Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on March 13, 2020

Controversial Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D) was recently pictured wearing a T-shirt that completely erases the modern state of Israel from the map. In its place? Palestinian rule.

The image, first posted to Twitter by user Alex VanNess, appears to show Tlaib sporting the shirt while promoting a new book by Linda Sarsour, a fellow surrogate for the presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who is also a vocal critic of Israel.

The shirt shows the borders of modern-day Israel colored in with Arabic letters that spell Palestine, indicating a rejection of a two-state solution and the eradication of a Jewish nation-state.

According to an advertisement for the shirt online, wearers can "stand in solidarity with Palestine" by donning the "beautiful Palestinian tee shirt."

"An outlined map of Palestine is filled with red, white, and green Arabic letters that look stunning from a distance and spell the word Palestine up close. A patterned shemagh wraps around the neck of the Palestinian state like the brave soldiers whose boots stand on the dusty ground," the product description reads.

Tlaib has been outspoken about her anti-Israel sentiments before. Last summer, after Palestinian terrorists murdered a 17-year-old Jewish girl while she was hiking with her family, Tlaib blamed the attack on "Israeli occupation." She also came under fire for retweeting a fake news story erroneously attributing the death of a Palestinian boy to "violent Israeli settlers."

The Michigan congresswoman's criticism against Israel as well as support for the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement has earned her scorn from pro-Israel groups such as the Anti-Defamation League. Tlaib and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) were even blocked from entering Israel last year due to their BDS support.

(H/T: The Washington Free Beacon)

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Rashida Tlaib spotted wearing T-shirt that completely erases Israel from the map - TheBlaze

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Posted By admin on March 13, 2020

Suzanne Riley begins her yearlong course on Holocaust literature by asking her 11th and 12th grade students, Why do we study the Holocaust?

Everyone has the rote answer of So that it never happens again, says Riley, an English teacher at Lowell (MA) High School. I say, Thats not good enough.

Lowell is a diverse school district, and many of Rileys students are immigrants or from immigrant families. Some of the students sitting in her Holocaust literature class have parents and grandparents who escaped from Cambodian genocide perpetrated by dictator Pol Pots Khmer Rouge regime, which took the lives of two million people. Riley finds that her students naturally make connections between the history they are learning and their own lives, personal histories, and current events. And she presses them to dig into those connections: Given that some of their family members survived a genocide 30 years after the end of the Holocaust, what can never again mean?

Rileys students develop critical thinking and research skills while exploring challenging questions about ethics, systems of power, and failures in human rights that have tragically repeated themselves during the 20th and 21st centuries. This rigorous course is an elective; Massachusetts is one of 38 states that does not require Holocaust education.

With an increase in violent hate crimes and more high-profile anti-Semitic attacks in the news, additional states are considering adding the Holocaust to their education requirements. In 2018, the FBI reported a spike in violent hate crimes; that year, a shooter killed 11 people in the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. There have been subsequent violent attacks against Jewish establishments in California, New York, and New Jersey. Following a string of street attacks against ultra-Orthodox Jews in Brooklyn, New York City is implementing hate crimes awareness programming to supplement Holocaust education for middle school and high school students in the neighborhoods affected.

In January, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Never Again Education Act, which, if signed into law, would direct the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum to expand its education programming and make it available to teachers nationwide.

But despite these developments, learning about the Holocaust is far from a given in schools, and the lessons that students do receive vary widely. Students often learn about the Holocaust through reading memoirs like Elie Wiesels Night or The Diary of Anne Frank in English class. Social studies teachers often struggle to fit lessons about the Holocaust into crowded curricula. But experienced Holocaust educators say that it doesnt much matter which class teaches students about the Holocaust. What matters most is that young people gain an understanding of the circumstances that led to the Holocaust and are brought into contact with the real, lived experiences of its victims and survivors.

Shortly after the Tree of Life shooting, the educational organization Facing History and Ourselves posted a free curriculum online to help teachers address the tragedy with their students. It provided links to news stories about other recent hate crimes, discussion questions about what allows hate to build in a community, and suggestions for how to support students in a meaningful response to the shooting.

Its a practiced approach that Facing History and Ourselves has honed over the past 44 years to connect the lessons of history with the present and teach students to stand up to hate. The organization trains teachers and develops curriculum centered on moments of historical crisis, including the Holocaust, using an approach that encourages students to consider the experiences of those who lived through history while inviting them to reflect on their own responsibilities today.

History can allow us to ask better questions of our moment, says Laura Tavares, Facing Historys program director for organizational learning and thought leadership. The Weimar era was [an] era of upheaval. Norms were opening, there was cultural ferment. It was also a time of economic dislocation. We can ask, how do those factors shape the way people see their neighbors? How do certain people become vulnerable?

Facing History and Ourselves trains teachers and partners with school districts around the globe on curriculum; there are nearly 150,000 teachers actively using its pedagogy in the classroom. The organization has been recognized for improving critical thinking and social-emotional learning skills for students who are exposed to its programs.

Lea Hartog, a humanities teacher at the Athenian School in Danville, CA, who took a course with Facing History and Ourselves, says that when students learn to question themselves as well as the actions of people involved in the Holocaust, they are forced to face difficult truths.

These were not aliens coming down from another universe, these were people committing [these atrocities], Hartog says. Because these were all committed by humans, we can repeat them.

Riley took courses with Facing History and Ourselves, and students in her Holocaust literature class bring up any number of current events that they see as related to the history of the Holocaust, including the detention of asylum seekers at the southern border and the mosque shootings in Christchurch, New Zealand. In many cases, Riley says, students use their own family histories to make connections between the Holocaust and other human rights abuses.

We have a lot of kids in our community who are the children or grandchildren of survivors of the Khmer Rouge. There are students who are new arrivals from Central America, Riley says. They have that fear.

This year, Rileys students are compiling a book of their research projects about crimes against humanity in the 20th and 21st centuries, including the Holocaust, the Armenian genocide, the Rwandan genocide, and the Rohingya refugee crisis. Lowell High School library media specialist Karen Davidson-Heller taught the students to use databases to find primary and secondary resources about their topics, as well as how to do online research, with an emphasis on judging the credibility of sources.

She and Riley have students apply the CRAAP test to sources they find online; the testan acronym for currency, reliability, authority, accuracy, and purposeis a widely used method to assess the credibility of sources. Davidson-Heller says that while research skills are an important educational tool in general, theyre even more crucial when studying the Holocaust and anti-Semitism because of the misinformation that abounds online.

You could find sites that are put together by white supremacists. Theyre going to say the Holocaust never happened, Davidson-Heller says.

The analysis of news and propaganda is a key component of Holocaust history. One of Rileys students last year wrote about the Reichstag fire in Berlin in 1933, an event that Nazis falsely blamed on communists and used to advance their takeover of the German government. The reports of the Reichstag fire, the student argued, were similar to fake news spread by politicians, pundits, and through social media channels today.

Yedida Kanfer, director of community education at the Jewish Family and Childrens Services (JFCS) Holocaust Center in San Francisco, prompts her students to consider the role of bystanders during the Holocaust in order to reflect on the role that everyday choices make in historical events. In the Next Chapter after-school program she offers for high school students, she asks them whether, as ordinary citizens in Germany, they would have made the Nazi salute when Adolf Hitler passed by.

And if I had, Kanfer instructs her students to ask themselves, would I have been responsible for the Holocaust?

The Holocaust Center includes a library and archives, a speakers bureau of survivors and their descendants, and education programs, including trainings for classroom teachers. The organization has partnered with Facing History and Ourselves to offer teacher training about Violins of Hope, a collection of violins from people who died in the Holocaust, that is on display in venues across the Bay Area this winter, with a related performance series. In 2014, the center published The Diary of Rywka Lipszyc, the journal of a Polish girl who was held in the Lodz ghetto.

