Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on February 19, 2020

On StageCrowded House A loaded lineup at the Sylvia Center

By Amy Kepferle

Wednesday, February 19, 2020

This coming week, the Sylvia Center for the Arts will fulfill its mission of being a central hub for arts audiences to discover and enjoy a plethora of different entertainment optionsand perhaps even find love.

The fun begins Wed., Feb. 19 when the Jazz Center of Bellingham hosts 21-year-old drummer and composer Xavier Lecouturier and his quintet. The American drummer will bring his French and Mexican heritage to the forefront, while still remaining true to the roots of the jazz tradition. Hell be joined by guitarist Lucas Winter, bassist Abbey Blackwell, saxophonist Santosh Sharma, and vocalist Serena Dominquez for a memorable evening of music. Tickets will be $5-$15 at the door only, so show up early to score a seat.

At 8pm Thurs.-Sat., Feb. 19-22, New York City-based master storyteller and monologist Dennis McSorley will present Typhoon of Tenderness. The one-man show traces a life from brightness and success to despair and darkness, with a sound score by musician Steve Goldberg. Told with humor and deep truth, the story bears witness to the joys, eventual pain and, finally, the possibility of redemption, a recent press release notes. If that sounds intriguing, be aware that tickets are $12-$15, and the show repeats Feb. 27-29.

Come 7:30pm Fri., Feb. 21, join Bard favorites Hamlet, Ophelia, Polonius, Mercutio, Juliet, Iago, Puck, Katherine, Isabella, Rosalind, Helena, Cobweb, Benedict, Brutus, and Cleopatra when Shakespeare Northwest presents Contest of Crowns. The Shakespearean twist on Game of Thrones has entertained audiences in Anacortes, Concrete, and Marysville this month, and the final show in Bellingham should be one to remember. Youll probably want to keep younger kids at home, as the parody is rated PG-13. Tickets are $10.

Itll be a doubleheader at 7:30pm and 9:30pm Sat., Feb. 22 when the penultimate Serial Killers episodes take the stage at the venues Lucas Hicks Theater. iDiOM Theaters annual five-weekend tournament of serial plays began Jan. 31 with multiple teams competing for the audiences favor. Each night of performances, teams have been voted off, with the surviving plays from the first three weeks merging into two groups for the final two weeks. If youve missed a weekor even if you havent been in attendance at alla recap team will bring you up to speed. Cash prizes will be awarded to the top four teams, with the winners taking home a $1,500 haul. Tickets are $7-$12, and the final shows can be attended Sat., Feb. 29.

Finally, the Not-Creepy Gathering for People Who Are Single and Want to Fall in Love will be led by multidisciplinary performing artist Jenna Bean Veatch from 3pm-5pm Sun., Feb. 23. The gatherings provide opportunities for people to meet each other in an environment that is not smarmy and includes face-to-face interactions. These carefully crafted, structured events are quirky and moving, playful and powerful. Entry is $6-$20; please register in advance, and prepare to make connections.

For more details, go to http://www.sylviacenterforthearts.org

Last February, after attending My Circus Valentine with my fella at the Bellingham Circus Guilds Fairhaven-based Cirque Lab, I found myself deeply regretting the years I had missed the high-flying compendium of acts designed to celebrate love in all of its many forms.

As we sat in the

Im not what youd call a stereotypical pro-wrestling fan. Im a theater nerd teacher/physical comedian in my mid-40s and a Jewish woman whose parents discouraged any kind of physical risk from the cradle onward.

Nonetheless, I was getting my Mallard ice cream last summer and I saw a

Damond Morris centered his dissertation on the topic of vaudeville in Oregon state during the Great Depression, so hes thrilled that a Marx Brothers remake of The Cocoanuts is currently playing at Skagit Valley Colleges Phil Tarro Theatre.

