This is the Forward’s coverage of Jewish life in Australia.
Australia
The Latest
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Fast Forward Abuse Charges Dropped Against Aussie Chabad Leader
Multiple charges against a former Chabad-Lubavitch youth leader in Melbourne have been dropped. Aron “Ezzy” Kestecher, 27, was charged last year with four counts of indecent acts on a child under 16. All four charges were withdrawn Tuesday, a spokeswoman for the Department of Justice confirmed. Kestecher revealed the news on Facebook, writing “All charges…
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Fast Forward Australian Chabad Faces Abuse, Fiscal Scandals
The two major branches of Chabad-Lubavitch in Australia are in the grip of separate crises that threaten to tar the movement’s reputation and undermine much of the work the Hasidic organization has invested in the six decades since it began operating here. In Melbourne, a judge last week set the date for the trial of…
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The Schmooze Author Blog: Rising to the Top
Earlier this week, Pnina Jacobson and Judy Kempler wrote about the aging Jewish community, the Australian Jewish community, and about their decision to self-publish their cookbook One Egg Is A Fortune. Their blog posts are featured on The Arty Semite courtesy of the Jewish Book Council and My Jewish Learning’s Author Blog Series. For more…
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The Schmooze Author Blog: One Egg Is a Fortune
Judy Kempler and Pnina Jacobson’s cookbook, “One Egg Is A Fortune,” is now available. Their blog posts are being featured on The Arty Semite courtesy of the Jewish Book Council and My Jewish Learning’s Author Blog Series. For more information on the series, please visit: One Egg Is A Fortune is a collection of recipes…
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The Schmooze Sacha Baron Cohen Shocks on Aussie ‘Today’ Show
Sacha Baron Cohen ruined some Australians’ breakfast appetites when he appeared this morning on the country’s Today Show to promote his new movie, “The Dictator.” In fact, he seemed to be making the show’s hosts so uncomfortable that at times it looked like they themselves might toss their cookies right there on the set. Dressed…
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News Australia Seeks Extradition of Molester
Australia reportedly plans to seek the extradition of an imprisoned former Jewish studies teacher to face charges of child abuse dating back nearly 20 years. David Kramer, 51, is currently in a Missouri jail after being convicted of sodomizing a 12-year-old boy in 2008. He was sentenced to seven years in prison but is about…
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News Child Sex-Abuse Scandal in Australia’s Jewish Community Spills Into U.S.
A child sex abuse scandal in Australia’s Jewish community has spilled into America, as a pending extradition, arrests in Australia and a slew of cover-up allegations put that community’s response to molestation under scrutiny. Australian police are seeking to extradite convicted child molester David Kramer, currently in jail in Farmington, Mo., on suspicion of having…
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Culture Yiddish a Mixed Bag at Jewish Schools Worldwide
For some Jewish day schools, there is no teaching Yiddishkeit without Yiddish. Buoyed by the Yiddish renaissance of the past two decades, which has produced an increased interest in university Yiddish programs, a renewed interest in Yiddish theater and even the advent of Yiddish heavy metal bands, these schools have held steadfast to their Yiddishist…
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