Teaching methods that use personal stories and meaningful objects from the Holocaust are effective educational tools for teens that help them humanize the victims. Kanfer found that reading diaries of Holocaust victims their own age, who were experiencing historical events in real time, is deeply impactful for high school students.

Kids really relate to [Rywka Lipszyc], Kanfer says. Anne Frank is a staple, standard text. But if thats the only thing, Anne becomes the one Holocaust girl. We feel its really important to have other perspectives.

Amanda Lanceter, director of curriculum and instruction at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York, says Holocaust education should aim to give agency back to the victims by telling their stories and illuminating their perspectives, their decisions, and their point of view. Its one of the reasons diaries are potent teaching tools.

The goal is really to help students understand how people lived and how they responded to the circumstances they were in, Lanceter says. Through that, they gain empathy and understanding.

The JFCS Holocaust Center also uses education to take an active role in combatting anti-Semitism in the local community. When there are anti-Semitic incidents in schools, such as swastika graffiti or anti-Semitic social media posts, the center partners with the Anti-Defamation League and reaches out to the teachers and administration to offer training in historical context.

We use it as an opportunity to understand the power of symbols, says Morgan Blum Schneider, the centers director. I see the role of the JFCS Holocaust Center as how can we look to repair the community.

Jim McGarry teaches the Holocaust as the cornerstone of his ethics and social justice class at Mercy High School in San Francisco. Studying the Holocaust, McGarry says, allows students to form an ethical understanding of roles of perpetrators, resisters, and bystanders to atrocities.

He emphasizes the conditions that preceded the Nazi policy of mass extermination, known as the Final Solution. The important part of teaching the Holocaust is not to teach about the Final Solution, but its to teach about the early types of discrimination in the 1930s, McGarry says. Thats my emphasis: how it got the point where they could implement the Final Solution.

McGarry, who is also a religious studies teacher at the Catholic girls school, has been teaching about the Holocaust for almost 30 years and was the founding director of the Helen and Joe Farkas Center for the study of the Holocaust in Catholic schools, which is based at Mercy. His students do research projects using the 1,000-volume Holocaust library that is part of the Farkas Center. McGarry says that the biggest point of pride for Helen Farkas, a Holocaust survivor who shared her story widely and for whom the center is named, was having a library in her honor.

Helen Farkas never finished high school, McGarry says. She always thought of herself as uneducated, and she felt embarrassed about it.

Mercy High School will close after this school year, and McGarry isnt yet certain what will happen to the Holocaust library. But hes determined to preserve it, and for the library to continue to be a resource for students to use to learn the important historical lessons that the Holocaust has to teach.

We will find a home for this library, McGarry says. Im not going to let these volumes go.

Drew Himmelstein is a freelance journalist and public school parent who writes frequently about education, families, and religion.

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Amid Rising Anti-semitism, Holocaust Education Expands To Address Hate - School Library Journal

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Posted By admin on March 13, 2020

Right now, The Times reports, colleges seem to be leading the way in the national experiment with remote learning. Many schools are set to start virtual instruction after spring break, lasting at least through March. But in the Seattle area, a suburban K-12 school district moved all its classes online, and this photo essay, Remote Learning Comes to America as Coronavirus Shuts Schools, shows what that can look like.

Yet, a related article points out, few schools have detailed plans to teach online if they had to close for long periods:

The obstacles to teaching remotely were evident: American children have uneven access to home computers and broadband internet. Schools have limited expertise in providing instruction online on a large scale. And parents would be forced to juggle their own work responsibilities with what could amount to a vast unplanned experiment in mass home-schooling, said Kevin Carey, vice president for education policy at New America, a think tank.

The Learning Network recently did a Lesson of the Day on the article When Can We Go to School? Nearly 300 Million Children Are Missing Class. In it, students analyze a map, consider the problems and solutions presented in the article, and, if they like, create a one-pager visual response to the article.

In our Picture Prompt feature, we have asked students to weigh in on the question How would you feel about attending school from home? and we would love to hear from learners all over the world.

We also recently asked students: How concerned are you about the coronavirus outbreak? Over 450 weighed in with questions, observations, opinions and, via international students who have already been out of school for weeks, interesting insights into what may be coming for many in the United States.

Here are some resources from around the web that may help both teachers and students navigate the uncertainty. We welcome suggestions for additions to any of these lists.

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Coronavirus Resources: Teaching, Learning and Thinking Critically - The New York Times

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Posted By admin on March 13, 2020

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For years and years, black people and people of color all over America have been calling for white supremacist terrorism to be given the same energy as Islamic terrorism. Recently, our concerns have been vindicated as weve seen report after report after report of government officials, on both the state and federal levels, finally coming to glory on the matter and elevating the threat level of white nationalist extremism. Now the U.S. State Department appears to be following suit.

According to Politico, the State Department is looking to have, for the first time in U.S. history, at least one white supremacist group officially designated as a foreign terrorist organization.

At the top of the list of neo-Nazi terrorist organizations that former U.S. officials and counterterrorism analysts agree should be prioritized as recognized foreign terrorists is Atomwaffen, a group that was founded in the United States but has expanded into the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany and Estonia.

The move on Atomwaffen comes after the FBI arrested five alleged members of the far-right extremist group in February and eight members of The Base, another known neo-Nazi group with foreign ties, in January. According to NPR, In February, FBI Director Christopher Wray told lawmakers that his agency has elevated to the top-level priority racially motivated violent extremism so its on the same footing in terms of our national threat banding as [the Islamic State terrorist group] and homegrown violent extremism.

And in a congressional hearing last October, Wray said, We can always use more tools. Youre never going to find a law enforcement or intelligence professional who wouldnt like more tools. And I can imagine situations where what youre describing would be very helpful for us to have as a tool.

National security experts believe that designating groups like Atomwaffen and The Base as foreign terrorist organizations will aid federal prosecutors in charging suspected group members with providing material support to terrorists. What that means is if the suspect has trained with foreign terrorist groups or offered them advice, personnel or funding, it will be much easier to charge them with serious crimes. law enforcement would also be able to fill in some of the puzzle pieces on the organizations by monitoring Americans who go overseas to train with the designated white supremacist groups, according to Mollie Saltskog, a senior intelligence analyst at the Soufan Center, Politico reports.

There are 68 groups on the State Department list of foreign terrorist organizations, and not one is a violent white supremacist group, said Joshua Geltzer, a counterterrorism expert who served on the National Security Council from 2015 to 2017, Politico notes. We dont use national security tools just to be symbolic, but I think finally adding to this list a white supremacist organization would really show that the U.S. recognizes the threat these groups pose, is willing to confront them using appropriate tools, and is now awakened to their distinctly transnational nature.

Gelzer and the Soufan Center arent the only experts who have been speaking publicly on the issue and pushing to include white supremacist organizations on the FTO list. According to Politico, a number of lawmakers and civil society groups including Rep. Max Rose (D-N.Y.) and the Anti-Defamation League have pushed this for months.

In a congressional hearing last September, senior vice president at the Anti-Defamation League Sharon Nazarian told the State Department, Our federal legal system currently lacks the means to prosecute a white supremacist terrorist as a terrorist.

Rose, who chairs the House Subcommittee on Intelligence and Counterterrorism, introduced a resolution to the State Department last week that would would further empower law enforcement and intelligence officials to better address the growing threats they pose to the homeland. The resolution specifically mentions groups that were born from AttomWaffen including Sonnenkrieg in the U.K., AWD Deutschland in Germany, Northern Order in Canada, and Feuerkrieg Division in the Baltic States.

Im hopeful the administration will follow through and make this designation official, Rose told Politico on Monday, because the people on the front lines deserve every tool possible to protect the American people from terrorists.

State Department officials hope to have the designation finalized by next week.

