USA

Holocaust Survivors Urge Newsom to Veto ‘Dangerous’ Ethnic Studies Requirement Bill

SANTA CRUZ, California — Hundreds of Holocaust survivors and their descendants today urged Governor Gavin Newsom to veto AB 101, a bill mandating an ethnic studies high school graduation requirement.  The California legislature recently voted to advance AB 101, and the bill now heads to Newsom, who has until Oct. 10 to act. “We are Holocaust survivors and […]

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Science, Medicine, & Education, USA

Mark Zuckerberg and Wife Donate $1.3 million to 11 Jewish Groups

(Israel Hayom via JNS) Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, are donating $1.3 million to 11 Jewish organizations, eJewish Philanthropy reported, citing a spokesperson for the couple. The funding comes from the Chan-Zuckerberg family office, not the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI). According to the report, nine of the organizations receiving funding serve

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USA

In Withdrawing From Afghanistan, U.S. Abandoned Key Values

For the sake of ending a 20-year war, the demise of Afghanistan’s democracy and the tragedy of lives lost is the gravest of all failings on the part of the US. By negotiating troop withdrawals with the Taliban, the Islamic fundamentalist group that harbored al-Qaeda during the 9/11 attacks, America failed in preserving the value of peace. Instead, it is increasing the chances of war in the region. The implications for Israel might be stunning. [Faye Lincoln]

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International, USA

Mainstream Democrats, Bowing to Progressives, Let Israel Down

It was Congress’s first certain body blow to American Jews in modern times, though Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib may feel that they were denied a chance to achieve it on Yom Kippur and had to settle for the first day of Sukkot. The so-called “progressives” in Congress led Democrats to commit an act of war against the Jewish people on Tuesday, when the House leadership slashed $1 billion incorporated into the spending legislation for Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system in an emergency spending package. [Bruce S. Ticker]

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Bruce Ticker, Middle East, USA

Survey Finds Jewish College Students Fear for Their Safety

The first poll to specifically examine rates of anti-Semitism among college students who claim a strong sense of Jewish identity and connection to Israel finds that, among this group, students are feeling unsafe and, as a result, are learning that to avoid antisemitism they must view their religion as something to hide, not celebrate. In fact, the survey indicates that the longer students stay on campus, the less safe they feel and the more they feel the need to hide their identity. [News Release, Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law)

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Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA

Satire: Hey Senator Manchin

To the tune of Officer Krupke:                                                    

Dear stubborn Joseph Manchin
You gotta understand.
Can you make an exception?
Pass the bills Biden has planned.                                                                                                                       
The GOP’s are flunkies.
They’re pawns of Donald Trump.
Mitch McConnell thinks you are a chump.  [Laurie Baron, Ph.D]

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Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USA

Jewish Trivia Quiz: Submarines

Israel has a fleet of five Dolphin-class submarines, all purchased from Germany. While they have the capacity to fire torpedoes and anti-ship missiles, there is much speculation that Israel also has to capability of launching nuclear weapons from their submarines. What is found on each of Israel’s submarines that is not typically found on other nations’ submarines? {Mark D. Zimmerman]

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International, Mark D. Zimmerman, Middle East, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USA

Good News from Israel (September 19, 2021)

NETANYA, Israel — In the Sept. 19, 2021 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include: 
–3 million Israelis have had their Covid antibodies boosted tenfold.
–Israeli surgeons successfully separate twins conjoined by their heads.
–Israel’s first female Muslim IDF Major.
–An Israeli startup converts text into video read by an animated narrator.
–The value of Israel’s trade with Arab states in 2021 is triple that of 2020.
–Israeli pianist wins international record contract.
–The Land of Israel reveals more Jewish history. [Michael Ordman]

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Business & Finance, International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Michael Ordman, Middle East, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Science, Medicine, & Education, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, Travel and Food, USA

San Diego Jewish Community Condemns AFT 1931 Resolution on Israel and Palestine

Jewish Federation of San Diego County strongly condemns the San Diego Community College American Federation of Teachers Guild Local 1931’s “Statement Regarding the Occupied Palestinian Territories,” and we do so with the full support of our valued community partners listed below. We are dismayed to find that the union representing community college and continuing education faculty and other employees in the San Diego Community College District and the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District voted in support of this misguided and simplistic statement that has caused sadness, fear, and anger as a result of its false claims and incendiary language. This statement creates an unsafe atmosphere for Jewish and Israeli students, faculty and staff, and other members of the San Diego and Grossmont Community College Communities. Consider how an anxious Jewish student might feel walking into the classroom of a professor who supported this statement. Consider the situation a Jewish junior member of faculty now finds themselves in with a department chair who supported the statement.  [Jewish Federation of San Diego County]

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Middle East, San Diego County, USA

Shooter at Chabad of Poway Pleads Guilty in Federal Court

John T. Earnest of San Diego pleaded guilty in federal court Friday to a 113-count hate crimes indictment, admitting that he set fire to an Escondido mosque and opened fire in a Poway synagogue because he wanted to kill Muslims and Jews. The religiously- and racially-motivated attacks resulted in the murder of one person and the attempted murders of 53 others. [U.S. Attorney’s Office, San Diego]

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International, Jewish History, San Diego County, USA

Burlington, Vermont, Grapples with Israel-Palestinian Conflict

Twas two nights before Yom Kippur, when all through Burlington City Hall, a half-mile from Lake Champlain’s eastern shore, many a creature of sorts was stirring…stirring up unrest for Jewish Vermonters, 5,400 miles from the land that inspired a City Council resolution urging “justice and (a) peaceful end to (the) Palestine and Israel conflict.” [Bruce S. Ticker]

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Bruce Ticker, Middle East, USA

Jewish New Year Presents New Opportunities for Thousands of Young Adults from US and Worldwide

NEW YORK (Press Release) — On Thursday, September 2, an advertisement in New York City’s Times Square displayed a send-off message to thousands of Masa Israel Journey (“Masa”) Fellows who are starting their long-term, immersive experiences in Israel. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, thousands of young adults from around the world have arrived in or are

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Middle East, USA