Tagged FRONT

Local film screening reminds us of cost to survivors of bearing witness

(L-R): Pawel Lichter, Walter Feiger, Sidney Finkel, and Wolfgang Hellpap pose with their ‘World War II Holocaust Survivor’ caps at the Holocaust History Center in Tucson. (Courtesy Jewish Family & Children’s Services of Southern Arizona)
February 8, 2019 / Sharon Glassberg, Special to the AJP

In an interview published Aug. 27, 2012, five years before his death in 2017 at the age of 87, Elie Wiesel spoke of devoting his life to the principle and the ideal of memory and remembrance. The article was titled “Elie Wiesel on His Fear of Being the Last… Read more »

Comedy writer will bring ‘tribal’ humor to Connections brunch

Carol Leifer
February 8, 2019 / Debe Campbell, AJP Assistant Editor

Award-winning writer and producer, best-selling author, and stand-up comedian Carol Leifer will be the guest speaker at the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Women’s Philanthropy 26th annual Connections brunch next month. Her topic will be “Judaism is in My DNA.” “I speak about how the Jewish values imparted to… Read more »

From Hanukkah in Saddam’s palace to prosecuting gangs, Trump’s new anti-Semitism monitor comes with diverse skills

Elan Carr in his new post has met or planned meetings with predecessors from Republican and Democratic administrations. (Collage by Laura Adkins/JTA; Carr photo from Elan for Congress campaign: Capitol photo: Creative Commons)
February 7, 2019 / Ron Kampeas, JTA

WASHINGTON (JTA) — Elan Carr’s career until now has been equal parts prosecutor, policy wonk, politico and performance artist. That makes him perfect for his new job as the State Department’s special envoy to monitor anti-Semitism, according to people most familiar with his appointment, which was made public on… Read more »

Since Pittsburgh, my Friday nights are no longer the same

A memorial for the victims of the Tree of Life synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh. (Hane Grace Yagel)
February 7, 2019 / Marisa Fernandez. JTA

This article originally appeared on Alma. A typical Friday night for me used to consist of cooking myself a nicer than usual dinner and lighting the Shabbat candles alone before proceeding on as if it were any other night. Maybe I would relax by re-watching “Broad City” or going out… Read more »

Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, interfaith activist who raised millions in Christian donations for Israel, dies at 67

Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein arriving in Israel with the first group of immigrants brought by the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, Dec. 22, 2014. (International Fellowship of Christians and Jews)
February 7, 2019 / Cnaan Liphshiz, JTA

(JTA) — To the many colleagues and supporters of Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, who died Wednesday at the age of 67, he was a man of vision whose enormous drive to succeed both facilitated and complicated his relentless efforts on behalf of the Jewish people. As head of the International Fellowship… Read more »

This band of musicians with disabilities wanted to represent Israel at Eurovision. Their Sabbath observance became a problem.

The Shalva Band had a shot at becoming Israel's representative at the Eurovision contest. (Screenshot from YouTube)
February 6, 2019 / Marcy Oster

JERUSALEM (JTA) — The Shalva Band, a group of musicians with various disabilities, didn’t expect to advance so far in the competition to represent Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest in May. But they made it all the way to the finals — and won’t find out if they… Read more »

I was barred from becoming a foster parent because I am Jewish

Many states have passed laws that permit taxpayer-funded child welfare agencies to exclude prospective foster and adoptive parents based on religious criteria. (Pixabay)
February 6, 2019 / Lydia Currie

GREENVILLE, S.C. (JTA) — When my father was 7 years old, he was placed in an orphanage. His own father had died and his mother’s mental illness prevented her from caring for him. Growing up, I heard his stories of “kid prison,” as he called it, and I dreamed… Read more »

5 Jewish takeaways from Donald Trump’s State of the Union address

President Donald Trump displays a signed presidential memorandum at the White House after announcing that the United States will withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal, May 8, 2018. (Xinhua/Ting Shen via Getty Images)
February 6, 2019 / Ron Kampeas

WASHINGTON (JTA) — President Donald Trump linked his actions on Iran to the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre, pivoting during his State of the Union address from his decision to pull out of the Iran nuclear deal to a declaration that anti-Semitism must be confronted “anywhere and everywhere it occurs.” Trump… Read more »

African Jewish communities get some mainstream recognition after years on the margins

Rabbi Capers Funnye, left, and Martha Leah Williams, at the Jewish Africa Conference in New York, Jan. 29, 2019. (Josefin Dolsten)
January 30, 2019 / Josefin Dolsten

NEW YORK (JTA) — At a conference here on Jewish life in Africa, Magda Haroun spoke of being only one of a handful of Jews left in Egypt, a country that was once home to a Jewish community of 80,000. Abere Endeshaw Kerehu shared the struggles faced by the… Read more »

CAI gala to celebrate 50 years on 5th Street

Rabbi Marcus Breger (left) and Morris ‘Mac’ Benisch at Anshei Israel’s 1968 groundbreaking (Congregation Anshei Israel)
January 25, 2019 / Phyllis Braun, AJP Executive Editor

Congregation Anshei Israel will hold a “L’Door V’Dor: 50 years on 5th Street” gala next month. Organizers dubbed the event the “L’Door V’Dor,”  a play on l’dor v’dor, the Hebrew phrase for “from generation to generation,” because it is a chance to honor those who helped open the doors… Read more »

Bilgray scholar will speak on language, names
January 25, 2019 / Debe Campbell, AJP Assistant Editor
Sarah Bunin Benor

