New leads may hold key in search for parents of 628 children separated at border

SAN DIEGO — The intensive effort to locate the parents of 628 children who remain apart from their parents after being separated at the border under Trump administration policies has been bolstered by new leads, attorneys reported this week. A group of volunteers dedicated to the search have recently gained access to two additional databases […]

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International, USA

State Supreme Court rejects GOP challenge to Minnesota election results

MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a Republican lawsuit to stop certification of Minnesota’s Nov. 3 election results and order a full recount, the latest in a long line of failed legal attempts around the country to challenge the outcome of the 2020 vote. In a five-page order rejecting the case, Chief

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USA

SPME Opposes Hiring of Valentina Azarova at University of Toronto

Scholars for Peace in the Middle East (SPME), representing over 50,000 academics worldwide, is deeply concerned about the hiring process and potential hire of Dr. Valentina Azarova to lead the Faculty of Law’s International Human Rights Program (IHRP). We believe there is ample evidence that should question her ability to lead the IHRP. [SPME Press Release0

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International, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA

Jen Campbell wins a short-term rental victory

Ahead of the December 10th meeting that will determine whether San Diego City Councilmember Jennifer Campbell or Councilmember Monica Montgomery Steppe will become the next City Council President, Campbell scored a victory at the City Planning Commission, winning unanimous approval for her compromise plan to cut by 50 percent the number of short-term rental units in the city and to charge a license fee for those that remain. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, International, Middle East, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA

How Hanukkah came to be an annual White House celebration

President Donald Trump speaks during a Hanukkah reception at the White House in 2019. AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta President Trump’s plan of holding an in-person Hanukkah reception at the White House on Dec. 9, despite concerns over the coronavirus, is getting much attention on social media. Some asked whether anyone would be reckless enough to

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Jewish Religion, USA

Biden says Trump policies allowed Iran to increase nuclear material

US President-elect Joe Biden slammed Donald Trump’s Iran strategy and reiterated his intention to prevent the Islamic Republic from developing nuclear weapons in a new televised interview. “The bottom line is that we can’t allow Iran to get nuclear weapons,” Biden told CNN’s Jake Tapper. “He has pulled out to get something tougher, and what

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Middle East, USA

Include Women with Disabilities in Leadership Programs

As more Jewish programs provide women with increasing leadership and mentorship opportunities, it is important that all Jewish women are given an opportunity to succeed, including disabled women. In 2018, I acquired a disability due to a fall and was diagnosed with Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy, which affects my sympathetic nervous system in my right arm and leg, causing chronic pain. Twenty-five percent of Jewish adult women in the United States have a disability. Yet, often it is incorrectly assumed that women with disabilities cannot be in leadership roles. [Lauren Appelbaum]

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Lifestyles, USA

A Word of Torah: Appeasing Evil?

This week we read of the brotherly reunion of Yaakov and Esav after their long separation. As a brief reminder Yaakov (Jacob) hurriedly left the house of his righteous parents Yitzchak (Isaac) and Rivka (Rebecca) due to the homicidal rage of his (evil) twin Esav who wanted to murder him. Why did Esav want to murder his twin brother? He was enraged that Yaakov, through stealthy means, acquired his father’s blessing instead of him. Ultimately, everyone agreed-including Esav himself-with Rivka’s assessment that the potent blessing would find an appropriate vessel within Yaakov rather than Esav. [Rabbi Yeruchem Eilfort]

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Jewish Religion, Yeruchem Eilfort-Rabbi

Authors Tell Stories of 15 Israelis’ Resilience

In “Isresilience,” we meet 15 Israelis who overcame difficult challenges in their lives and went on to praiseworthy accomplishments.  The sketches are of Israeli sabras and olim, men and women, young and old.  Through the entire narrative, authors Dickson, who is executive director of StandWithUs in Israel, and Baum, a PhD known for her studies of resilience, examine how these Israelis were able to overcome the obstacles that life put in their way.   They suggest that there are three important ingredients to resilience: empathy, flexibility, and meaning making, which might be better understood as a sense of purpose. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Middle East

Jewish Democrats welcome Meeks’ appt. as chair of Foreign Affairs Cmte.

WASHINGTON – Jewish Democrats congratulated Gregory Meeks of New York on Thursday after being elected as the next chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Meeks will replace Eliot Engel, a staunch supporter of Israel, who lost his primary reelection bid and will not serve in the next Congress.“I congratulate my dear friend Greg Meeks

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Middle East, USA

Jimmy Carter joins other ex-presidents encouraging COVID vaccine use

ATLANTA — A day after America witnessed its worst day in coronavirus-related deaths, Jimmy Carter joined three other living former presidents Thursday in encouraging Americans to get a COVID-19 vaccination shot as soon as it becomes available. In a statement, Carter said that he and his wife, Rosalynn, “are in full support of COVID-19 vaccine

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USA