As the chair of the drama department at SVC,

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A loaded lineup at the Sylvia Center - Cascadia Weekly

Category: Jewish American Heritage Month | Comments Off on A loaded lineup at the Sylvia Center – Cascadia Weekly
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Posted By admin on February 19, 2020

Our music critics have already chosen the 43 best music shows this week, but now it's our arts & culture critics' turn to recommend the best events in their areas of expertise. Here are their picks in every genrefrom the Seattle Wine & Food Experience to the El-Salomons Comedy Tour, and from a reading with Gish Jen to the Alki Winter Beer & Food Truck Festival. See them all below, and find even more events on our complete EverOut Things To Do calendar.

Jo KoyThe famed comedian brings his set from theJust Kidding tour to the Pacific Northwest. Koy's jokes and observational humor have won him accolades around the world, making him one of the most in-demand stand-up comics working today.

Judah Friedlander: Future President TourGaining national recognition through his role on the already-a-classic show30 Rock, Friedlander's distinctive trucker hat has been joining him on stage since the early 90s. Hes been making challenging and off-putting jokes that may have divided audiences, but they also have ingratiated him to much of the comic elite. NICK ZURKO

Rally in Washington with Bernie Sanders & Rep. Pramila JayapalPresidential candidate Bernie Sanders will be in Washington withRep. Pramila Jayapal, as his campaign continues to surge forward following a big win in the New Hampshire primary.

Author Talk: Vegetable Kingdom with Bryant TerryA January 24 Washington Post article noted that eight percent of African American adults consider themselves vegansthe highest among all demographic groups in the US. (According to a 2016 survey by Pew Research Center, only three percent of Americans overall identify as vegans.) Black vegan eco-chef and food justice activist Bryant Terry is among veganisms strongest advocates and is working on increasing that number one fantastic cookbook at a time, including 2014s Afro-Vegan: Farm-Fresh African, Caribbean, and Southern Flavors Remixed (which Bon Apptit praised as one of the best vegetarian cookbooks of all time; it also helped him earn a James Beard Foundation Leadership Award in 2015). Hes got a new book out, Vegetable Kingdom: The Abundant World of Vegan Recipes, and hell be appearing for a cookbook signing and talk with local chef and instructor Tarik Abdullah. LEILANI POLK

Seattle Cake Con & Dessert ShowcaseFinally, a convention centered on towering frosted confections! But that's not all: Seattle Cake Con will also showcase ice cream, chocolate, macarons, doughnuts, and other sweets. In addition to tasting a plethora of sugary delights, attendees can enter decorating competitions, take in live demonstrations, and chat with experts of various dessert disciplines. JULIANNE BELL

Bon Apptit: The Julia Child ShowStrolling through the Smithsonian Museum one afternoon, I stumbled upon a full replica of Julia Child's kitchen. I walked in because I had recently finished watching some classic episodes ofThe French Chef, including her infamous lobster show. "You have to cut him right here," Child says as she sticks her knife into the lobster's neck, "where all of his brains and hearts and feelings are." Genius. Anyway, in the Smithsonian exhibit, I saw a picture of Child bent over a counter in a small French kitchen. On the placard next to the photo was a quote from the famously tall chef: "When I get my own kitchen, I'm going to build the counters up to my waist. I'm through with this French pygmy bullshit!" If you haven't figured it out yet, Child is one of the greatest and funniest people ever to wield an eight-inch knife. In this light opera, a shade of the chef will crack you up while also making a chocolate cake. A serving of cake is included in the ticket price. RICH SMITH

Noir City 2020Charles Mudede has written, "If you love film noir, then you must love the Noir City festival, which will feature a number of known and less known movies in this genre that has lots of spiderlike women, lots of long knives, lots of rooms with dark curtains, lots of faces of the fallen, and lots of existential twists and turns." All of these will be delivered at the 2020 edition, which will focus on dark crime cinema from outside the US:Victim(on 35mm!) from Britain, The Housemaid from South Korea, and many more.

Grupo CorpoBrazilian dance company Grupo Corpo, known for their extensive international tours, will present two pieces pairing classical ballet with Latin dance: the baroque Bach and the poetry- and religion-tinged Gira.

