In 1939, my grandmother left Vienna with her sister, parents and the few belongings they could carry and headed by ship, east to Shanghai. They were among tens of thousands of Jewish refugees fleeing the violence of Naziism who would make the city their home for the next several years. They lived in a single…
According to a report in the Times of Israel Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld evoked controversy this week when he made an appearance on French talk show Canal 8 and eviscerated German Chancellor Angela Merkel for her open borders policy. According to a translation provided by the Times, Lagerfeld said, “You cannot kill millions of Jews…
This article originally appeared in the Yiddish Forverts. In today’s trip to the past, we examine an invitation to a party – a Jewish Holiday Party. I found this fascinating poster in the YIVO digital collection of POSTERS FROM DISPLACED PERSONS CAMPS, which are on display at the website of the American Center of Jewish…
Mention Val d’Aran, a valley at the foot of the Pyrenees in Catalonia’s Lleida province, and most Spaniards think of winter. Popular for its access to pistes of various difficulties, the valley is peppered with ski resorts that buzz as soon as the first snow appears on the ground. Members of the Spanish Royal family…
In Israel, there is often a singular narrative told about immigration and the creation of the Jewish state: Ashkenazi pioneers came from Eastern Europe at the end of the 19th century and built the country. They established kibbutzim, moshavim, and cities like Rishon LeTzion, and created pre-IDF militias. Streets in every city in Israel bear…
(JTA) — President Donald Trump is “betraying” U.S. commitments to refugees by nearly halving the number the country will allow in this year from 2016, the major Jewish immigrant advocacy group HIAS said. Trump administration officials said Wednesday that the United States will cap the number of refugees at 45,000 for fiscal year 2018 —…
A Jewish woman and her rabbi husband are helping two Eritrean refugees get settled in New York City – after the mother and daughter arrived in the United States earlier this month. “I got a call and they said, ‘Your friend Saba has been approved and would you consider being her U.S. sponsor,’” Mara Getz…
I’m old enough to remember a time way back before the 2016 presidential election, when political leaders of both parties saw refugees as victims. While the United States didn’t always fulfill its rightful role as a safe haven, there was nonetheless a basic bipartisan commitment to help those “huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” Now…
100% of profits support our journalism
