Israel Won’t Block Omar And Tlaib From Entering Country

July 19, 2019 By Ron Kampeas

WASHINGTON ( JTA ) — Israel will not deny entry to any member of Congress, its Washington envoy said.

Ron Dermer responded to speculation about whether two congresswomen who back the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement targeting Israel would be allowed to enter.

“Out of respect for the U.S. Congress and the great alliance between Israel and America, we would not deny entry to any member of Congress into Israel,” Ron Dermer said in a message his spokesman sent to reporters via WhatsApp.

Israel in recent years passed a law reserving the right to deny entry to advocates of Israel boycotts. Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn. and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., both back BDS, and both have suggested that they plan to visit Israel this summer.

This story " Israel Won’t Block Omar And Tlaib From Entering Country " was written by Ron Kampeas.

Scottish Prison Cracks Down On Inmates Claiming To Be Jewish For Better Food

July 19, 2019 By Ari Feldman

In 2016 there were nine Jews in Her Majesty’s Prison Edinburgh. The next year, there were 100. Now, there are 23. What is going on?

Scottish prison authorities recently cracked down on inmates claiming to be Jewish in HMP Edinburgh in order to receive kosher — and better — food, The Scotsman reported. The prison is already saving loads of money — excess of £250,000 each year, since a kosher meal costs on average four times as much to produce as a regular meal. (Another outlet said that the crackdown lowered catering costs by £80,000.)

“Ever since one guy converted to Judaism we’ve seen a huge rise in the number claiming to be Jewish as they saw the meals were better,” one source told the Scotsman.

Scottish Prison Service has said that the scam spread to other prisons in the system. It’s possible the inmates were inspired by the Netflix show “Orange Is The New Black,” in which the character Cindy Hayes converts to Judaism in order to get better food.

In the wake of the scam, the SPS said that it has made its process for registering as Jewish more rigorous across its system.

Ari Feldman is a staff writer at the Forward. Contact him at feldman@forward.com or follow him on Twitter @aefeldman

This story " Crackdown On Inmates Claiming To Be Jewish For Food " was written by Ari Feldman.

Jeffrey Epstein Donated $50,000 To A Major Jewish Charity. They Still Haven’t Said Why.

July 19, 2019 By Aiden Pink

UJA-Federation, one of the largest Jewish charities in the country, and one of the largest locally focused charities on the planet, has not responded to questions about a $50,000 donation it received from a charity controlled by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The Forward first reported on Epstein’s UJA donation last Friday. Since then, several calls and emails to multiple UJA public relations employees have gone unreturned.

Epstein, a financier with a bevy of powerful friends like Donald Trump and Bill Clinton, pleaded guilty in 2008 to a prostitution charge and was required to register as a sex offender for life. In the past few years, however, he reinserted himself into high society, attending parties with the likes of Jeff Bezos and George Stephanopoulos. The New York Times reported that Epstein’s press releases announcing charitable donations helped ease his acceptance back into famous figures’ good graces.

Tax records from Epstein’s charity Gratitude America Ltd. show that he made the five-figure donation in 2017 — nine years after he registered as a sex offender. That year, he also made similar or larger contributions to cancer research charities, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the personal foundation of guru Deepak Chopra, among others. (Some organizations that were listed as recipients of Epstein’s recent charity claimed to NBC News last week that they never actually received any donations from him.)

Epstein’s name is not listed on Gratitude America’s tax records, but the Daily Beast reported in April that he controlled the charity and its donations, including to UJA.

Epstein was arrested last week and charged with sex trafficking. He was denied bail on Thursday.

UJA is one of the biggest Jewish organizations in America, conducting programming and providing grants to groups in New York, Israel and around the world. It reported revenue of $223 million in 2016, the most recent year tax records are available.

This is not the first Jewish charity with ties to Epstein: In the 1990s and early 2000s, he served as a trustee of the Wexner Foundation, which has given tens of millions of dollars to Jewish causes. Les Wexner, the foundation’s benefactor, is Epstein’s only known financial client, and Epstein’s attorney Darren Indyke served as the secretary of the board of both the Wexner Foundation and Gratitude America.

Both Les Wexner and the Wexner Foundation say they cut ties with Epstein more than a decade ago. Foundation president Rabbi B. Elka Abrahamson said in a statement last week that they were “sickened by Mr. Epstein’s behavior.”

Do you know anything about the donation Gratitude America made to UJA-Federation? Contact Aiden Pink at pink@forward.com

This story " Jeffrey Epstein Donated To A Big Jewish Charity. Why? " was written by Aiden Pink.

Orthodox Jewish Man Sues McDonald’s For Not Hiring Him Due To His Beard

July 19, 2019 By Cnaan Liphshiz

( JTA ) — A Jewish haredi man is suing McDonald’s, claiming the fast-food giant violated his freedom of religion when it refused to hire him because of his beard.

The plaintiff, who sued Wednesday, is represented by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in his claim against McDonald’s restaurant in Longwood, Florida that turned down his 2016 application to be a maintenance worker there, Newsweek on Thursday reported .

Allegedly, management told him that he would have to shave his long beard if he wanted the job. According to his suit, McDonald’s policy requires all male employees to be clean-shaven.

A manager allegedly the applicant he “had the job, but would need to shave his beard to be in compliance with McDonald’s grooming and appearance policy,” according to the Commission.

Orthodox Jews in the Chabad-Lubavitch branch of Hasidism grow for religious reasons.

The would-be worker claims he offered to wear a beard net instead, but the manager wouldn’t accept the compromise. Instead, he reportedly told the man couldn’t be hired if he was going to violate McDonald’s company policy.

The lawsuit seeks back wages for the past three years he would have been employed.

The man was reportedly told “he had the job, but would need to shave his beard to be in compliance with McDonald’s grooming and appearance policy,” according to the EEOC.

McDonald’s franchisees can set their own grooming policies.

The Chalfont & Associates, which owns the Longwood franchises, did not respond to requests for comment by the Miami Herald.

This story " Orthodox Jewish Man Sues McDonald’s For Not Hiring Him " was written by Cnaan Liphshiz.

Sanders Campaign Workers Say They’re Only Being Paid ‘Poverty Wages’

July 19, 2019 By Cnaan Liphshiz

( JTA ) — Unionized campaign organizers working for Bernie Sanders’ presidential effort complained that their employment terms fall short of Sanders’ rhetoric on labor standards.

Campaign hires have demanded an annual salary equivalent to a $15-an-hour wage, which Sanders, a senator who is Jewish and who describes himself as a democratic socialist, for years has said should be the federal minimum, the Washington Post on Thursday reported .

The organizers and other employees supporting them have invoked the senator’s words and principles in making their case to campaign manager Faiz Shakir, the documents reviewed by The Washington Post show.

The conflict between Shakir and union representatives dates back to May and remains unresolved, the Post reported.

Shakir defended the campaign’s terms, telling the Post it “offers wages and benefits competitive with other campaigns.” Sanders and Shakir “both strongly believe in the sanctity of the collective bargaining process,” he added.

The union representing the campaign workers, United Food & Commercial Workers Local 400, also defended in a statement the campaign, saying its staff “have access to myriad protections and benefits secured by their one-of-a-kind union contract.”

Internally, however, union members drafted a letter for sending to Shakir this week, which said they “cannot be expected to build the largest grassroots organizing program in American history while making poverty wages.”

Citing the “campaign’s commitment to fighting for a living wage of at least $15.00 an hour,” they added: “we believe it is only fair that the campaign would carry through this commitment to its own field team.”

This story " Sanders Campaign Workers Say Paid ‘Poverty Wages’ " was written by Cnaan Liphshiz.

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