Our Country's GoodTimberlake Wertenbaker's play, staged here by Strawberry Theatre Workshop, depicts a group of convicts in 18th-century New South Wales who are encouraged by British Navy officers to put on George Farquhar's restoration comedy The Recruiting Officer.In the words ofthe Workshop, the play is especially relevant to the current day, because "The United States incarcerates more people than any country in the world; the US constitutes 4% of the world population, but keeps 22% of the world's prisoners behind bars. Many prison inmates haven't been convicted of anythingthey are jailed awaiting trial or a hearing on their immigration status."

Li'l Woody's Burger MonthAs part of their yearly Burger Month collaboration, Li'l Woody's has assembled a crack lineup of four local chefs to each create their weekly burger specials for February. This week features the Puerto Rican-inspired"Boricua Burger"with two picadillo patties, Sazon, plantain chips, and sauce from chef Eric Rivera ofAddo (Mon) and the"Homersapien"with a lamb patty, chanterelle mushrooms, whipped garlic, zaatar-spiced Tim's potato chips, and date ketchup from chef Logan Cox of Homer (Tues-Sun).

Jite Agbro: DeservingJite Agbro is concerned with what youre wearing. Well, okay, maybe not exactly with what youre wearing right now, but more with how what we wear and how we wear it is an expression of our projected narratives and our authentic selves. JASMYNE KEIMIG Closing Sunday

An Evening With Stormy DanielsAdult film star, writer, director, and Trump-defier Stormy Daniels will flex her talent for comedy.

2020 StarChefs Seattle Rising Stars Tasting Gala & Awards CeremonyStarChefs' Rising Stars Awards recognizes up-and-coming culinary luminaries. This year, the restaurant industry magazine will bring its awards ceremony and gala to Seattle to showcase some of the best chefs working in our city today, with 16 different dishes, 16 wine pairings, and two signature cocktails. Some of the dishes I'm most excited about: squid ink noodles from Melissa Miranda of Musang, pork tacos with habanero salsa and pickled red onions from Ricardo Valdes of El Xolo and Raiz, braised Wagyu short ribs fromMaximillian Petty of Eden Hill, fried and vinegar-marinated smelt fish from Mutsuko Soma of Kamonegi, and scallops with verjus and tomatillo from Amber Manuguid and Aaron Verzosa of Archipelago. Come hungry and ready to plunder an embarrassment of riches. JULIANNE BELL

Author Talk: Simple Fruit with Laurie PfalzerThe debut outing from Laurie Pfalzer (formerly the pastry chef at Salish Lodge and Spa, currently an educator at PCC Markets) beckoned strongly with its cover of grilled apricots. (I have a sweet tooth that has no bounds.) Simple Fruit: Seasonal Recipes for Baking, Poaching, Sauting, and Roasting focuses on knowing when to enjoy fruit at its peak flavor, and is conveniently organized seasonally, which also serves as a way of knowing whats in season in the Pacific Northwest at any given month of the year: rhubarb and strawberries in the spring; cherries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, marionberries, apricots, peaches, and nectarines in the summer; plums, apples, and pears in in autumn; and cranberries, select citrus, and dried fruits in the winter. Paired with Charity Burggraafs vibrant, beautifully composed photos of the fruits that almost jump off the page and beg to be eaten, Simple Fruit is a fine addition to any PNW-geared cookbook library. LEILANI POLK

Raphal Liogier: Heart of MalenessInRaphal Liogier's Heart of Maleness, the French sociologist contends that the archetypal Prince Charming shares a disturbing number of traits with sexual predators who have made #MeToo headlines in recent years. Join him as he unpacks "the deep-seated fantasy of male dominance."

The ChildrenIn this Tony Award-nominated play by Lucy Kirkwood, two retired nuclear scientists on the coast of an environmentally devastated England receive a disruptive visit from an old friend.

