International

San Diegan Wins Poetry Award from National Federation of Press Women

San Diego poet Jane Muschenetz, a mother of two and Jewish refugee from Soviet Ukraine, has been awarded first place in the 2025 National Federation of Press Women (NFPW) Professional Communications Contest for her poetry collection, Power Point. {Press Release}

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Press Release, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA

Mass Execution at Babi Yar and Subsequent Flooding of Kurenevka Part of Ukraine’s Tragic History

After the war, Kiev was rebuilt, constructed, and grew. Brick factories were built. Kiev became a large construction site. Local brick factories dumped their waste, which was diluted with water, into Babi Yar. The ravine gradually filled with slurry, a mixture of sand, clay, and water. The population of Kiev grew. The residential area of Kurenevka was located near Babi Yar. Babi Yar was 65 meters above Kurenevka. [Alex Gordon]

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Alex Gordon, Holocaust, International, Jewish History, Obituaries & memorials, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors

Satire: My Redacted Column

The suppression of free speech in the United States has been escalating.  Given the cancellation of the Stephen Colbert show, the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s show, and Trump and Pam Bondi’s vow to “target the radical left” for promoting political violence, I have redacted my original column about the Charlie Kirk assassination and the Administration’s response to it to avoid being arrested by the DOJ or being sued by Donald Trump.   [Laurie XXXXX]

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News Media, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USA

OpEd: White Jews Must Recognize that Many Black People Also are Jewish

A real Black–Jewish alliance must be rooted in mutuality. That means addressing antisemitism in Black communities and also fighting racism in Jewish communities. It means centering Black Jewish voices as leaders. It means recognizing that our struggles are interconnected—that the same systems that uphold White supremacy target both of us, even if in different ways. [Rabbi Sandra Lawson]

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Antisemitism, Jewish History, Lifestyles, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

My Mother’s Avinu Malkeinu

When she returned to Moscow in 1947, just after the war, she had no doubt where she wanted to study. She wanted to sing. And where had her beloved singer, Nadezhda Obukhova, graduated from? The Moscow Conservatory. That’s where my mother applied. [Yakov Nayerman]

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Holocaust, International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA, Yakov Nayerman

Couple Underwrites Scholarships for Financially Challenged Jewish San Diegans

“I think that people who don’t give in some way or another of their time or of their funds are missing a big part of life,” Rubenstein, a real estate investor and retired ophthalmologist reflected during an interview Monday at the JFS headquarters on Balboa Avenue. “They’re missing satisfaction and enjoying other people’s success.” [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, Lifestyles, Middle East, Philanthropy & Volunteerism, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Shor M. Masori, Staff and Bylined Contributors

U.S. House Approves Bill to Replace Fallen Armed Service Personnel’s Grave Markers with Those Reflecting Warriors’ Actual Religions

Due to the sheer scale of burials that occurred during World War I and II, hundreds of American-Jewish servicemembers killed in action were improperly buried under Latin Cross grave markers, rather than Stars of David. It is estimated that as many as 900 remain that way today. [Press Release]

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Jewish History, Obituaries & memorials, Press Release, USA