Editor’s note: This article has been updated Jan. 25 to show that all lectures will be held at Temple Emanu-El. Temple Emanu-El’s 35th annual Bilgray Lectureship will center on language and names, with Sarah Bunin Benor, Ph.D., as the scholar in residence. The free series features three lectures, Feb.… Read more »

Day school expert Kutler selected to lead THA

Laurence Kutler talks with Tucson Hebrew Academy first graders, Jan. 8. (Debe Campbell/AJP)
January 25, 2019 / Debe Campbell, AJP Assistant Editor

Laurence Kutler, Ph.D., left Florida’s beaches and retirement to join Tucson Hebrew Academy as the head of school on Jan. 8. “Highly regarded in the Jewish day school movement, he has earned a reputation for working closely with students, faculty, parents and the community as a collaborative team builder… Read more »

Women to join for evening of creativity, giving

Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Women’s Philanthropy will host Filling Empty Bowls Feb. 13.
January 25, 2019 /

Filling Empty Bowls is a new interactive event for Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona’s Women’s Philanthropy, hosted by its Pomegranate Division. The event on Wednesday, Feb. 13 promises opportunities for creative fun, food, drinks, and a chance to enjoy connecting with women of all ages. The evening kicks off… Read more »

Golan Heights Winery impresses Tucson travelers, including culinary expert

Tucson travelers enjoy a wine-pairing luncheon at Israel’s Golan Heights Winery, Oct. 17, 2018. Visible from left, front: Jil Feldhausen, Edward Feldhausen, Lawrence Kinet, Michelle Kinet, Wendy Weinberg, Jeff Weinberg. From front right: Janice Brundage, Dawn Gunter, Steve Wool, Debe Campbell. Weintraub Israel Center)
January 25, 2019 / Debe Campbell, AJP Assistant Editor

Viniculture isn’t new; it’s perhaps as old as history itself. The first winery discovered dates back to 4100 BCE in Armenia. Some wine historians date the origins of winemaking back as early as 8000 BCE. Grapes are one of the seven biblical species (Deuteronomy 8:8). With 221 mentions in… Read more »

Green Valley synagogue gallery to display Tucson artist’s ‘Sacred Intention’

‘Mazal Tov’ by Marlene Burns. ‘Most often used when offering congratulations or wishing good luck, Mazal Tov has a deeper message. Mazal means an alignment of the stars. Our tradition sees our mazal as the influence of the stars trickling down on us,’ says Burns. (Marlene Burns)
January 25, 2019 /

The Beth Shalom Temple Center Art Gallery will present “Sacred Intention” by Tucson artist and educator Marlene Burns, Feb. 1-April 1.    A reception with the artist will be held at 11 a.m. on Sunday, March 3, following the temple’s monthly bagel breakfast. Burns has been a professional artist… Read more »

Local screening OF ‘Who Will Write Our History’ will be part of global event

Julia Lewenfisz-Gorka, Wojciech Zielinski, and Marta Ormaniec portray Ora, Abraham and Luba Lewin in ‘Who Will Write Our History.’ (Anna Wolch)
January 25, 2019 /

The Jewish History Museum and Holocaust History Center will join hundreds of partners on Sunday, Jan. 27, International Holocaust Remembrance Day, for a global screening event of “Who Will Write Our History.” The film will be shown at 200 venues in 40 countries; U.S. locations include the United States… Read more »

Ilhan Omar endorses the Israel boycott and is on the influential Foreign Affairs Committee. Here’s what she and her colleagues say.

Rep. Ilhan Omar listens during a news conference on prescription drugs at the Capitol, Jan. 10, 2019. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
January 24, 2019 / Ron Kampeas, JTA

WASHINGTON (JTA) — The top two Jewish members of the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee revile BDS, the boycott Israel movement. Its newest member, Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., has embraced the movement. It’s not a big deal, the Jewish Democrats say. Reps. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., the committee… Read more »

Insisting it is not anti-Semitic, NJ group sees haredi Orthodox as a threat to ‘quality of life’

An Orthodox woman pushes a stroller in Lakewood, N.J., in 2013. The population in the largely haredi Orthodox town has boomed in the past couple of decades, and haredi families are looking to move to neighboring towns. (Dennis Fraevich/Flickr)
January 24, 2019 / Ben Sales, JTA

(JTA) — The video, with suspenseful music playing in the background, opens with footage of a crowd of Orthodox Jews. Then it paraphrases a classic poem about the Holocaust. “First they came for my house, but I did not speak up,” the narrator says. “I said I am not… Read more »

The deadly Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire inspires a contemporary composer

The composer Julia Wolfe, shown in 2011, dedicates her new work "Fire in My Mouth" to "women who rose up to demand a more human existence." (Hiroyuki Ito/Getty Images)
January 24, 2019 / Curt Schleier, JTA

(JTA) — Was it coincidence or fate that the New York Philharmonic commissioned Julia Wolfe to compose a new piece about the deadly fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory? For years she has passed the site on New York’s Greene Street and Washington Place where 146 young women, all Eastern… Read more »

40 years later, the ‘Holocaust’ miniseries returns to Germany

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 07: Actress Tovah Feldshuh attends the "Queen Of The Mean: The Rise And Fall Of Leona Helmsley" Play Reading at the Actors Temple Theatre on April 7, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Steven A Henry/Getty Images)
January 23, 2019 / Toby Axelrod

BERLIN (JTA) — For Sigmount Koenigsberg, the most searing scene in the U.S.-made “Holocaust” miniseries broadcast here 40 years ago was when a German child throws photos of a Jewish family into a fireplace. The pictures curl up and melt in the flames. The moment “somehow burned into me,” recalls… Read more »

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