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State Department Wants to List a White Supremacist Group as Foreign Terrorist Organization for First Time in U.S. History: Report - The Root

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Posted By admin on March 13, 2020

(JNS)-The Boston-based Jewish Federation, Combined Jewish Philanthropies (CJP), recently honored a local activist with ties to the anti-Israel group IfNotNow.

Nadav David is listed as one of CJP's 2020"Chai in the Hub"honorees, which the organization describes as "young adults are doing amazing things personally and professionally to better Greater Boston's Jewish community."

In his CJP profile, David works as a financial coach with Compass Working Capital and as a community organizer. Among the organizations he describes being involved with are Kavod, Boston Foundation Neighborhood Fellows Program, Tzedek Lab, Boston Ujima Project and Muslim Justice League.

Ujima Boston has also been involved in a Boston divestment campaign, which includedtargetingthe State of Israel.

David, who is a Northeastern University graduate and former Hillel board member,spokeat an IfNotNow-affiliated rally outside of Northeastern Hillel in April 2019.

Wearing a shirt saying "Birthright and Hillel: It's time to part," David described his time as a student at Hillel and his own disillusionment with Northeastern Hillel, which he accused of only promoting "right-wing" speakers and programs.

"As I was grappling with the realities of occupation and the realities of Palestinians being oppressed, I also grappled with the reality of my family's own history, as Mizrahi Jews and Arab Jews, being displaced and targeted by the Israeli government throughout the Israeli state's history. And seeing the lengths in which this was connected to the oppression and displacement of the Palestinians," he said.

"I immediately found there was no place for it. Hillel continued to bring only far-right Israel speakers to campus and continued to invest in fighting BDS," he said.

Founded in 2014, IfNotNow has increasingly drawn headlines for its opposition to Zionism and criticism of American Jewish organizations support for Israel.

Accordingto the anti-Semitism watchdog group Canary Mission, IfNowNow "has a particular focus on disruptive protests of pro-Israel events and institutions. To this end, INN have held multiple sit-in protests in the lobbies of buildings housing mainstream Jewish organizations."

The organization describes itself as "steeped both in left-wing protest and Jewish tradition" that seeks to "end American Jewish support for the occupation."

In particular, the group is known for its campaigns againstBirthright Israelgroups andJewish summer camps, which they claim do not include information to its participants about the "Israeli occupation." They have also protested other mainstream Jewish and pro-Israel groups such as the Anti-Defamation League, Jewish Community Relations Council and AIPAC.

More recently, the groupapproachedleading Democratic presidential candidates to ask if they would be skipping the annual AIPAC Policy Conference, which took place March 1-3. The ploy apparently worked, keeping Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren from attending.

IfNotNow has alsodevelopeda strategic partnership with the anti-Israel group American Muslims for Palestine.

'Embracing the left'

In a statement to JNS, CJP spokeswoman Karen Kuwayti did not address the ties between David and IfNotNow.

" 'Chai in the Hub' winners are nominated by their peers, friends and colleagues. In choosing the honorees, we consider their contributions in a variety of areas including education, volunteering, spirituality, social justice, leadership, arts and culture," she said. "We honored a diverse group of people from across our community. The event celebrates the values that we share."

Charles Jacobs, head of the Boston-based Americans for Peace and Tolerance, told JNS that he is not surprised by their endorsement of an activist tied to IfNotNow.

"This is an outrage, but on the other hand should be no surprise to those who over the years have seen CJP embracing the left, and abandoning the defense of Israel and indeed the Jewish community," he said.

"Like much of the Jewish establishment around the country, Boston's CJP is flummoxed by the left's turn against Israel and has no strategy to deal with this huge change on the battlefield of ideas," continued Jacobs. "Rather than painfully rethink their strategy, it continues to embrace an increasingly hostile left in the hopes it will change minds, as well as denying threats from every source of Jew-hatred except the right."

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Posted By admin on March 13, 2020

We in the Jewish LGBTQ community are feeling some dj vu from our worst years of trauma.

Starting in 1981, the surreal became real. What had been imaginable only in the writings of Edgar Allan Poe, the annals of medieval and Renaissance history, or in the most terrifying pages of Torah, became the day-to-day reality of our lives: A terrible and unfamiliar disease appeared that no one understood but that relentlessly started to kill our people in horrible ways, while we had a government which was bigoted, hostile, and dismissive. Cause and transmission were mysterious and confusing. Stigma isolated us from each other and fear of catching the plague added pain to pain.

Even before we learned what HIV (or GRID as it was first known) was (do people remember when we had never heard the word retrovirus?), we as a community learned the power of resilience, resistance, and spirituality. Like David facing Goliath, we discovered strengths we didnt know we had. We grieved, we wailed, we fought, we became wiser, and we bonded.

And we did it without the help of our government or the larger Jewish community at first two sources of protection that by their very definition should have been there for us. 40% of our synagogue died from that plague. We were wounded to an incalculable degree, but even wounded, we grew strong. Hell, we learned how to get along.

Although we lost so many of the community an entire generation we emerged from our losses with wisdom that gives us strength to deal with the spiritual illness of the Trump era and now with this newly emerged illness of COVID-19 and the novel coronavirus.

We have lived through the terrifying and surreal before. We have lived through neglectful and inadequate government before. We have relied on each others strength and the untapped resources of our spirit before. These things we know:

The power of community cannot be underestimated. Together, we form a tribe that can survive the insurmountable. To build our strength as a tribe, we must reach out to those who are at most risk and make sure no one feels isolated or alone.

We need sanctuaries, holy places, and powerful rituals. Creating space for prayer and meditation and healing is not a luxury; it is essential for our survival. Because of AIDS, the gay Jewish communities in San Francisco, New York and Los Angeles pioneered Jewish healing services which later became normative within the larger Jewish community. A practice of reciting psalms, either as individuals or as a community, draws on the treasure of our ancient heritage and harnesses its power to heal todays anguish.

We are not defined by any virus, symptoms, or syndrome. Remember the joke that characterizes Jewish holidays like Purim which just passed and Pesach which comes next month: They tried to kill us. They didnt succeed. Lets eat. We must never forget to rejoice at our life and our resilience. Joy is an absolute necessity, not something we get around to later. We exercise our muscles of gratitude now, daily, when its hardest. We dont wait until we are comfortable. Even though we gathered for funerals, memorial services, and hospital waiting rooms all the time, when it came time for our Shabbat services, CBST committed to prayer and music and learning that would create joy.

Joy is an act of spiritual resistance. And making Shabbat a central part gives us the strength to face the world the other six days of the week.

It is a sin to stigmatize anyone. We Jews know what it is to be falsely blamed, and thousands of our ancestors were killed in Europe by Christian mobs who thought Jews were responsible for the black plague.

We LGBTQ people know what it is to live through a plague, and the stigma and the hate directed at us were often worse than the plague which killed so many of us. The CBST community knows what it takes to live through a plague. Love and compassion and support are at the center of survival. Remember to be kind and generous while being cautious and vigilant about staying healthy and keeping others safe.

We will continue being a powerful spiritual community of resistance and love. May the Holy One surround you and your loved ones and give you strength and comfort as we face the uncertainty of the times we are in. Be the reason people have faith in the goodness of others.

Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum serves as spiritual leader of Congregation Beit Simchat Torah.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Forward.

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Community. Ritual. Joy: Thats how we survived AIDS, and how well survive coronavirus - Forward

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Posted By admin on March 13, 2020

BEACHWOOD, Ohio -- Top 25 finalists named: Now underway and in its 12th year is the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage-sponsored Stop the Hate: Youth Speak Out essay contest. Each year, students are asked to consider the benefits of a more inclusive society, the consequences of intolerance, and the role of personal responsibility in effecting change.

