News

Domestic violence hotline doubles its hours during stay-at-home orders

“For some of them, we’re their lifeline," Nechama Bakst, senior director of family violence services at the Met Council, said of the domestic violence helpline. (Ravikiran Rajagopal/EyeEm via Getty Images)
April 30, 2020 / Shira Hanau, JTA

(JTA) – The change was clear as soon as New York City’s stay-at-home order went into effect: Calls to the domestic violence department at the city’s leading Jewish poverty nonprofit departed from their regular pattern. Women used to call during the day while at work or while their abusers… Read more »

No time for a breather: A nurse’s account of Israel’s first coronavirus death and life inside a COVID-19 ward

Nurse Rachel Gemara wears a hazmat suit in the coronavirus ward at Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem. (Courtesy of Gemara)
April 30, 2020 / Ruth Ebenstein, JTA

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Nearly six weeks have passed since Arie Even, an 88-year-old Holocaust survivor, died of the coronavirus. It happened at the end of Shabbat dinner on a Friday night in March at the Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem. Even drew headlines as Israel’s first COVID-19 fatality.… Read more »

New York City police break up another Orthodox funeral as crowds gather

New York police turned out in force for an Orthodox funeral in Borough Park, Brooklyn, Thursday, leading to tensions. (Photo/screenshot from Twitter user @hasidic_1)
April 30, 2020 / Shira Hanau, JTA

(JTA) – Two days after New York City’s mayor called out “the Jewish community” when vowing to crack down on gatherings, city police intervened in another funeral in a Jewish neighborhood, resulting in a tense scene and at least one arrest. A video shared on Whatsapp showed a chaotic… Read more »

JWI Flower Project supports victims of domestic violence, who are even more at risk during coronavirus pandemic

Jewish Women International's Flower Project raises funds through its Mother's Day card program to support victims of domestic violence
April 30, 2020 /

More than 45,000 women and children spend each Mother’s Day in domestic violence shelters. At this unprecedented time in the U.S., many women who have escaped abuse for the safety of shelters now find themselves stuck in place, unable to move forward with rebuilding their lives. Jewish Women International’s Flower… Read more »

‘We don’t have time’: Rabbi launches Jewish climate change initiative during coronavirus crisis

A demonstrator holds a poster in front of the U.S. Capitol during a climate protest in Washington, Dec. 27, 2019. (Eva Hambach/AFP via Getty Images)
April 30, 2020 / Josefin Dolsten, JTA

NEW YORK (JTA) — Rabbi Jennie Rosenn has spent most of her career working on Jewish social justice causes. Until recently, however, there was one issue that didn’t resonate as strong. “The environment was something that I knew was important, but I wasn’t passionate in my kishkes about… Read more »

As the sexual assault claim against Joe Biden builds, some Jewish women wonder whether he deserves their support

Joe Biden arrives at a media event in Wilmington, Del., March 12, 2020. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)
April 30, 2020 / Ron Kampeas, JTA

WASHINGTON (JTA) — Monday was supposed to have been a good news day for Joe Biden: The venerable New York congresswoman Nita Lowey convened hundreds of women on a phone call to launch a new group, Jewish Women for Joe. The timing, though, was not auspicious. The same day,… Read more »

Virtual Yom Hazikaron commemoration for Southern Arizona planned
April 26, 2020 /

The Weintraub Israel Center and the Tucson Jewish Community Center will host a virtual event for Yom Hazikaron, Israel’s memorial day, on Monday, April 27 6:30 p.m. via Zoom. All those in Tucson and beyond are invited to gather as a community to honor the memory of Israel’s fallen… Read more »

Jerusalem’s Old City, virtual reality edition: A game brings quarantined people around the world into the holy neighborhood

A scene from “The Holy City,” an immersive virtual reality experience that takes users into Jerusalem's Old City. (Nimrod Shanit/Blimey)
April 18, 2020 / Judah Kauffman, JTA

JERUSALEM (JTA) — This time of year — the convergence of Passover, Easter and Ramadan — is peak tourism time for this city. This year is the first time since 1992 that all three festivals fall in the same month. But traveling as a tourist to Jerusalem right now… Read more »

Zoom is getting safer. Here’s how you can make your meetings even more secure.

A family takes part in a shiva call, a Jewish mourning period, in a Zoom videoconference. (Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images)
April 18, 2020 / Jonathan A. Greenblatt, JTA

NEW YORK (JTA) — Just a few weeks ago, most Americans were not familiar with the concept of Zoombombing. But as the COVID-19 pandemic forced many business, community and even social meetings online, Zoom increasingly became the platform of choice for videoconferencing. The rapid growth in its use came with… Read more »