Disney's 'Frozen'Ive written in the past that I have a warm spot in my heart forFrozen,Disney's second-highest-grossing animated film, about a princess who sets out on a quest (with a group of helpful sidekicks, of course) to find her estranged older sister after said sister's icy magical powers accidentally bring eternal winter to their kingdom. Now the Tony-nominated Broadway show from Disney Theatrical Productions, directed by Michael Grandage, is coming to Seattle for an engagement that promises "sensational special effects, stunning sets and costumes, and powerhouse performances." Expect all those earwormy songs (including the relentlessly triumphant, hard-not-to-sing-along-and-make-dramatic-hand-gestures-to Let It Go), plus an expanded score that features a dozen new numbers by the films songwriters,Kristen Anderson-Lopezand EGOT winnerRobert Lopez. LEILANI POLK

She Loves MeYou know the story: two people who hate each other in real life are unwittingly in love with each other in a different realm. It's based on the same 1937 play,Parfumerie, that Nora Ephron'sYou've Got Mailwas based on. InShe Loves Me, which is set in the 1930s, the romantic leads are Amalia Balash (Allison Standley) and Georg Nowack (Eric Ankrim). They spar in the perfume shop where they both work and while corresponding anonymously as pen pals connected through a Lonely Hearts Club. No one is as happy as they seem inShe Loves Meand everyone seems to be hiding something. Maybe love could fix all this. Through the constant hum of music that serves as the heartbeat toShe Loves Me, each character gets a breath of individuality. There are no showstoppers here. Some of the characters shine, and others fade into the background, all while telling us what they yearn for, or what they think they yearn for. Mostly, that's love. NATHALIE GRAHAM

Azure Savage: You Failed UsA series of recent studies have shown that Seattle Public Schools have one of the worst achievement gaps between black and white students in the country, and Washington State is dead last in trying to do something about it. But cold numbers dont often do much to spur action. Thats where Azure Savages new self-published oral historyYou Failed Uscomes in. Savage, a student at Garfield High School, interviewed 40 students of color about their experiences in Seattle's schools. The book includes those interviews, plus Savages own reflection on the way our public schools handle race and gender in the classroom. RICH SMITH

EJ Koh: The Magical Language of OthersWhen EJ Koh was15 years old, she and her brother were left in the United States when Koh's father took a job in South Korea and her mom went with him. The parents moved Koh and her 19-year old brother into a small house in Davis, California, where they more or less raised each other.Though her parents were physically absent, her mother asserted her presence in the form of two-page letters, which she sent to Koh every week.The letters are the heartbeat of Koh's memoirThe Magical Language of Others, pulsing between chapters that reveal other details of Koh's life. Like any good poet, Koh uses up everythingevery image returns, and every idea chimes with another, so that the book's short 200 pages contain the emotional and philosophical heft of a doorstop. RICH SMITH

History Cafe: What Bus Lines Tell Us About SeattleIn "Fecal and Philosophical Matters," one of the many poignant pieces inThe Lines That Make Us: Stories from Nathan's Bus, a collection of photos and essays chronicling Vass's 12 years driving the night shift on the 7/49 bus route, Vass tells the tale of a panhandler in a wheelchair who got hit by a bag of shit tossed from the window of a BMW. When Vass pulled his bus up to the stop on Eastlake and Harvard, the panhandler asked if he could catch a ride to the Urban Rest Stop downtown to get cleaned up. Vass obliged and wheeled him onto the bus himself. The thankful passenger wept with shame and gratitude, telling Vass that four other drivers had turned him away. But Vass is just the kind of guy who will take that risk to help the powerless every time. Vass has hundreds of stories just like that one. RICH SMITH

Thom Hartmann: The Hidden War on VotingThom Hartmann, billed as "the most popular progressive radio host in America," will take on an urgent matter that may decide the future of the United States: low voter turnout. According to Hartmann, conservatives have employed voter suppression as a tool to keep poor people, people of color, and women from having a political say, keeping power concentrated among wealthy whites. Hartmann will lay out the sobering facts and suggest ways to fight back.