There are some nice monetary awards for students who take the time and effort to write heartfelt essays. Thanks to the generosity of a donor, the Maltz Museum annually awards $100,000 in recognition of 6-12th grade writers. After the 2020 awards are given, the contest will be responsible for a grand total of $1.2 million in prize money since its inception. An estimated 30,000-plus students have participated across 12 counties in Northeast Ohio since the contest was launched.

The prestigious contest offers students the chance to win personal scholarships and schools to receive anti-bias education grants. While thousands enter, just 25 finalists are named. The winners are announced at an inspiring event where the top ten essays are read live in front of a panel of judges.

The Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage has announced the names of the 25 finalists in its 'Stop the Hate' essay contest. The Students are vying for $100,000 in scholarship money.

That event is scheduled to take place at 6:30 p.m. April 2 at Severance Hall. Of course, these days, with coronavirus concerns on our minds, all events are fair game for postponement or cancellation.

With all of that being stated, here are the 25 finalists. The top 10 high school juniors and seniors competing for a grand prize of $40,000 in scholarships are Daijanae Crenshaw, Grade 12, of the Cleveland School of Science and Medicine; Vita S. Davis, Grade 12, Valley Forge High School; Kennedy Fletcher, Grade 12, Shaker Heights High School; Faicia Giddings, Grade 11, Cleveland School of the Arts; Tatiana Lipert, Grade 12, Saint Joseph Academy; Leah Messemer, Grade 12, Hudson High School; Julia Newman, Grade 12, Hawken School; Kathleen Pagn Arzola, Grade 12, James Ford Rhodes High School; Savannah Patterson, Beaumont School; and Nia Terrell, Grade 12, Brush High School.

Younger students, grades six to 10 in our Sun Press coverage area competing for $400 awards, and also in the top 25, are seventh graders Eden G. Austin, Kelsey Cohen and Radha Pareek, all of Beachwood Middle School; eighth graders Tolga Cavusoglu and Probir Mukherjee, both of Beachwood Middle School; and tenth graders David Kuang and Bowen Zhang, again, both of Beachwood Middle School. Good luck to all.

Last call for history: The Shaker Heights Landmark Commission is yelling out last call to all those who want to nominate an exterior project for a 2020 Preservation Award. All entries are due by March 31.

Exterior projects completed after April 2017 are eligible. Nominations may be submitted for any building in Shaker Heights, including homes and apartment buildings, commercial buildings, and other structures. Award categories include: Retention of Original Materials, Exterior Restoration, Excellence in Stewardship, Distinguished Landscape, Architecturally Appropriate Addition, and other.

Im not sure what other entails, but you can find out by going to this site to nominate a project and to learn more. To see the 2018 award recipients, visit here.

Submissions will be accepted online through March 31, 2020. Winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in the fall.

More about Shaker history: The Shaker Historical Society has an exhibit up and running through May 31 titled, A Celebration and History of the African-American Vote: Exclusion & Inclusion.

This exhibit looks at the impact of influential African-Americans in local politics, from Winston Richie, the first African-American councilman in Shaker Heights, and Peter Lawson Jones (also a former Shaker Heights councilman), up to Carmella Williams, who was just elected to Shaker Heights City Council. This exhibit will also examine Martin Luther King Jr.s visit to Shaker to promote the election of Carl B. Stokes as Cleveland mayor, and more.

The SHS is located at 16740 South Park Blvd. It can be reached at 216-921-1201.

Its chocolate Seder plate time: It happens every year around this time, your chance to order a chocolate Seder plate from the Women of Fairmount Temple.

The temple women are famous for their dark chocolate Seder plates made with more than one whole pound of chocolate per plate. The cost is $25. The plates make for great hostess gifts and can be packed for mailing to out-of-town family members. Quantities are limited, so order yours now by calling Bernice Goldman at 216-378-9478, or leave a message with the temple gift shop at 216-464-1330, ext. 125. Order deadline is March 25.

Also from Fairmount Temple, 23737 Fairmount Blvd. in Beachwood, is news that, from 7-9 p.m. April 1, nationally known, award-winning cartoonist and best-selling childrens author Terri Libenson will talk about Pajama Diaries: A Jewish Family in the Funnies. Pajama Diaries is the long-running syndicated comic strip she retired last month. Desserts and beverages will be served. The cost to attend is $20 for adults, and $5 for students. You are asked to RSVP no later than March 25 to womenft@fairmounttemple.org. Books will be available for purchase and signing.

University Heights police action: The University Heights Police Department awarded officers, promoted others, and swore in still more during ceremonies held March 11 at the Cleveland Heights-University Heights Board of Education building.

Six officers were given commendation awards for their work in a particular incident.

On February 19, 2019, our agency received an extremely complex and dynamic service call," said University Heights Police Chief Dustin Rogers, while bestowing the awards. "This single incident was in-progress, and mobile, and involved a robbery, a felonious assault, a kidnapping, and a proposed ransom. This incident originated in another city, and found its way into our jurisdiction on this day. The entire Uniform Shift, and available detectives and administrators, immediately responded to multiple locations to further investigate, and bring resolution to this matter.

University Heights Mayor Michael Dylan Brennan, left, swore in four new police officers during a police awards ceremony held March 11. An additional officer, unable to attend the ceremony, has also been sworn in.

"During the incident, these officers before you, were able to quickly locate the complainant, locate the suspect vehicle, detain the suspects after they fled on foot, they located and freed the bound victim, and also provided first aid.

As a result, these officers, are presented with the Commendation Award, for their dedication and bravery, which presumably, saved a life during this incident. Without these officers efficient, effective, and coordinated response that day, I believe this incident would have ended in tragedy.

Awarded were Lt. Dale Orians, Sgt. Steve Williams, Sgt. Rob Miller, Det. Kyle Nietert, Corp. Ron Boots and patrolwoman Dottie Pitts.

Others receiving commendation awards for their work in other incidents included Corp. Charles Darrah, patrolman Chris Russo (who received two such awards), patrolman Adam Lipply, and patrolman Mike Ferrara. Space doesnt allow us to include all their stories, but be assured, theyre all good ones.

Promoted from patrol officers to sergeants were Rob Miller and Joe Respondek.

Meanwhile, five new officers were added to the department. They are patrolmen Josh Stanton, Mark Delpra, Jermaine Smith, Joe Huffman and Martin Iser.

Cancellation at Beachwood Arts: The Beachwood Arts Council has canceled its Dianne Palmer/Lou Armagno Sinatra Selects concert scheduled for March 22.

Meditation: It looks like we could all use a little relaxation these days with all thats going on. The Coventry Village Library branch, 1925 Coventry Road in Cleveland Heights, has just the answer as it will host its continuing Meditation Tuesdays from 6-7 p.m. March 31. The physical and mental benefits of meditation are significant and well-documented. Christine Valadon is presenting a weekly Heartfulness meditation -- a simple, effective form of meditation focused on opening the heart and practiced in more than 120 countries around the world.

For more information about these classes, call 216-321-3400.

Also, you can learn to make colorful alcohol ink coasters using ceramic tiles from 7-8:30 p.m. March 26 at the University Heights Library branch, 13866 Cedar Road. You will get to make four coasters that you can use in your own home, or gift to someone special. Registration is required and can be accomplished by calling 216-321-4700.

Seeking artists: The Shaker Arts Council informs us that, building on the success of last years Painting the Town utility box project, it is planning a new project for this year, Building Blocks. SHAC, along with several of Shakers neighborhood associations, is sponsoring a juried art competition for the design of utility boxes located in residential neighborhoods.

SHAC is looking for artists, 21 years or older, who live or work in Shaker Heights or within the Shaker Heights School District. Designs and applications must be submitted no later than 5 p.m. May 1. For more information and to download the call for artists, an application, and template visit shakerartscouncil.org.

Recent graduate: Congratulations are in order to Rachel Wagschal, of Cleveland Heights, who recently graduated from the New York Institute of Technology.

