By Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel in Chula Vista, California Every election season reminds us of the sacred, slightly stressful weight of a single vote. We line up, sticker in hand, trusting that an individual mark on a piece of paper matters. If you ever doubt whether one lone soul can pivot the course of
Parsha Lech Lecha: The power of one Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food
In 1955 we got a reliable white and black Chevrolet, a two-door sedan with hand crank windows, automatic transmission, no radio or air conditioning. A 1956 family road trip to Carmel, San Francisco, the Redwoods and Tahoe resulted in our only scrapbook with Brownie camera photographs and ephemera, napkins, matchbooks, menus, postcards, park receipts, a “See the USA in Your Chevrolet” story. We took pictures of driving through a Redwood tree, and President Eisenhower waving to the crowd from a car at a Monterey golf course. (Oliveer B. Pollak)
Auto biography, History on wheels Read More »
California, Holocaust, Lifestyles, Science, Medicine, & Education, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Technology, Travel and Food, USA
President Donald Trump at an Iowa rally called on Omar to resign her House seat following disclosure that she used another name — Ilhan Nur Said Elmi, a/k/a Ilhan Abdullahi Omar — in a recent court filing. Her former husband is named Ahmed Nur Said Elmi. (SDJW staff report)
The fight against terrorism and antisemitism: Oct. 22, 2026 Read More »
News Media, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA
The celebrated author has written a series of books about a heroine, Misery Chastain. Though the novels have brought him success and acclaim, he is eager to write something fresh, a complete departure from his 19th-century epic. Leaving the Victorian era behind, Sheldon writes a novel about life in Manhattan, filled with obscenities and graphic descriptions of New Yorkers. (Eva Trieger)
Misery loves Lamplighters company Read More »
Eva Trieger, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
Engel’s music and that of five of his fellow composers in the Jewish Folk Song Society (JFSS) will be heard, as well as the music of one of the Russian teachers who inspired the group, Nicholas Rimsky-Korsakov. In addition, we will hear the music of Mieczyslaw Weinberg, a Holocaust-era Polish-born Jewish composer, who settled in the Soviet Union. [Eileen Wingard]
Examples of the Jewish Folk Song Society’s output to be played Oct. 29 at the JCC Read More »
Eileen Wingard, International, Israel, Jewish History, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA
On Friday, a 63-year-old Boston-born woman who is a Washington Post photographer was severely beaten by settlers. The next day, settlers assaulted two Arabs in another village in front of diplomats visiting from France, Poland, and Belgium. (Bruce S. Tocker)
Avraham’s journey came without a guarantee that the road would be easy. Neither does ours. But we don’t need to see the entire road to take the next step. (Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D.)
Parsha Lech Lecha: The courage to leave what is familiar Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food
British authorities rearrested two of the seven men suspected of plotting against RAF Fairford air base from which American bombers took off earlier this year on bombing runs over Iran. [SDJW staff]
The fight against terrorism and antisemitism: Oct. 21, 2026 Read More »
International, Middle East, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food, USA
The opening of the exhibit, presented by Remember Us the Holocaust, drew Holocaust survivors, community leaders, elected officials and supporters who gathered to honor those who perished, recognize survivors and celebrate progress toward establishing a permanent home for Holocaust education in San Diego. (Cailin Acosta)
Havis is attentive to the ways earlier political commitments become inadequate once concrete violence has occurred. Several characters discover that language they once used without much cost now requires defense or revision. The novel records these moments of discomfort—awkward family calls, a lecturer choosing silence, a podcaster recalibrating tone—but does not press very hard on what the discomfort produces. (Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel0
Havis’ novel on Oct. 7th offers no definitive insights Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, Staff and Bylined Contributors“Antisemitism constantly evolves through coded language, symbols, cultural references and forms of ‘algospeak’ designed to evade automated detection…” (SDJW report)
The fight against terrorism and antisemitism: Oct. 20, 2026 Read More »
Antisemitism, Business & Finance, Israel, Jewish History, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Technology, USAAfter the U.S, complained, the Israeli military and security forces fanned out and arrested 10 suspects. Moshe Pinchi, Israel Police Superintendent, stated, “We are working to collect evidence, findings and testimonies and to consolidate an evidentiary infrastructure that will enable bringing those involved to justice.” (SDJW staff)
The fight against terrorism and antisemitism: Oct. 19. 2026 Read More »
International, Israel, Jewish History, News Media, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food, USA
What can a family photograph, an old cup or a century-old book reveal about lives largely forgotten? For Brooklyn-based Jewish artist Danielle Alhassid, such objects offer a way to recover overlooked voices and explore the connections among Jewish identity, migration, memory and storytelling. (Cailin Acosta)
Danielle Alhassid blends archival materials into her art Read More »
Cailin Acosta, International, Jewish History, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA
Twenty-two years after the end of World War II and the Shoah, threats by Arab leaders to “drive the Jews into the sea” sparked fears among the population of West Germany of a possible “second Holocaust.” [Alex Gordon}
Why Germans of the 1960s were so sympathetic to Israel Read More »
Alex Gordon, Antisemitism, Holocaust, International, Israel, Jewish History, Middle East, Opinion, Science, Medicine, & Education, Staff and Bylined Contributors