The Angel in the HouseDuring the Victorian era, Coventry Patmore wrote a poem describing the ideal wife as an "angel in the house" who lives to please her man, as it were. Nobody liked the poem at the time, but it became popular around the turn of the century, and its ideology was pervasive enough to spur Virginia Woolf to write a whole essay collection critiquing it. "Killing the Angel in the House was part of the occupation of a woman writer," she wrote. Quadruple-threat Sara Porkalob, who has built her career on a biographical trilogy about her cool family, said her love of Victorian-era literature and her passionate agreement with Woolf's takedown inspired her riff on this cursed character. Like her Dragon Cycle, The Angel in the House will serve as the first installment of a new play cycle based on "magic, the occult, revenge, blood, and sacrifice." Unlike the Dragon Cycle, the show is a thriller that looks like a murder mystery at first but ends up being something else entirely. Major reasons to be excited include local stars Ray Tagavilla and Ayo Tushinde, plus the joy of watching a writer/director exploring completely new territory. RICH SMITH

PeacockAn ambitious young man in 1920s Paris works his way up in a ritzy nightclub in Can Can's latest kitschy-glam, flesh-baring, plot-driven revue.

The Turn of the ScrewBook-It will adapt Henry James's chilling and ambiguous Victorian ghost novel about a naive governess who discovers what she perceives as evil supernatural influences trying to possess her two charges. Carol Roscoe will direct an adaptation by Rachel Atkins.

The El-Salomons Comedy TourBucking decades of Palestinian-Jewish conflict, comedians Eman El-Husseini and Jess Salomon have achieved a peaceful accord onstage and off. Their brilliant comedy duo, the El-Salomons, revolves around the women's marriage and the cultural and religious differences that mark their respective ethnicities.The fact that they're lesbians and El-Husseini is Muslim adds yet more layers of rebelliousness to their act. Theirs is such an unlikely scenario, it almost seems as if they got hitched in order to mine such a union's potential mother lode of humor. But no. Spoiler alert: They married for love. The El-Salomons comedy machine is running smoothly, with stand-up tours, television appearances, a comedy special out soon on Canadian streaming service Crave, and Instagram cartoons drawn by Jesse Brown that illustrate their pithily witty domestic situations. They hope to land an animated series or sitcom based on their relationship. "But our real larger motivation, obviously," Salomon says, "is a free Palestine." DAVE SEGAL

A.S. Hamrah: The Earth Dies StreamingPolitically minded film critic A.S. Hamrah (The Nation calls him "the sharp-tongued, rain-lashed drifter of American movie criticism") will come to Seattle with his new book,The Earth Dies Streaming, which features some of his best reviews.

Daniel Lavery (Ortberg): Something That May Shock and Discredit YouSlate's Dear Prudence advice columnist and founder of the uproariously funny website The Toast,Daniel Laveryis out with a new collection of essays bearing the slightly beguiling titleSomething That May Shock and Discredit You. Some of the chapters in this quasi-memoir lean more into the literary spoof territory he charted in Texts from Jayne Eyre, but the major theme of the book concerns the many turns of his transition narrative. Though Lavery only learned he was a trans man in his early 30s, he cites biblical stories and popular television shows as texts that offered a way to understand ideas about gender and transformation. It's hard to describe Lavery's discursiveness and wit and range in a single capsule blurb, so I'll just leave you with two essay titles that give you a sense of his energy: "Chapter Titles from the On The Nose, Po-Faced Transmasculine Memoir I Am Trying Not To Write" and "The Opposite of Baptism." RICH SMITH

Gish Jen: Politics & PossibilityFor the first time in her writing career, Jen is writing not about the country's past or present but rather about its near future, a pretty plausible dystopian place called AutoAmerica. In this country, a brutal immigration policy has booted all immigrants and runaway automation has wiped out most of the workforce, splitting citizens into two groups. The Surplus, who are mostly brown and non-Christian and live on houseboats (thanks, climate change) under heavy surveillance, while the Netted enjoy good jobs on dry land. At the center of the story is a family who is fighting to save some semblance of the American dream. Grant, a former teacher, and Eleanor, a former lawyer and activist, have a kid named Gwen, who was born with a golden arm. As the family works to support Gwen's future, they face a hostile government looking to capitalize on their kid's talentsand not necessarily for the good.At her Hugo House lecture, Jen will argue, in part, that fiction allows us to imagine our future with more emotional clarity than other genres. RICH SMITH

Ann Dornfeld: Investigating Public EducationIn this talk, KUOW reporter Ann Dornfeld will investigate public education.

