and images of children being ripped away from their parents and stuck in cages for days, weeks and months without any contact or information about their well-being. I have read about parents being sent back to their home country without their children, and even stories about parents so distraught about the separation that they have ended their own lives.
“As former First Lady Laura Bush stated; “Our government should not be in the business of warehousing children in converted box stores or making plans to place them in tent cities in the desert outside of El Paso. These images are eerily reminiscent of the internment camps for U.S. citizens and noncitizens of Japanese descent during World War II, now considered to have been one of the most shameful episodes in U.S. history.”
“The Trump administration policy of separating children from their parents at our border is a national disgrace. It is a moral abomination. And it can be stopped.
“Like every member of the Senate Democratic Caucus, I have added my name as a co-sponsor of the Keep Families Together Act – legislation that would stop this detestable policy. Unfortunately, not one Republican senator has yet signed on….”
In a related development, Haile Soifer, executive director of the Jewish Democratic Council of America wrote a letter to Homeland Security Director Kristjen Nielsen calling upon her to resign. It read: Secretary Nielsen, We are horrified by reports of thousands of children being forcibly separated from their parents on our southern border. Your decision to implement this inhumane policy is irresponsible, and your failure to acknowledge the consequences of this policy is unacceptable. Additionally, your lack of transparency regarding this policy has created a deficit of trust and caused Americans to question your ability to serve in this role. For these reasons and more, we call on you to immediately step down. The “zero-tolerance” immigration policy devised by President Trump and implemented by the Department of Homeland Security, which you lead, is a betrayal of our values. It is immoral, unconscionable, and a violation of the American tradition of protecting those seeking refuge. The policy is inconsistent with international law protecting asylum seekers, and antithetical to the Jewish tradition of “loving thy neighbor as thyself.” This immigration policy must come to an immediate end, and those who have facilitated it must immediately step down. We have vowed to “never again” allow the darkest chapters of history to be repeated, and expect our government to adhere to this commitment and implement policies consistent with our values. Your decision to forcibly separate families demonstrates that you should not serve as one of our nation’s leaders. We therefore call on you to immediately resign as Secretary of Homeland Security.
— From Bernie Sanders and Jewish Democratic Council of America
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AIPAC, RJC, AJCongress approve, Lowey opposes U.S. withdrawal from U.N. Human Rights Commission
The American Israel Public Affairs Council (AIPAC) said it “appreciates the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), and for the leadership of U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley on this issue. Unfortunately, the council has profoundly betrayed its mission through its long and obsessive record of unfairly targeting the Middle East’s only genuine democracy, the state of Israel.
“The UNHRC’s unrelenting, unbalanced and unfounded attacks on Israel have destroyed its credibility. The council has passed more country-specific resolutions against Israel than the rest of the world’s nations combined. The United States has repeatedly called for reform of the UNHRC; unfortunately, the council has rebuffed any serious reform—severely impeding its ability to effectively act as an objective guardian of human rights.
“We also appreciate the important efforts pursued by members of Congress on a bipartisan basis over many years to combat the council’s bias against our democratic ally.”
Norm Coleman, chair of the Republican Jewish Coalition said: “We applaud the Trump Administration, and specifically Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, for withdrawing the United States from the UNHRC. The UNHRC should stand for human rights around the globe. Instead, it has become a club for the worst of the worst human rights violators. Since its inception it has had a permanent agenda item to debate Israel’s ‘human rights abuses.’ The UNHRC has passed 78 resolutions condemning Israel, more than it has passed against all other countries combined. Israel, of course, is the only democracy in the
Middle East and the only Middle Eastern country to guarantee freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and many other freedoms that are not protected in much of the world. President Bush wisely withdrew the United States from the UNHRC during his tenure. President Obama made a foolish mistake by rejoining. We praise President Trump for fixing yet another grave mistake by President Obama and for standing up for Israel in the international arena.”
Similarly, the American Jewish Congress said that it “stands firmly behind Secretary Pompeo and Ambassador Nikki Haley’s decision to withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council. This body has a long, hypocritical record of giving cover to totalitarian state sponsors of terrorism while attacking Israel even as the Middle East’s sole democracy defends itself against terrorist assault. The United States’ bold move today demonstrates that it is unwilling to legitimize the illegitimate. The American Jewish Congress hopes that other countries follow the United States as it stands by one of America’s greatest allies while standing up to tyranny and violence.”
On the other hand, Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-NY17), Ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee and the Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations, issued the following statement in light of reports that the Trump Administration plans to withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council on Tuesday: “The Administration’s decision to withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council would be another isolationist maneuver in its foreign policy strategy that is weakening U.S. global leadership. It is inescapable that UNHRC has consistently and unfairly targeted Israel, which has allowed other human rights violations to avoid scrutiny. Yet, I have always believed it is better to stay at a negotiating table than to walk away. By leaving UNHRC, we will not improve its behavior, rather the U.S. will lose its ability to influence the foreign body’s agenda and retreat from its role as a world leader on human rights.”
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Women’s ‘hackathon’ produces new products for market
Nursing mothers holding their babies while first-year college students stay up all night learning how to code, and ultimately develop a web-based math learning program for children. These surreal scenes and others were part of the Jerusalem College of Technology (JCT) – Lev Academic Center’s first hackathon for women last week.
Students from JCT’s engineering, business, and accounting joined forces to create 19 products designed to provide solutions to challenges presented by children’s hospitals, tech firms, retail and commercial sites, organizations working with people with disabilities, and more. The challenges were posed by leading technology companies such as Intel, IBM, and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, as well as socially minded start-ups and non-profits.
JCT initially expected 40-60 women to sign up for the hackathon, but registration needed to be closed a day early after surpassing 100. The hackathon’s three winning products were:
• An electronic bracelet to help with triage in multi-casualty incidents and electronically send the information to receiving hospitals.
• An escape room enabling blind and seeing visitors to participate as equals, using computer vision techniques and music.
• A product that identifies threats to border security using image processing and machine learning.
JCT is a leader in empowering women, and particularly religious women, by training them at the highest level in engineering, accounting, business and health sciences. JCT educates close to 20 percent of Israel’s female students in computer science and software engineering. Fifty-three percent of JCT’s computer science students are women—18 percent higher than any other Israeli university. – From Jerusalem College of Technology