In America, the Facebook post announcing a Jewish social event focused on human rights might seem innocuous, if a bit cute: “No One Is Illegal: Concert, New Klezmer Disco, Syrian Dance Lesson,” the invitation to a fundraiser for refugees read. But it’s a significantly more risky proposition in a country led by a right-wing prime…
What is it in life that inspires or compels each of us to tell our stories? Is it the realization that we, too, have lived important historical events? Or is it something much more personal, some nugget of our experiences we want our children’s grandchildren to know? And if we have an important story that…
Ten years ago I received a phone call that changed my life. Gerri Trooskin, the director of our city-wide book club, One Book, One Philadelphia, called me with an unusual request. She asked me to choose ten of my Drexel University undergraduate creative writing students to interview ten Sudanese refugees. These interviews would be serialized…
The number of wild animals living on Earth is set to fall by two-thirds by 2020, according to a new report, part of a mass extinction that is destroying the natural world upon which humanity depends. The report was compiled by the World Wildlife Federation and the London Zoological Society, and shows that destruction of…
Over the past seven weeks, the British Jewish community raised £200,000 ($260,000) for the resettlement of 100 unaccompanied children from the Calais refugee camp here in the UK. The campaign was initiated by a group of leaders from Masorti (Conservative) communities in and around London, who came together in the early summer to try and…
— A letter signed by 43 rabbis in Texas called on the state’s Gov. Greg Abbott to remain in the United States refugee resettlement program. “At this moment, with the number of refugees and displaced persons at its highest in recorded history, it is more important than ever for Texas to protect and welcome refugees,”…
Donald Trump’s family is like a box of chocolates: You never know what you’re going to get, but — with apologies to Forrest Gump — you could be in for an unpleasant surprise. The outside looks awesome, but what you find below the surface might make you sick. Especially if, like me, you’re allergic to…
— Some 184 Jewish congregations and communities in the U.S. signed a pledge of support for refugees, promising to take action to help those seeking shelter in the country. The “Welcome Campaign” is being organized by the refugee support and advocacy group HIAS (formerly the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society), which was founded in 1881 to help Jewish immigrants fleeing pogroms in…
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