This article is part of our morning briefing. Click here to get it delivered to your inbox each weekday. Opinion | What the actors strike can learn from the Israeli protest movement Joshua Malina, star of The West Wing and Broadway’s Leopoldstadt, has been picketing with the actors and writers guilds in recent weeks “in protest of a system that undervalues and mistreats us,” he writes in a new essay. Malina, who is on the board of Americans for Peace Now, a nonprofit aimed at finding a resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, sees parallels and lessons in the marches in Hollywood and 7,500 miles away in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, where the streets are filled with protesters.
United by a goal: The Israeli protests, writes Malina, “generate new ideas” and “find ways to create a sense of solidarity among protesters” even though they come from a variety of backgrounds. “I feel this dynamic on the picket lines in Los Angeles,” he says. “Though our specific grievances may differ, we feel energized by the common ground we find.” |
Actor Joshua Malina speaks at a 2017 Anti-Defamation League event in California. (Getty) |
Outside Hollywood: “Americans would be wise to look to the example of the millions of Israelis who have bridged differences to band together for a common cause,” argues Malina. “What will we do if Trump returns to the Oval Office with a vengeance, and threatens our democratic institutions and our liberties, as Netanyahu currently threatens Israel’s?” A Jewish prayer: Whether it be the Hollywood strikes or “the fight to repair American democracy,” Malina suggests looking “to the east for inspiration, and say together — as is customary in synagogue when we finish reading each book of the Torah — Chazak, chazak, v’nitchazek. Be strong, hold fast, and let us strengthen one another.” |
The Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue in Detroit. (Courtesy) |
Adam Sandler in a scene from ‘You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah.’ (Netflix) |
Plus… - The director of Netflix’s new coming-of-age comedy, You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah, has a confession to make: They bowed out of their own ceremony. In related news, the movie is Adam Sandler’s best-reviewed film of his entire 34-year career.
- “Joe the Plumber,” who became a Republican celebrity after confronting former President Barack Obama during the 2008 campaign, died at 49. While running for office himself in 2012, he claimed that the enforcement of gun control measures prevented European Jews from resisting the Nazis.
- A couple fell in love at the Hillel of Georgia (the country, not the state). But they broke up with the organization this summer over infighting, gossip and threats. Our editor-in-chief, Jodi Rudoren, tells their story in her latest column.
- A ban on interfaith marriages, spy gear used in a synagogue dispute, and a celebrity mezuzah for sale on eBay. Take our weekly news quiz.
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WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY |
✈️ A flight full of Israeli passengers flying from the Seychelles in Africa to Tel Aviv made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia Monday night due to a technical issue. Passengers said they were warmly treated by the Saudis and put up at an airport hotel. A replacement flight arrived in Jeddah this morning and took the passengers home … Meanwhile, an El Al flight to New York on Monday was delayed by birds in the cargo bay. (Jerusalem Post, Times of Israel) ? A New Jersey town accused of targeting Orthodox Jews with local zoning rules aimed at blocking religious schools and houses of worship agreed to pay $575,000 to settle a discrimination lawsuit. (Bloomberg Law) ? A minyan has been meeting at Touro synagogue, America’s oldest congregation, since the early 1900s. But a ruling by a Rhode Island judge may soon lead to their eviction. (JTA) ? The Libyan foreign minister was fired and fled to Turkey after meeting with her Israeli counterpart. Libya and Israel do not have diplomatic relations. (JTA) ? France’s education minister on Monday instituted a ban on long robes in classrooms starting with the new school year. They’re worn mainly by Muslims. (AP) ✝️ Pope Francis criticized some conservatives within the U.S. Catholic Church, accusing them of “backwardness” and clinging to outdated views. He suggested they had forsaken faith for rigid ideology, and that a correct understanding of Catholic doctrine allows for change over time. (AP) ? The new movie about Golda Meir focuses on a few grim weeks in her career – the Yom Kippur War. A new biography aims to give readers a bigger picture of Israel’s first and only female prime minister. (JTA)
What else we’re reading ➤ How “pitching ninja” Rob Friedman accidentally became one of the most popular Jewish personalities in baseball … Reflections on a century-old white supremacist riot outside of Pittsburgh … This one-of-a-kind bagel shop is made entirely of felt. |
Gene Wilder portrayed a Polish rabbi in ‘The Frisco Kid.’ (Warner Bros.) |
On this day in history (2016): Gene Wilder died from complications of Alzheimer’s disease. Beloved for his warmth and humor, the Jewish actor and comedian was best known for his roles in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Young Frankenstein and Blazing Saddles. Forward contributor Benjamin Ivry wrote that Wilder’s “baby-like, lunar persona” gave him “an atypical approach to Jewish humor.”
In honor of the 85th birthday of actor Elliot Gould (Friends, Ocean’s Eleven), we’re revisiting the best scene in 1968’s The Night They Raided Minsky’s in which Gould plays Billy Minsky, a schnorrer (moocher) who, while ordering nothing at a Jewish deli, helps himself to the free rye bread and pickles. |
In case you missed it: Sacha Baron Cohen, the Jewish actor and comedian behind the satirical movie Borat, spoke Saturday at the 60th anniversary celebration of the March on Washington. “The idea that people of color are inferior is a lie,” Cohen said from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. “The idea that Jews are dangerous and all-powerful is a lie. The idea that women are not equal to men is a lie. And the idea that queer people are a threat to our children is a lie.” Watch his speech in its entirety above.
Further reading: Peruse the Forward’s coverage about the March on Washington. — Thanks to Rebecca Salzhauer, Jake Wasserman and Talya Zax for contributing to today’s newsletter, and to Beth Harpaz for editing it. You can reach the “Forwarding” team at editorial@forward.com. |
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