NEW YORK (JTA) — For years, Laurie Grauer had waved a rainbow flag emblazoned with a Jewish star at the Chicago Dyke March, sometimes marching near activists waving Palestinian flags. It had never been a problem. But this year, Grauer was confronted by the LGBT parade’s organizers, questioned about her support for Israel and asked…
Theater critic Hedy Weiss has done it again. Weiss, who’s been reviewing plays and dance performances for the Chicago Sun-Times since 1984, is an old hand at provoking outrage within the city’s arts community, largely by inserting controversial political opinions —to put it gently — into her reviews. In the past, Weiss has suggested racial…
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced on Monday that Elon Musk, the inventor and founder of SpaceX, is interested in bidding on a project to link downtown Chicago to O’Hare airport with a high-speed underground train. Musk and his engineers at his drilling firm, The Boring Company, may be going to Chicago soon to explore possibilities…
(JTA) — Jewish groups denounced the banning of Jewish Pride flags at a march in Chicago celebrating the lesbian community and called for an apology. Organizers of the 21st annual Chicago Dyke March told the three women asked to leave the march that the rainbow flags with a white Star of David in the center would…
I was born and raised in Chicago where I received an incredible Jewish education and formed a community that aided me in becoming the person I am today. In my studies I was taught crucial biblical lessons such as loving the stranger, pursuing justice, and making everyone feel as if they have dignity. These lessons…
It’s Pride Weekend in America, and Chicago is no exception. Festivities begin Thursday night and continue through Sunday; a list of official Chicago Pride events appears here, though there are many, many more elsewhere. The parade kicks off Sunday at noon from the intersection of Montrose, Broadway and Halsted in Uptown and continues to Diversey…
(JTA) — A popular Jewish deli in a Chicago suburb was vandalized in what is being investigated as a hate crime. The message “Free Gaza” was spray painted on the sidewalk outside of the Shmaltz Deli in Naperville, Illinois on Sunday. Because the message targeted a Jewish restaurant, Naperville Police are investigating the incident as…
There are three Jewish responses to hunger. You can eat. You can feel guilty about what you ate, or what you don’t want to eat, or about people who don’t get to eat. Or you can do something about making sure everyone else can eat, too. Response one: If you feel like celebrating summer, you…