Cleveland Heights Teacher awarded: Roxboro Middle School teacher Amy Statler was named the Head of the Class educator for the month of February by the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Statler is the Project Lead The Way (PLTW) teacher and building Tech Leader at Roxboro. She was surprised in her classroom Feb. 28 by Cavs announcer Ahmaad Crump, Cavs mascot Moondog, and her family. Statler was awarded floor seats to an upcoming Cavs game and $500 to spend updating her classroom. She was also set to be acknowledged at an upcoming Cavs game. Unfortunately, coronavirus has led to the NBA suspending its season, but at least Statler got the $500 for her classroom and maybe she can attend a game in the future.

Its not the first time the Cavs have recognized a Heights Tiger. In 2017-2018, Fairfax student Brock Mueller and Oxford School student Mykaila Davis received the Cavs All-Star Kid awards.

Sign language: If youve ever wanted or needed to learn sign language, you can get a start by attending the Beginning Sign Language class scheduled for 2-4 p.m. April 4, 11 and 18 at the Beachwood Library, 25501 Shaker Blvd. Valerie Williams teaches basic American Sign Language using role-play and other fun activities.

Adults and children ages 13 to 18, if accompanied by an adult, are welcome. No experience is needed. This is an ongoing series, so participants are registering for a total of eight programs. Registration is required. To register, visit here. These classes are sponsored by the Friends of the Beachwood Library.

Hold your wedding here: With the recent closures of three northeast Ohio wedding venues, Temple Emanu El wants engaged couples and wedding planners to know it has dates available to hold their weddings and receptions.

The temples social hall can accommodate up to 250 guests, plus a DJ or band; has a fully functioning kitchen; and has ample onsite parking. In addition, the venue is on one level, allowing greater access for those with limited mobility. The temple is located at 4545 Brainard Road in Orange Village.

If you would like to see your item appear in Press Run, send me an email, at least 12 days prior to an event, at jeff.piorkowski@att.net.

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Top 25 named in Stop the Hate essay contest; University Heights awards police officers; more: Press Run - cleveland.com

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Posted By admin on March 13, 2020

(JNS) There are a lot of people who are relieved that Michael Bloomberg has dropped out of the Democratic primary race, and not all of them are named Biden.

The withdrawal of the former mayor of New York City gives a boost to former Vice President Joe Biden. Bloombergs jumping on the Biden bandwagon removes the last competition for more moderate Democratic primary voters and lessens the chances that Sen. Bernie Sanders will become the Democratic nominee. Thats a relief for both centrists who fear the Vermont Socialist cant beat President Donald Trump, as well as supporters of Israel who have been rightly outraged by Sanderss slanderous attacks on AIPAC and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

But Bloombergs exit from the presidential contest also brings a sigh of relief to those who feared that his wild spending was providing ammunition to anti-Semites.

The idea that Jews buy political influence to pursue secret agendas has been a trope of anti-Semites dating back to the publication of the fakeProtocols of the Elders of Zionat the start of the 20th century. Its been revived in various forms, including by some anti-Semitic supporters of Sanders, such as Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), who claimed that supporters of Israel were purchasing Congress in her now famous quip: Its all about the Benjamins.

Indeed, the fact that Bloomberg and two other billionaires with Jewish ties, George Soros and Tom Steyer (who has a Jewish father and who also recently ended a futile presidential bid) have been the largest donors to Democratic candidates and liberal political causes in recent years has created an unhealthy dialogue about campaign finance and anti-Semitism. The slightest hint of criticism of the triowho have invested large sums promoting liberal politicians and policieshas been seized upon as evidence of Jew-baiting.

That was also true with respect to Bloombergs astounding spending on his presidential campaign. Indeed, even a gentle jibe from Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) about how Bloomberg could not only direct coverage of his campaign by his own media empire, but was purchasing other media, provoked Anti-Defamation League CEO and national director Jonathan Greenblatt to denounce the senator for encouraging anti-Semitism. Greenblatt, a partisan figure who has done much to trash the ADLs reputation, was dead wrong, buthis smearof Cruz was indicative of the way some on the left have developed a hair-trigger response to any discussion of the way Bloomberg, and especially Soros, spend money on politics.

But given the scale of Bloombergs spending, there was no way to avoid a discussion about the topic.

Reportedly, the billionaire spent approximately $570 million on television ads alone. He spent even more on staff and other campaign costs, raising his total expenditures to what might have been somewhere in the vicinity of $1 billion. That sum dwarfs any previous presidential effort. Bloomberg financed all of this out of his own pocket and with an estimate of approximately $55 billion, its clear that doing so was no hardship.

That he failed miserably is credited to his inept performances in presidential debates, though the postmortem on his candidacy involves more than just a reminder that presidential politics is not a sport for those who are unwilling to do the heavy lifting of retail campaigning and debate preparation.

The moral of the Bloomberg candidacy is one that is heartening for those who worry about the role money plays in democracies. It may be true that no one can successfully run for any major office without serious financial backing. But Bloomberg has proven that money by itself cannot purchase the presidency, even when it is spent at an astounding rate.

If you calculate his spending on TV ads alone and divide by the number of Democratic convention delegates he won, that amounts to approximately $11 million per delegatea ludicrous sum that beggars any previous such effort.

This pathetic return on his investment is also a reminder to those who think that American democracy is being hacked by Russian meddling, not to exaggerate the impact of campaign spending.

According to the report issued by Special Counsel Robert Mueller about the 2016 presidential election, Russian operatives spent approximately $1.2 million per month on Facebook ad campaigns and other efforts that were aimed at discrediting Hillary Clinton, and boosting the efforts of then candidate Trump and Sanderss primary challenge to the eventual Democratic nominee.

This was both appalling and illegal. But its difficult to make a rational argument that the Russian adsmany of which were barely intelligible and mostly seen by a relatively small audiencestole that election when Bloombergs astronomically larger spending on far more sophisticated and expertly targeted ads couldnt even purchase him a competitive primary campaign, let alone the Democratic nomination.

Thats a good reason to ignore the hysteria about Bloombergs spending, even if it was unseemly. More to the point, the whole notion of anybody purchasing the American political system is bunk. In particular, that means Israel-bashers should understand that if the Jewish state has the support of most Americans, its not because of AIPAC or donors, but simply because most Americans support Zionism and the Jewish state.

Nor should we be quick to demonize spending on political speech even if it is sometimes, as Bloomberg proved, both egregious and an exercise in futility. Although anti-Semites continue to harp on the notion of Jewish money buying influence, that shouldnt stop anyone using the right of free speech to advocate for their ideas. Indeed, advocacy for causes or candidates is exactly what Americas Founding Fathers were thinking about when they wrote the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, even if they couldnt have imagined television or social media.

Michael Bloomberg may have wasted a great deal of money in recent months, but he shouldnt be blamed for helping anti-Semites. Nor should we castigate those who have lampooned his profligacy. Instead, we should celebrate the fact that though imperfect, democracy still works even when some try to game the system.

Jonathan S. Tobin is editor in chief of JNSJewish News Syndicate. Follow him on Twitter at: @jonathans_tobin.

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Did Bloomberg give ammunition to anti-Semites? - Heritage Florida Jewish News

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Posted By admin on March 13, 2020

OpinionColumnistsThe Labour Party is trying to accuse its critics of racism as toxic as that of which they are themselves accused

Wednesday, 11th March 2020, 6:10 pm

In February of last year, the BBC journalist Lyse Doucet interviewed the Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif about Irans human rights record.

