USA

Antisemitism in the ‘New West’

Do you worry that Jew-hatred might affect your comfortable American life? Do you think that Jew-haters will ignore you because your “Jewishness” is unimportant for you? If not, why not? Does this worry – if you feel it – fall below your concern for abortion legislation, diversity and gender issues, climate change policies, etc.? With this in mind, it’s time to wake up to the “new” West. [Steve Kramer]

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Middle East, Steve Kramer, USA

Jewish Tales of the Old West: A Butcher on the Comstock

During the 1870’s, the population of Nevada’s legendary Comstock Lode, then at the height of mining fever, surged to nearly 25,000. In the canyons and down the slopes, housing was scarce, the noise was unceasing, the air nearly unbreathable and the violence endemic.1 Between them, the towns of Virginia City and Gold Hill were a crowded jumble of miners’ cabins, stamp mills, luxury mansions, hotels, restaurants, saloons, stores and stables, all built over an underground city of mining tunnels, adits and shafts. These underground works ultimately produced over 300 million dollars’ worth of precious ore that built the city of San Francisco and made fabulous fortunes for the fortunate. Among this crowd of fortune-seekers lived a Jewish community of about 500, and one of its most influential members was a butcher from Germany named Mark Strouse (1845-1898). [Susan E. James, Ph.D]

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Business & Finance, Jewish History, Travel and Food, USA

‘Squirrel Hill’ Portrays Pittsburgh Community Where Tree of Life Massacre Occurred

This journalistic tour-de-force tells the story of October 27, 2018, the day an antisemitic gunman snuffed the lives of 11 congregants at the three small congregations that occupied the Tree of Life Synagogue in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It is not simply a depiction of the carnage, but also a portrait of the community in which it happened.  Author Oppenheimer, a former religion columnist for The New York Times, methodically tells us the stories of the victims, including those who barely escaped with their lives, and of the diverse reactions in the community to the shooting.  There were those who organized vigils; those who protested a photo-op visit to the synagogue by then President Donald Trump with his wife, Melania, daughter, Ivanka, and son-in-law Jared Kushner.  Additionally, there were trauma tourists, compelled perhaps like moths to a flame, who wanted to see the site.  There were also presumptuous would-be helpers, who felt they knew better than Squirrel Hill’s residents how the victims should be mourned.   And there were fundraisers, who through various appeals including a Go-Fund-Me effort, raised millions of dollars for the families of the victims and for the congregations themselves. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Travel and Food, USA

How a Budget Standoff Demonstrated the Partisan Split Over Israel

By Jonathan S. Tobin (JNS) The Iron Dome missile-defense system has long been one of the least controversial aspects of the U.S.-Israel relationship. Funding for the idea was approved in principle by the George W. Bush administration in 2007 after the Israel Aerospace Industries and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems conceived the project. It was an

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Middle East, USA

Mich. Rep. Andy Levin proposes pathway to two-state solution in Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Published by The Detroit News WASHINGTON — Michigan U.S. Rep. Andy Levin is leading a bill would take steps to encourage a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He introduced the text Thursday at the U.S. Capitol, marking the close of the High Holy Days and the start of the Jewish new year. Congress has

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USA

Israeli Leaders Thank US After Overwhelming Approval of Iron Dome Funding

(JNS) Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Defense Minister Benny Gantz posted messages of thanks to the United States minutes after the House of Representatives voted in favor of supplying Israel with $1 billion worth of Iron Dome interceptors on Thursday. “Thank you to the United States House of Representatives, Democrats and Republicans as one,

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Middle East, USA

U.S. House backs bill to provide $1 billion for Israel Iron Dome system

Published by Reuters By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly on Thursday for legislation to provide $1 billion to Israel to replenish its “Iron Dome” missile-defense system, just two days after the funding was removed from a broader spending bill. The measure passed by 420 to 9, with two members

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USA

Jewish Federation Updates List of Organizations Condemning AFT 1931 Resolution on Israel

The Jewish Federation of San Diego County has updated its list of Jewish organizations and their leaders who have signed its statement condemning the anti-Israel resolution adopted by Local 1931 of the American Federation of Teachers, which represents faculty at the San Diego Community College District and the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District.  The statement issued Sept. 17 by the Jewish Federation and other elements of the organized Jewish community may be read here.  The AFT resolution that triggered the controversy may be read here. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, Middle East, San Diego County, 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