Sex and Drugs or the Immigrant Experience?

Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
In New York tonight the battle is joined between East and West, downtown Heeb on the East and uptown Columbia University on the West.
Will New York’s dwindling Jewish population plump for a night out with Shana Liebman leading a panel of contributors in discussing the new Heeb book “Sex, Drugs and Gefilte Fish” at 7pm (Barnes and Noble at 86th & Lexington Ave) followed by dinner at Tevere?
Or will they cross the border to listen to Ilan Stavans, Jhumpa Lahiri, and Gary Shteyngart talk about The Library of America’s new anthology “Becoming Americans: Four Centuries of Immigrant Writing” at 6.30pm (Casa Italiana 1161 Amsterdam Ave) followed by steak at Talia?
Decider question: Is it possible to map “Sex,” “Drugs” and “Gefilte Fish” onto Stavans, Lahiri and Shteyngart in a fair, yet funny way?
Why I became the Forward’s Editor-in-Chief
You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.
And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.
