Democrats are preparing to use their party’s nominating convention as a springboard to shore up Jewish support for President Barack Obama’s reelection effort, especially in crucial swing states like Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Along with a string of Jewish speakers, activists at the convention are being urged to tout what they see as Obama’s strong…
Getting to Friday services in Makhachkala, the capital city of the Russian Republic of Dagestan, was complicated. Three giant bombs had earlier gone off down the road, and authorities had sealed off streets near the synagogue. En route soldiers seized our taxi on suspicion that we were aiding Islamic terrorists. They detained us until Sabbath…
Soviet Yiddish Writers Remembered on 60th Anniversary of Their Murder “Yiddish culture in the Soviet Union began with a flourish of trumpets and ended with a mute, strangled voice,” said Thomas Bird, a Queens College professor of European language and literature, at a memorial. held on August 12 , it was for the Soviet Yiddish…
As Jamal Julani recovered in a hospital after being beaten unconscious in an August 17 attack that monopolized Israeli headlines for days, another Palestinian man was beaten unconscious. But this second attack flew under the radar of most Israelis. The first attack dominated not only the media, but also the political discussion, with figures throughout…
Sometimes, Benjamin Rosenthal thinks about leaving the small town of Indianola, Miss., pop. 11,000, where he spent most of his life. He wants to go somewhere bigger, with more Jews. “It’s very easy to lose your identity in the Bible Belt in a town when you are the religious minority,” said Rosenthal, 25. In the…
Republicans spent three evenings at their convention hammering home their message: After four years of leadership failures, Mitt Romney will restore America to a position of strength, confidence and unity – at home and abroad. In his Thursday night speech accepting the Republican presidential nomination, Romney suggested that President Obama had shattered Americans’ sense of…
On the shiny glass table lay jewelry, coins and metal utensils – similar to those in a catalog of antiques. The years have left their mark on the items, but they are still in good shape. Some collector would probably pay a nice amount for them. But these items are not for sale. It is…
A polling site in a Queens, N.Y., neighborhood has been moved after some Jewish voters raised concerns about violating their religious beliefs by having to enter the building. Kew Gardens Hills residents will now not have to vote at St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church because their voting venue is being switched to the Kew Gardens…
A fisherman who took part in the dramatic rescue of about 30 Jews during World War II died this week. Agostino Piazzesi, 87, was the last survivor of 15 fishermen who during the night of June 19-20, 1944 rescued the Jews, who were held by the Germans in a castle on Isola Maggiore in the…
Despite promises to overhaul the way American Jews direct their contributions for causes in Israel and overseas, the Jewish Federations of North America is struggling to change the system. An ambitious reform plan approved last year recently suffered a setback with the resignation of Joanne Moore, the top professional in charge of its implementation. With…
I just started working with the Forward on a new, bimonthly column called InsideOut. Penned by Judy Brown, the essays are wonderfully written pieces about life as a Hasidic woman and about Judy’s very personal process of leaving the community. My work will appear alongside her pieces every two weeks — each month, one article…
די אַנטאָלאָגיע ווערט באַגלייט מיט פֿילמעלעך, וווּ באַקאַנטע פּוילישע פּערזענלעכקײטן לײענען אָדער דערצײלן איבער די מעשׂיות.
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