What was Zarif planning to do, she asked, about eight environmentalists jailed in Iran after protesting the regimes stance on conservation? Zarif changed the subject. What about the Saudi regimes murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi, he asked? With rising indignation, he continued: the West still sells weapons to Saudi Arabia, Irans regional rival, so what right had any British journalist to question Iran about human rights?

i's opinion newsletter: talking points from today

i's opinion newsletter: talking points from today

I thought of Zarif and his now-notorious interview when I read that the Labour Party has suspended Trevor Phillips, founding head of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission, over allegations of Islamophobia. Like most Labour Party processes, the mechanism by which charges have been brought against Phillips is secret.

In the cover letter Phillips has received from Labour, only one Islamophobic publication is specified: a think-tank pamphlet he co-authored in 2016 entitled: Race and Faith: The Deafening Silence. Phillips is accused of referencing Enoch Powells 1968 Rivers of Blood speech in the pamphlet which he did, in order to condemn it and condemn the deafening silence of the British Establishments refusal to confront Powell and his supporters in argument.

Phillips is the child of Windrush-era migrants from British Guiana and last year he was interviewed on Newsnight, shaking with anger, to condemn the Tory governments treatment of the Windrush generation. He is clearly no Powellite. But he has been a prominent critic of Islamist (and Iran-backed) attempts to define the word Islamophobiasince 2016, which was the year in which he presented a controversial Channel 4 documentary: What Do British Muslims Really Think?

The true question is why now, in early 2020, the former head of the Equality and Human Rights Commission is being charged with racism over a 2016 publication.In a few months, the EHRC is due to publish its formal investigation into charges that the Labour Party is institutionally anti-Semitic. Phillips, although no longer at the EHRC himself, has welcomed that investigation and spoken publicly to condemn the Labour leaderships perceived tolerance of anti-Semitism.

Since the news of the EHRC investigation broke, parts of the Labour Party have appeared to embark on a strategic campaign to distract from the mote in its own eye: accuse its critics of racism as toxic as that of which they are themselves accused. In the case of the Conservative Party, that means consistently raising accusations of Islamophobia. And under this pressure, the Conservatives have announced an independent review into Islamophobia: Trevor Phillips sits on that panel.

Since the news of the EHRC investigation broke, the Corbynite faction of the Labour Party has undertaken a strategic campaign to distract from the mote in its own eye: accuse its critics of racism as toxic as that of which they are themselves accused. In the case of the Conservative Party, that means consistently raising accusations of Islamophobia.

And under this pressure, the Conservatives have announced an independent review into Islamophobia: Trevor Phillips sits on that panel. As I understand from Labour figures, Corbyns office are determined to discredit that inquiry, and to discredit the ability of any of its critics to speak to political racism, so that the public conversation is as muddy as possible before the ECHR bombshell hits.

No wonder one is reminded of the Iranian approach to foreign affairs. We are living in the age of whataboutery as political life-support system, adopted by global superpowers and national political parties. Corbyns Labour has perfected the game, but the Tories are equally keen players. Asked yesterday by Jeremy Corbyn to apologise for offensive remarks about women (including Muslim women), Boris Johnson retorted: I will take no lessons in sexism from a party where good women MPs are bullied out of their party. Hed used a similar line last week, when Corbyn referenced the ongoing inquiry into claims that Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, is a workplace bully.

Across the Atlantic and in the Middle East, things are much the same. Donald Trump and Joe Bidens outriders are gearing up for an election in which both accuse the other of mental decline and mistreatment of women. Apologists for Bashir Assad, who has used chemical weapons on his civilian population, parrot Russian and Iranian talking points that condemn rebels as the real genocidaires. Whataboutery or whataboutism was, of course, originally a Soviet propaganda technique; the Russia expert Luke Harding has described whataboutism as practically a national ideology in Putins Russia.

Whataboutery is a close relative of false-equivalence. But there are important, invidious differences. False equivalence is the posture of the detached spectator, when intellectual cowardice masquerades as moral superiority. Whataboutery is deployed by people who are themselves accused of a charge, and who wish to distract rather than defend themselves it is a misdirection technique of the guilty.

It trivialises the charge. Take the anti-semitism/anti-Islamaphobia fight. When British Jews speak about anti-Semitism, they are referencing of recent traumas, still fresh in family memory. Those of us of partial Jewish heritage, perhaps raised in other traditions, who have stood with the mainstream Jewish community this year do so because we share a hereditary memory of genocide, a marker in the bloodstream that twitches when we see again the old tropes of money-grubbing Jews. We know the line between a hook-nosed cartoon and our great-grandmothers deportation to Auschwitz.

When the first words we hear in response to an anti-Semitism complaint are what about Tory Islamophobia?, we hear that our communal PTSD doesnt matter. We hear that a communitys fear is just someones political weapon.

It doesnt have to be this way. Hatred of Muslims is a real issue in this country, and whether alleged of Tories or of Labour dissidents like Phillips, deserves to be investigated on its own merits, not tethered to a political point-scoring contest. The fact that it is now impossible to assess the charges against Phillips without referencing the context of Labour anti-semitism tumult, as I have done here, is all part of the same problem.

Many Jewish leaders have been struck by the support theyve received recently from Muslim communities, who know what it is to face prejudice. The Rabbi Julia Neuberger, speaking at Jewish Book Week last Wednesday, paid tribute to the improving relationships between synagogues and Muslims: Ramadan is now one of her busiest periods in the year, she noted, because theres an interfaith Iftar to attend every night.

No wonder authoritarian regimes love whataboutery. It divides us, pitching the concern of one community against another. It distracts us from the real sins of governments. (Those eight environmentalists in Iran, by the way, were sentenced to 58 years in jail last month, their leader found dead in his cell.) It should be beneath British politics. Yet it is firmly entrenched.

Kate Maltby is a writer and critic. She is on the board of Index of Censorship, of which Trevor Phillips is the chair

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The suspension of Trevor Phillips shows how whataboutery has invaded our politics - inews

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Posted By admin on March 13, 2020

Since its emergence in Wuhan, China, last December, the novel coronavirus COVID-19 has upended numerous cities and countries across the globe. Among the various sectors that have been heavily affected is the art worldan industry fueled by perpetual itinerancy as well as social gatherings of mass scale and close proximity. As the public health crisis escalates, art events have shut down, announced postponements, or are carefully trying to trudge forward. Here is a continually refreshed list of major events that have made such decisions due to the virus, which the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a pandemic:

[Last updated at 12:44 PM on March 13]

CANCELED EVENTS

Brooklyn Academy of Live Music, New York: Suspended all live programming through March 29.

Lincoln Center, New York: Suspended all programming for the month of March.

LA Art Book Fair:Originally scheduled for April 3April 5.

TEFAF Maastricht, the Netherlands:Originally scheduled for March 7March 15, the fair opened as planned but called off the event on March 11 after an exhibitor tested positive for the virus.

South by Southwest, Austin, Texas:The thirty-fourth annualfestivalwas originally scheduled for March 1322.

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington, DC: All events have been canceled through the end of March.

Yale Architecture:The school announced on March 11 that it is suspending all events and programming through at least April 5.

London Book Fair:Originally scheduled for March 10March 12.

Salon du Livre Paris 2020:Originally scheduled for March 2023.

Tucson Festival of Books, Arizona:Originally scheduled for March 1415.

Jingart, Beijing:Originally scheduled for May 2124.

Art Central Hong Kong:Originally scheduled to take place from March 18March 22.

Art Basel Hong Kong:Originally scheduled for April 3April 5.

RESCHEDULED EVENTS

Art Brussels: Originally scheduled forApril 23April 26, the fair will now take place from June 2528.

SPArte,So Paulo:Originally scheduled for April 15,new dates have yet to be announced.

Affordable Art Fair, Brussels: Originally scheduled for March 2022, new dates have yet to be announced.

Affordable Art Fair, New York: Originally scheduled for March 2629, new dates have yet to be announced.

Eye of the Collector, London: Originally scheduled for May 1316, the inaugural fair will be staged from September 811.

