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In Chicago, an LGBTQ Talmud study center gets a pandemic boost
Before becoming a rabbi, Benay Lappe wanted to be a Buddhist monk. While Jews have often been drawn to Eastern traditions, few dedicate nearly a decade to becoming a devout Buddhist in Japan. Lappe is hardcore. But before making her final commitment, she consulted with a rabbi in Tokyo who gave her a copy of…
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In LA, a high-profile merger prompts questions over the future of the synagogue
The coronavirus pandemic, which has shut down or slowed down so many aspects of Jewish life, may have sped up another: synagogue mergers. In one of the biggest consolidations of recent years, University Synagogue, a Reform congregation with declining membership in the West Los Angeles neighborhood of Brentwood, struck a deal this month with Wilshire…
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Why the striking down of Cuomo’s rules on synagogue services signals a new era on the Supreme Court
The Supreme Court blocked government restrictions on houses of worship imposed by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in a late night ruling Wednesday. Deciding two cases at once — one brought by Agudath Israel, an umbrella organization representing and advocating for haredi Orthodox Jews, and one brought by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn —…
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Supreme Court strikes down New York’s COVID restrictions on synagogues
The Supreme Court blocked government restrictions on houses of worship imposed by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in a late night ruling Wednesday. Deciding two cases at once — one brought by Agudath Israel, an umbrella organization representing and advocating for haredi Orthodox Jews, and one brought by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn —…
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How Atlanta’s Black-Jewish coalition helps Warnock and Ossoff in their fight for the Senate
When Rev. Gerald Durley was preparing his endorsements for the 2020 general election in Georgia, he knew U.S. Senate candidate and fellow Black pastor Raphael Warnock would have a place at the top. Durley once served at the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta where Warnock is now senior pastor and the two have been…
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‘Just like politics is local, misinformation is also local.’
NOV. 24, 2020 • 21 DAYS AFTER THE ELECTION This is the last edition of FAHRENHEIT 411, a special newsletter on disinformation and conspiracy theories surrounding the 2020 presidential election. It is produced in partnership with the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, a London-based think tank that studies extremism, and written by Molly Boigon, an investigative reporter at the Forward. …
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‘Not just about Crown Heights:’ A Zionist, an educator and an activist pay tribute to David Dinkins
David Dinkins, New York City’s 106th mayor but its first Black one, died at the age of 93 on Monday. A lifelong Harlem Democrat who spent his career in government and politics, Dinkins became mayor in 1989, defeating three-term incumbent Ed Koch. To many, his name is associated with the 1991 Crown Heights riots, in…
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Sharon Gillerman, a gifted scholar of German Jewish history, dies at 60
Sharon Gillerman, scholar of German Jewish history, who wrote with exceptional depth, originality, and insight about the Jewish family, and the social, cultural and gender history of Jews in Europe and the United States, passed away Friday morning, Nov. 20, in Santa Monica, CA. She was 60. She held the Kutz Chair in Jewish History…
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As Chicago Jews mourn the Standard Club, some refuse to say goodbye
The announcement came in early March: The Standard Club, a nexus of Jewish life in Chicago for 150 years, would be closing its doors May 1 and its building, a 13-story, 1920s high rise designed by Detroit architect Albert Kahn, would be sold. Thanks to the coronavirus, the club didn’t last even that long. It…
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Tony Blinken: guided by a story of Holocaust rescue, and an advocate for Israel’s Iron Dome
President-elect Joe Biden has picked Antony Blinken as his secretary of state — a “promotion” for Blinken, who had served as a deputy secretary of state for two years under the Obama Administration, from 2015 until he left office in January of 2017. Blinken was born in New York City to Jewish parents. Here are…
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Pfizer’s CEO is a Greek Jew. Here’s a look at his world.
Albert Bourla, Pfizer’s CEO, is a native of Thessaloniki and a member of a Jewish community that’s ancient, storied — and still plagued by antisemitism. A Greek newspaper, whose publisher was recently convicted of antisemitic defamation, called Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine “poison” and paired a photo of Bourla with that of Dr. Josef Mengele, an infamous…
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