Black lives don’t just matter. For some of us, their influence is profound, shaping our understanding of ourselves as individuals -– and our place in American society. When I came to Los Angeles from Israel at the age of seven, reuniting with my dad after my parents separated, I also met my stepmom Pasha for…
Jewish schools must prioritize Jews of color. By recognizing there is a rainbow of diversity within the Jewish community, schools can be places where students become advocates and allies working closely with Jews of color to ensure they feel welcomed and supported. Yet unfortunately, the reality is that many Jews of color feel marginalized and…
In considering the Holocaust, Hannah Arendt wrote of the “banality of evil”, the notion that evil comes not only from a person with a gun but also from those who uphold systems and structures which enable that person. Most Germans never killed a Jew themselves. Most never shattered a window on Kristallnacht, or turned their…
There’s something simultaneously ironic, funny, sad and fascinating when a student messages me asking if they are white. Now this isn’t, of course, a question about physical colors, in which I’m no expert; any of my peers will attest to the fact that I wasn’t blessed with an eye for color schemes. Rather, they are…
A light rain was falling by the time the convoy of cars arrived at Nishuane Park in Montclair, N.J., where a stone memorial commemorates the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. But the masked demonstrators who emerged to lay bouquets and notes near the plinth were reluctant to disperse. The mobile protest had gathered…
Songstress Barbra Streisand has given Gianna Floyd, George Floyd’s six-year-old daughter an unexpected gift— shares of Disney stock. A post on Gianna’s Instagram account showed her opening a folder stamped with the Disney logo and posing with what appears to be a letter from Streisand. “Thank You @barbrastreisand for my package,” she captioned the snapshot….
Human life is so sacred that Jewish tradition is famously reticent about criminal punishment in general and capital punishment in particular. Thus, Rabbi Tarfon and Rabbi Akiva said, “If we would have been on the Sanhedrin, no one would ever have been executed” (Mishnah Makkot 1:17). To be tried criminally, Jewish law requires that a…
After George Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police officers sparked nationwide protests at the end of May, almost every major American Jewish organization released a statement condemning racism and expressing solidarity with the black community. In the ensuing weeks, some Jewish leaders have advocated for specific policy reforms: Hundreds have signed a letter…
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