Dallas Art Fair:Originally scheduled forApril 1619, the fair has been moved toOctober 14.

ART COLOGNE:Originally scheduled forApril2326, the fair will now run from November 1922.

Paris Photo New York:Originally scheduled for April 25, new dates to be announced.

Sharjah Art Foundations 2020 March Meeting, UAE:Originally scheduled for March 2123, the event will be postponed until further notice.

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, California: Originally scheduled for April 1012 and April 1719, the festival will now take place from October 911 and October 1618.

DRAWING NOW Art Fair, Paris:Originally scheduled for March 2629, the fair has been moved to May 29 through June 1.

Berlin Gallery Weekend:Organizers have downsized the event, which is scheduled for May 13, and has moved large-scale programming to September 1113, coinciding with Berlin Art Week.

The Photography Show and Video Show, Birmingham, UK:Originally scheduled for March 1417, the event will now be held from September 1922.

MiArt, Milan:Originally scheduled for April 1719, the fair will now take place from September 11 to September 13, with a VIP preview day on September 10.

Mlaga Film Festival:Originally scheduled for March 1322, the twenty-third edition of the festival has yet to announce new dates.

Art Paris:Originally scheduled for April 25, the fair has been moved to May 2831.

Venice Architecture Biennale:The opening of the seventeenth edition of the biennial has been pushed back three months; the event will now kick off on August 29 and run until November 29.

Art Dubai:Originally scheduled for March 2528, new dates to be announced.

Lille Art Up!, France:Originally scheduled for March 58, it will now take place June 2528.

Salon del Mobile, Milan:Originally scheduled for April 2126, the exhibition has been moved to June 1621.

Gallery Weekend Beijing:Originally scheduled to take place fromMarch 13March 20, the event will announce whether it will cancel this years edition or reschedule it on March 15.

Design Shanghai Fair:Originally scheduled for March 1215, the fair will now be held from May 2629.

CAFAM Techne Triennial, Beijing:Originally supposed to begin on January 18, the inaugural edition has been suspended.

UNITED STATES: TEMPORARY MUSEUM AND GALLERY CLOSURES

NORTHEAST

Albright-Knox Northland, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.American Folk Art Museum, New York:Closed from March 1331.Brooklyn Museum, New York: Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Center for Italian Modern Art, New York:Closed from March 1331.Chart, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 14.David Zwirner, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Gagosian, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, Massachusetts:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Hauser & Wirth, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13; will receive visitors by appointment only.Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston:Closed for a minimum of fourteen days, beginning March 13.Judd Foundation, New York:Closed for a minimum of four weeks, beginning March 13.Jewish Museum, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Kasmin, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 14.Lehnmann Maupin, New York: Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.MacDowell Colony,Peterborough, New Hampshire: On March 13, the residency program announced that current artists-in-residence will be assisted with early departures; and no new fellows to arrive until the danger of virus transmission is contained.Magazzino Italian Art Foundation, Cold Spring, New York: Closed from March 1226.Mana Contemporary, Jersey City: Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.MassArt Art Museum, Boston: Closed from March 12March 24.Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.MIT List Visual Arts Center, Cambridge, Massachusetts: Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Morgan Library and Museum, New York:Closed from March 13March 30.Museum of Fine Arts, Boston:Closed for a minimum of thirty days, beginning March 13.Museum of Modern Art,MoMA PS1, and MoMA Design Stores, New York:Closed from March 1330.Museum of the City of New York:Closed until further notice,beginning March 13.Neue Galerie, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 12.New Museum, New York:Closed for a minimum of two-weeks, beginning March 13.New York Historical Society Museum and Libray:Closed from March 1331.Noguchi Museum, New York: Closed until further notice, beginning March 12.Norman Rockwell Museum, Stockbridge, Massachusetts: Closed from March 13 until at least April 1.Pace Gallery, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, Massachusetts:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Queens Museum, New York:Closed from March 13March 20.Rhode Island School of Design Museum:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts:Closed until further notice, beginning March 16.Rubin Museum of Art, New York: Closed from March 13March 31.SculptureCenter, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 12.Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Studio Museum in Harlem, New York: Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.The Drawing Center, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.The Frick Collection, New York: Closed until further notice, beginning March 12.The Shed, New York: Closed March 1230.Van Doren Waxter, New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Connecticut: Closed March 13April 15.Whitney Museum of American Art, New York: Closed, beginning at 5 PM on March 13, for a minimum of fourteen days.)

MIDWEST

Mana Contemporary, Chicago:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Closed March 1231.

SOUTH

BallroomMarfa, Texas: Closed March 1231.Chinati, Marfa, Texas: Closed March 1224.Greater Reston Arts Center, Virginia: Closed March 1316.High Museum, Atlanta:Closed until further notice, beginning March 12.Judd Foundation, Marfa, Texas: Closed for a minimum of four weeks, beginning March 13.Mana Contemporary, Miami:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC: Closed from March14April 4.Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, and New York:Closed until further notice, beginning March 14.The Gallery at University of Texas at Arlington: Closed until March 22.

WEST

Annenberg Space for Photography, Los Angeles: Closed from March 1231.Burke Museum at the University of Washington, Seattle: Closed from March 1231.Contemporary Jewish Museum, San Francisco:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Frye Art Museum, Seattle:Closed from March 1231.The Getty Center and Villa, Los Angeles and Pacific Palisades: Closed until further notice, beginning March 14.Hauser & Wirth, Los Angeles:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13; will receive visitors by appointment only.MoPOP, Seattle:Closed until further notice, beginning March 12.Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles:Closed until further notice, beginning March 13.Oakland Museum of California: Closed from March 1327.Seattle Art Museum and Asian Art Museum: Closedfrom March 1331.The Broad, Los Angeles: Closed from March 1331.Utah Museum of Fine Arts, Salt Lake City: Closed from March 1327.

GLOBAL UPDATES:

Austria - All federal public museums have been closed and will remain shuttered until the end of March. The grand opening of the new Albertina Modernhas also been postponed. As of March 11, the country decided to close schools until April and have implemented border checkstravelers from Italy, the epicenter of the virus in Europe, will not be permitted to enter Austria. On Tuesday, the government banned gatherings of one-hundred people or more.

Canada - As of Wednesday, March 11, Canada reported having just over 100 cases of the coronavirus. The majority of those who tested positive recently traveled to countries with outbreaks. Art Vancouver currently plans to stay on schedule, running April 1619. The contemporary art fair welcomes approximately 10,000 people each year from around the world.

China - While the spread of the coronavirus in China has slowedthe country still has more than 80,000 confirmed casesit is now concerned about the possibility of sparking a new wave of infections from Chinese nationals returning from trips abroad and foreigners traveling to the country. Arts institutions across the mainland remain closed but many have committed their resources to opening online viewing rooms and launching digital exhibitions such as the M Woods Museum in Beijing, which has staged the online showArt Is Still Here: A Hypothetical Show for a Closed Museumcurated by artistic director and chief curator Victor Wang, the show is a long-term visual project that will allow visitors to virtually visit both of its locations over the course of several weeks. According to The Guardian, experts are worried that the state, which has increased mass surveillance in an attempt to contain COVID-19, will not reduce the heightened government scrutiny once the number of cases starts to fall.

Hong Kong -After months of political unrest due to the continuous, large-scale, anti-extradition and pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, the demonstrators were forced to curb their activism following COVID-19s arrival in the region. The virus led to one of the first major cancelations when Art Basel Hong Kong pulled the plug on its 2020 edition. Earlier today, the fair announced the participants in its new Online Viewing Rooms, which will be live from March 20 to March 25. Hong Kongs public museums have been shuttered since January 29, the same week that China was initiating a lockdown in Wuhan; Sothebys has since relocated its modern and contemporary auctions in Hong Kong to New York, they will take place in April.

