Emily Bazelon (Nina Subin) Emily Bazelon doesn’t hesitate to take on big social issues. “I was raised to see Judaism in terms of ethical precepts,” Bazelon told the AJP. The author of “Sticks and Stones: Defeating the Culture of Bullying and Rediscovering the Power of Character and Empathy” will speak in Tucson on… Read more »
(L-R): Tayvien Williams, Vianney Careaga, Marissa Pena and Rachel Mayer at the Tucson Commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington on Aug. 28. (Frank Youdelman) Armory Park was the scene of the Tucson Commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington on Aug. 28. Around 150 people listened as four young people, representing African American, Native American, Hispanic and Anglo societal groups, read segments of Dr. Martin Luther King’s famous “I… Read more »
Southwest Torah Institute’s Women’s Academy for Jewish Studies will hold a free brunch and presentation, “Where is G-d leading me?” with Esther Becker on Sunday, Oct. 6 at 9:30 a.m. at Congregation Chofetz Chayim. Becker’s talk is based on “The Map Seeker: One Woman’s Quest” by Leah Kotkes, the… Read more »
“The Last Bully: Stopping Epidemics of Violence” is the 2013-14 theme of the first Media Making a Difference film series, sponsored by the Aurora Foundation, Tucson International Jewish Film Festival, Loft Cinema and the Fund for Civility, Respect and Understanding. “Submit the Documentary: The Virtual Reality of Cyberbullying” will… Read more »
The graduation of the Torah School at the revitalized Temple Beth Israel of Highland Park and Eagle Rock, May 19, 2013. (Temple Beth Israel of Highland Park and Eagle Rock) The “Seeking Kin” column aims to help reunite long-lost relatives and friends. BALTIMORE (JTA) – When Henry Leventon, his wife and three daughters attended their first Sabbath service at Temple Beth Israel of Highland Park and Eagle Rock in 1976, the gabbai at the Los Angeles synagogue immediately approached.… Read more »
Syrian refugees living in camps and tens in northern Jordan are receiving aid from Jewish and Israeli groups. (Courtesy IsraAid) NEW YORK (JTA) — When Georgette Bennett decided a few months ago to help refugees from Syria’s civil war, she wanted to do it in a Jewish way. Citing a passage from Leviticus she said her late husband often quoted, “Thou shalt not stand idly by the blood of… Read more »
Protestors rally Sept. 9 on Capitol Hill in support of possible U.S. military action in Syria. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images) WASHINGTON (JTA) — Pro-Israel officials rolled their eyes this week in response to the opposing spins about their support for President Barack Obama’s drive to punish Syrian President Bashar Assad for his purported use of chemical weapons against his own people. Some suggested that once again, the tail was… Read more »
DERBENT, Russia (JTA) — Accustomed to the sound of gunfire at night, neighbors of Rabbi Ovadia Isakov were not particularly startled when a shot rang out on Pushkin Street on July 25. But unlike the volleys that partygoers often fire heavenward in this lawless corner of the Russian Caucasus,… Read more »
Nate Freiman, a rookie first baseman for the Oakland Athletics, is trying to help his team make the playoffs. (Hille Kuttler) BALTIMORE (JTA) – Last September, first baseman Nate Freiman was doing his best to help Israel secure a spot in the World Baseball Classic. Despite some super hitting from the towering slugger, the team fell short. Fast forward a year. Freiman, 25, now finds himself in another playoff chase.… Read more »
NEW YORK (JTA) — For years, Rina Deych was treated like she was crazy. Fighting the Yom Kippur ritual of kapparot, she was told things had always been this way and if she kept up the battle, she would only incite anti-Semitism. Year after year, people would kindly suggest… Read more »
NEW YORK (JTA) — On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the trial of Leo Frank in Atlanta, let’s begin by stating for the record: No, the Leo Frank case was not the impetus for the founding of the Anti-Defamation League. It is true that the organization, now… Read more »
“A good village, built of stone, containing about 300 Arabs and 100 Druze, situated on hill-top, with gardens and extensive vineyards.” This is how two lieutenants of the British Army, Claude Conder and Herbert Kitchener, described Beit Jann in their “Survey of Western Palestine” (1881). Today, this village in… Read more »
NEW YORK (JTA) — Nine months ago, Natalia Demidova crouched on the second floor of her Staten Island home and watched her neighbor’s SUV race a 10-foot wave down the street. The wave crashed through Demidova’s quiet residential block in the South Beach neighborhood and flooded her home with… Read more »
NEW YORK (JTA) — When Manya Monson was laid off in 2010, she knew she wouldn’t receive unemployment benefits, but she figured she could manage. Then a few weeks later she found out she was pregnant. “It made things very tough at that point,” Monson said. Had she been… Read more »
Maksim Kats, shown in Moscow in 2012, says the campaign of Moscow mayoral candidate Alexei Navalny is about making big changes in the political life of Russia. (Maksim Kats) MOSCOW (JTA) — On the rooftop of a Soviet-era apartment block, a young man straps into climbing gear and rappels down the side as a small gathering of city workers and police officers watch from below. On the way down, the climber stops at a balcony and tears loose… Read more »
NEW YORK (JTA) — Sukkot is a wonderful time of year to incorporate seasonal ingredients into your cooking. One of my most important rules for cooking and eating is to use what is best and freshest in the market — fish, vegetables, fruit and meat. The better your ingredients,… Read more »
LOS ANGELES (JTA) — In open opposition to Kohelet (Ecclesiastes), which tells us on Sukkot “there is nothing new under the sun,” I decided to build a solar sukkah this fall. To energize my plan, I went to the 99 Cent Store to buy some solar yard lights to… Read more »
Ethiopian Jews kiss the ground upon arrival at Ben Gurion Airport as part of Operation Wings of Dove, which ended the Ethiopian immigration to Israel, Aug. 28, 2013. (Miriam Alster/Flash 90/JTA) LOD, Israel (JTA) — The airplane landed on the tarmac, “Ethiopia” emblazoned in red on its side. A few government officials trickled down the airplane’s steps. They were followed by groups of Ethiopian Jews descending to the runway, some falling to their knees and kissing the ground. Inside the… Read more »
KRASNAIYA SLOBODA, Azerbaijan (JTA) — Even at 70, Yedidia Yehuda can negotiate a narrow mountain path in northern Azerbaijan with a confidence easily mistaken for carelessness. “You take care not to fall yourself and don’t worry about me,” he tells a visitor following him toward a small town on… Read more »
Annie Stein (left) and Iris Sapovits with dolls donated to Hadassah University Hospital-Ein Kerem. Over the past few months, many Tucsonans traveled from the climes of Southern Arizona to similar ones in Israel. Here is a sampling of their varied sojourns: From April 13 to May 13, Iris Sapovits, co-president of Hadassah Southern Arizona, and Annie Stein, Hadassah’s Israel, Zionist and International Affairs… Read more »
