This is the Forward’s coverage of Jewish culture where you’ll learn about the latest (and sometimes earliest) in Jewish art, music (including of course Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen), film, theater, books as well as the secret Jewish history of…
Culture
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Harvey Weinstein hit with 6 new assault charges in LA case
Harvey Weinstein was charged with six new counts of sexual assault on Friday following a Beverly Hills police investigation that concluded last month. The charges arise from accusations made by two women. One accused Weinstein of raping her at a hotel between September 2004 and 2005; the other claimed the producer raped her twice, in…
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Reimagining sukkahs in a time of plague
Each year on Sukkot, Jews invite guests over to their sukkah — a temporary shelter where we eat, schmooze and mark the end of the harvest while recalling our ancestors’ 40 years traveling the desert. This year, sukkah socializing may be a no-go for many, but for a new art initiative timed to the Feast…
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Trump’s coronavirus diagnosis has a Biblical precedent
President Trump’s coronavirus diagnosis and subsequent quarantine has got me thinking about the dramatic life of Uzziah, King of Judah, who contracted tsara’at — traditionally translated as leprosy, and who is described in II Chronicles as making a power grab that led to contracting a contagious disease that required quarantine. Uzziah’s reign, from c. 791–739…
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In 2020, voter access is a defining issue — just like it was on the old Lower East Side
This is the second installment of a special series exploring The Forward’s election coverage throughout its 123-year history. Click here to sign up to receive it through our email newsletter, and find our first installment here. With President Trump repeatedly challenging the integrity of the 2020 balloting during his first debate with Vice President Joe…
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Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s signature collar will go on display in Tel Aviv
During Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s tenure on the Supreme Court, collars arrived to her door from all corners of the world. Gifts from law clerks and tributes from admirers, they arrived from cities as distant as Cape Town and entered her much-scrutinized rotation of judicial decor. Now, one of those collars is embarking on a journey…
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The ‘Borat’ sequel trailer proves America’s still divided — on whether or not people know Borat
There are benefits to Sacha Baron Cohen’s supreme secrecy. He is, as far as we know, the only major star to make and release a feature film in media pandemic — and hardly anyone knew he was working on it. Following a few months of rumors and speculation, Baron Cohen dropped the trailer for “Borat…
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Timed tickets and temperature scans: The Jewish Museum reopens for the pandemic era
My temperature was normal, and everyone in the lobby of the Jewish Museum knew it. On Tuesday morning, I ducked out of a light drizzle on 92nd Street and into the Jewish Museum, which reopened on September 24 after a six-month closure due to coronavirus. Gone were the hallowed museum customs of the Before Times:…
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Celebrating Sukkot in a pandemic
With appointments at Massachusetts General Hospital and Norwood Hospital, Dr. Bruce Weinstock has been voluntarily advising synagogues and day schools on COVID-19 preparation. This past May, Weinstock participated in a webinar for the Synagogue Council of Massachusetts on coronavirus preparation. The upcoming Sukkot holiday highlights our vulnerability to nature and the elements. Meals are eaten…
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Do the ‘Proud Boys’ know their anthem was written by a gay Jew?
Perhaps the most curious fact about the Proud Boys, the violent far-right group President Trump appeared to call up to the reserves in the first 2020 presidential debate, is how they got their name. The name can be read as an unapologetic affirmation of the things they stand for — which, according to the Southern…
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‘Heil Honey, I’m Home!’ — the secret history of the scandalous Hitler sitcom you never saw
“Of all the shows I’ve done and made, this one gets the most comment. And yet, it’s never really been seen or aired,” said the veteran British TV writer Geoff Atkinson. He was speaking about “Heil Honey, I’m Home!,” a comedy series that aired a single, infamous episode in the United Kingdom on September 30,…
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Why we should fear Trump’s call to ‘stand back and stand by’
President Trump directly addressed white supremacists through language they understand as a direct command during the first Presidential debate. Asked to condemn white supremacy, Trump instead said “stand back and stand by”— immediately setting off alarm bells among extremism researchers who are familiar with these terms. Alex Newhouse, an extremism researcher at the Center on…
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