France -The country, which has the second highest number of cases in Europe after Italy, is preparing for that number to continue to climb. Gatherings of more than 1,000 people have been prohibited. The outbreak, which reached parliament, has also affected French Culture Minister Franck Riester, who tested positive for the virus on Monday, March 9. While fears of the coronavirus shuttered the Louvre for three days, the institution reopened last week after addressing the staffs safety concerns. It is now going cashless and restricting entry to online ticket holders. Other major museums are still welcoming people, but have capped the number of visitors; theParis Philharmonie, the largest classical music venue in France, has cancelled all upcoming events; and the Paris Opera, which suspended a series of ballets and other performances, is intending to continue to operate by filming programming behind closed doors. Madonna also announced that she has called off the last two dates of her Madame X tour. Cannes Film Festival president, Pierre Lescure, said that the festival, which is supposed to take place from May 1223, will go off as planned. We remain reasonably optimistic in the hope that the peak of the epidemic will be reached at the end of March and that we will breathe a little better in April, he told Le Figaro.[Update:] On March 13, the Louvre and the Muse d Orsayclosed their doors to the public until further notice. The announcements followed new restrictions on public gatherings implemented by the Ministry of Culture. As of Friday, all museums and libraries cannot have more than 100 people in attendance. Those who have already purchased tickets to the Louvre will be reimbursed.

Germany -All cultural institutions in Berlinincluding the Berlinische Galerie, the State Museums of Berlin, and the Volksbhnewill shut down on Friday, March 13, and will remain closed until at least April 19. Art Cologne, which was slated to kick off in the third week of April has been pushed back to November. As of Thursday, the cases in Germany have surpassed 2,000. The German culture minister, Monika Grtters, has pledged financial assistance to arts museums and organizations as well as to artists and arts professionals. Its clear to me that the situation is a massive burden for the cultural and creative sectors and that small institutions and freelance artists could face considerable distress, Grtters said in a statement. I wont leave you in the lurch!

Iran -Of all the countries in the Middle East, Iran has been hit the hardest by COVID-19, with over 9,000 confirmed casesa number surpassed only in China. On March 12, the Iranian Minister of Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts, and Tourism, Ali-Asghar Mounesan, ordered that all museums be shut down during the countrys new year Nowruz festivals, which begin on March 20 and last a couple of weeks. Museum hours will be severely restricted before then.

Italy - The country currently has the largest number of cases in all of Europe, with more than 12,000 cases as of Thursday, March 12.The Italian government made an unprecedented decision on Monday, March 9, to restrict the movement of 60 million people. Nearly all commercial activity throughout the country has come to a haltsupermarkets and pharmacies remain openbringing the economy to a near standstill. Major museums and historic sites including the Colosseum, the Vatican Museums, the Galleria Borghese, the Uffizi, the Fondazione Prada, the Pirelli HangarBicocca, the Palazzo Grassi, and the Punta della Doganaare are closed. According to the Washington Post, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said, Right now the whole world is looking at us, telling Italians to leave their homes only when strictly necessary.

Japan -All Japanese museums are closed until March 17. The crisisreached thearchipelagolast month and continues to deepen, with over 600 confirmed infectees.While its business-as-usual for many Tokyo galleries (including Perrotin, whoseJean-Michel Othoniel show willremain on schedule), Blum & Poes Tokyo outpost decided to postpone its Asuka Anastacia Ogawa and Kenny Schachter openings.Masterpieces From the National Gallery atthe National Museum of Western Art has been delayed until further notice. Whetherthe capitalwillstill hostJulys Summer Olympicsa potential boon to the countrys now-devastated economyremains uncertain, but plans have not changed yet.

Netherlands -In a sudden turnabout, organizers of the annual Dutch TEFAF fair in Maastricht announced on March 11 that it would shut down the event, which commenced on March 7 and was expected to run through March 15. The decision arrived after organizers of the faira premier showcase for Old Masters and a pillar of the local economylearned that an exhibitor had tested positive for COVID-19. On March 12, the country called a ban on gatherings of over 100 people, and Amsterdam museums including the Rijmsmuseum National Gallery and Van Gogh Museum decided to close.

South Korea -South Korea is testing more people for COVID-19 per capita than any other country. Although Korea Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (KCDC) reported a decline in the number of new coronavirus infections in recent days, galleries and museums, including the Leeum Samsung Museum of Art, the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, and the National Museum of Korea remain closed until further notice.

Spain - Major museumsincluding the Prado Museum, the Museo Reina Sofia, and the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemiszain Madrid, where the countrys coronavirus is concentrated are closed indefiniately. Other cultural destinations including La Sagrada Familia, the Museu dArt Contemporani de Barcelona, the Picasso Museum, and Fundaci Joan Mir in Barcelona are still open. The citys Park Gell, the Antoni Gauddesigned public park which draws an average of 14,000 visitors a day, is also still open. Contemporary art institutions elsewhere, including Guggenheim Bilbao, are still open and are monitoring the outbreak.

United Arab Emirates -Earlier this month, Art Dubai organizers announced that the international fair would no longer be held on March 2528; new dates havent been decided yet. The fair averages around 28,000 visitors from around the world each year, and will now be downsized to a localized program of yet-to-be-decided talks, shows, and events. Sharjah Art Foundations annual March Meeting will probably not occur in March; organizers said it would reschedule its March 2123 dates. The Louvre Abu Dhabi is still open, despite the Emirates advisory against large crowds. The Middle East currently has over 10,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, most of them in Iran.

United Kingdom -As of March 12, the BBC reports 596 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the UK. However, unlike in many other affected areas across Europe, major institutions, including the National Gallery, the British Museum, the ICA London, and the Tate Museums remain open as usual, until government guidelines advise otherwise.The Art Newspaper reported on Thursday that one member of the Tate Modern staff is in self-quarantine after testing positive for COVID-19. A Tate spokeswoman told the publication that the employee does not work in a front-of-house role and that all areas with which they have come into contact have been deep cleaned. The Photography Show and Video Show in Birmingham, originally slated to run March 14 to March 17, has been postponed until September 2020 (exact dates TBA). At the time of writing, Masterpiece London is slated to go ahead as scheduled from June 25 through July 1.

United States - On Wednesday, March 11, President Donald Trump announced a thirty-day suspension of travel to Europe (with the exception of the UK). The ban, which goes into effect on Friday, March 13, has sent citizens abroad scrambling to book return flights. As of March 12,COVID-19 has sickened more than 1,000 people in the US, and thirty-three people have died. Congress is expected to vote on a sweeping spending aid package on Thursday that will establish a national paid leave program, expand food assistance, and offer free testing for the virus. As of this afternoon, a series of institutions have announced temporary closures, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Shed, the Solomon R. Guggenheim, and the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York; theHarvard Art Museums, the Institute of Contemporary Art, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum,and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and the Frye Art Museum in Seattle.

Combating the Coronavirus at Home:

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the national public health institute of the United States, advises household members to prepare for a coronavirus outbreak in their communities. Among the steps that should be taken are creating a list of nearby aid organizations, making an emergency contact list, inquiring about workplace action plans, preparing for temporary closures of schools or childcare facilities, and educating ones family on preventative measures.

As of now, the CDC states that the best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to the virus, which is spread mainly from person to person, and recommends social distancing. It also urges people to disinfect their homes and to wash their hands with soap and water for at least twenty seconds after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing; before eating; and after visiting a public space. If soap and water is not readily available, hand sanitizer with 60 percent or more alcohol can be used as a substitute. If you are sick, stay home and do not go out unless it is to seek medical care. Since facemasks are currently in short supply, the CDC says that only caregivers and people who are already ill need masks.

To learn more about what preventive measures you can take, you can visit the CDCs website here.

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Coronavirus Art-World Tracker: Canceled and Rescheduled Events - Artforum

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