News

WASHINGTON (JTA) — Stephen Bannon, in his first interviews since Donald Trump named him a top White House aide, denied being anti-Semitic or a white nationalist. At the same time, he continued to advance a theory of “globalist” conspiracy that echoes centuries-old anti-Semitic libels, but without any mention of Jews.… Read more »

(JTA) — European far-right politicians were quick to hold up Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. presidential election as a harbinger of their own impending triumphs. Marine Le Pen, head of France’s far-right party, said that what Europeans call “the Trump effect” — that is, right-wing nationalism fueled by anger toward… Read more »

  (JTA) – When you share a name with someone you respect and admire, you always try to live up to the connection, because sometimes outsiders aren’t aware of the difference. That’s how it was for decades with me and Ruth Gruber, the noted photojournalist, reporter and author who… Read more »

NEW YORK (JTA) — After Brett Parker’s great-grandfather fled the pogroms in Europe and came to the United States, he opened a drug store where he sold comic books. Each week he would give his grandson, Parker’s father, five comic books to take home. Growing up during the early… Read more »

(JTA) — Speakers at an event of the white supremacist think tank the National Policy Institute quoted Nazi propaganda and said the media protects Jewish interests. The day-long event of speeches and panel discussions attended by about 200 people was held Saturday in Washington, D.C. The New York Times… Read more »

TEL AVIV (JTA) –  To become Suzi Boum, it takes Lior Yisraelov about an hour. It’s a routine Yisraelov has nailed down: First he shaves, then he applies layers of makeup. Next, fake eyelashes, and finally the blond wig, the glittering clothes and the over-the-top accessories. Over the years,… Read more »

ISTANBUL (JTA) — At a chic café overlooking the Bosphorus, two Turkish Jewish women are discussing their plans to emigrate when the call to Friday prayers blasts from the loudspeakers of a nearby mosque. Unable to talk over the deafening singing that fills the café in the Bebek neighborhood… Read more »

WASHINGTON (JTA) — Controversial pasts with incendiary statements and a fierce loyalty to the president-elect. Judging from the announcements Donald Trump is expected to make Friday, his White House and Cabinet is likelier to look a lot more like Stephen Bannon than Reince Priebus. Those are, respectively, Trump’s top… Read more »

Holocaust survivors’ book reading On Wednesday, Nov. 9, the Jewish History Museum hosted Jewish Family & Children’s Services of Southern Arizona for a morning of readings from JFCS’s book, “To Tell Our Stories: Holocaust Survivors of Southern Arizona.” Five of the survivors featured in the book read excerpts from… Read more »

  WASHINGTON (JTA) – Enforce the Iran deal. Violate the Iran deal. Leave it to Congress. Do nothing. President-elect Donald Trump has an array of options before him when he assumes the presidency on Jan. 21, according to supporters and opponents of the deal. Reached last year between Iran and six major powers led by the… Read more »

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Asher Susser

Asher Susser, a professor emeritus of Middle Eastern history at Tel Aviv University, signed on as the Stein Family Professor of Modern Israel Studies at the University of Arizona four years ago. He is the moderator for the Arizona Center for Judaic Studies’ second annual Modern Israel Conference, “Balancing… Read more »

The Tucson International Jewish Film Festival will hold a FAST (First Annual Short Topics) & Fun! evening to announce the schedule for the festival on Wednesday, Dec. 7 at 7 p.m. at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. The festival, which will run from Jan. 12-22, will feature more than… Read more »

Searching for a program that helps people with memory loss stay physically and mentally active, Natalija Kuznecova had one very specific requirement: she needed to find a program with a Russian speaker for  mother, 77-year-old Yevgenia Kiseleva, who has been in the United States only four months and speaks… Read more »

Haimish, Yiddish for friendly or homey, sums up Claire’s Cafe and Art Gallery in Catalina. Good food also figures into the picture, but the warm atmosphere created by owners Claire and Steve Johnson keeps drawing loyal customers. The cafe was awarded the 2016 Better Business Bureau Good Neighbor Award… Read more »

The Tucson Jewish Community Center is currently recruiting Jewish teenage athletes between ages 13 and 16 to attend the JCC Maccabi Games next summer. The annual tournament runs from July 30 to Aug. 4 in Birmingham, Ala., and offers students competitive sporting events, social activities, social action projects and… Read more »

Tibetan Buddhist Monk Ringu Tulku Rinpoche will speak on “The Power of Gratitude to Heal” at Temple Emanu-El’s Chardonnay Shabbat service on Friday, Nov. 25 at 5:45 p.m. Following the service, Rinpoche will continue the discussion with Rabbis Samuel M. Cohon and Batsheva Appel and guests at a Shabbat… Read more »

A groundbreaking ceremony for a new building that will house the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona and the Jewish Community Foundation will be held Sunday, Dec. 4 at 4 p.m. in the northwest corner of the Tucson Jewish Community Center parking lot at River and Dodge Roads. The project,… Read more »

The mini-mission, an annual behind the scenes bus tour of programs supported by the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona, will be held Friday, Dec 2, 8:30 a.m.-2 p.m. The tour is sponsored by JFSA Women’s Philanthropy but is open to men and women. New this year is an exclusive… Read more »

Leah Avuno, one of Tucson’s two Shinshinim (teen ambassadors from Israel) brought more than just her abundant youthful energy when she came to Tucson — she also brought the rich culture of her Ethiopian heritage. This year, the Tucson Jewish community will join Avuno in celebrating the Jewish Ethiopian… Read more »