Nick Buccola: Baldwin, Buckley, and the Debate Over Race in AmericaIn 1965, civil rights icon James Baldwin debated on live TV with conservative criticWilliam F. Buckley Jr.to discuss who pays for the so-called American dream (hint: people of color) and who benefits from it (hint: white people). Tonight, political scientist Nicholas Buccola will read from his bookThe Fire Is Upon Us, which recounts the full story of the debate.

Seattle Wine and Food ExperienceThis annual extravaganza of all things edible and drinkable is an ode to gluttony in three parts. First up isComfort, a festival of feel-good foods and crafty brews, complete with bars for french fries, Bloody Marys, and cozy cocktails. Next,POP! Bubbles and Seafoodcapitalizes on the felicitous pairing of bubbles and bivalves with more than 30 sparkling wines from around the world and seafood-driven bites from 20 Seattle chefs. Finally, theGrand Tastingwill showcase local and regional wines, beer, cider, spirits, and tastes from big-name Seattle chefs, with plenty of opportunities to watch demonstrations and meet artisan food producers. JULIANNE BELL

The Actors' Gang: The New ColossusTwelve actors of diverse origins and heritage will tell the stories of their ancestors in this tribute to the strength and courage of refugees. This touring production is directed by Tim Robbins and performed by the Actors Gang, a justice-oriented Los Angeles troupe founded in 1981.

Mike BaldwinComedianMike Baldwinmight act like he was routinely dropped on his head as a child (and again as an adult)in fact, he cultivates that impression with his Southern drawl, dopey grin, wide eyes, andrelatively mild, profanity-free material. But it only takes a few minutes of watching Baldwin explain in his gentle, hopeful voice that winter is the best season because cops can't pull you over for driving drunk in the snow"It's just one big giant lane!" he enthusesand his genius is apparent. His delivery is soft and relentless, andhis jokes are both unexpected and so very obvious, which is why he appeals equally to young, rowdy drunks and older, more conservative crowds. It also helped earn him the crown ofFunniest Dudeat [November 2011]'s Seattle International Comedy Competition(among his passel of other nationwide comedy competition accolades). If you missed seeing Baldwin on his last tour through town, seriously: Don't miss him this time. CIENNA MADRID

Seattle Asian American Film Festival 2020Films by and about Asian Americans are showcased at this annual festival, which always includes diverse features and short films about the rich and varied experiences of these populations, particularly in Seattle and the Northwest.

Solo: A Festival of DanceI love solos. They hold the attention of a room like nothing else in the world of performance. They're like the cat in that old theater rule about never allowing cats onstage because it's all the audience will look at. That's because the cat, like the solo dancer, is completely unpredictable. Two dancers, even in an improv show, project a sort of ordered world. In a solo, anything can happen. If this iteration is the same as On the Boards' inaugural edition in 2018, expect a good mix of local and national dancers showcasing incredible choreography they'd have a hard time producing anywhere elsenot because it's bad, but because venues rarely afford solo pieces big stages. RICH SMITH

Through the Eyes of Art: A Salute to Black ComedyIn this entertaining annual Black History Month tribute to black excellence, community members, political leaders, artists, and others will explore the rich incarnations of black comedy and its role in raising awareness of social issues.

Chana Porter: The SeepIn Chana Porter's novel The Sheep, a 50-year-old trans woman witnesses an alien invasion that replaces capitalism and traditional hierarchies with the freedom of infinite possibility, which prompts our leading lady to consider the possibility of restarting her life from infancy. Join the author for a reading.

Caitlin PeluffoHaving opened for the likes ofMaria Bamford, Gilbert Gottfried, Gary Gulman, and Colin Quinn, Brooklyn-based comic Caitlin Peluffo will come to Seattle with stories of tasteful nudes and other adventures.

Seattle International Dance Festival Winter Mini-festOnce again, theKhambatta Dance Company will team up with international choreographers and dance troupes to produce two weekends of exciting performances. This year, director Cyrus Khambatta andJaewoo JungandKyoung-Shin Kim from South Korea'sUnplugged Bodies company will dance new and established pieces, with a different lineup each weekend. On Friday and Saturday,Unplugged Bodies' duetTwo Bodieswill be paired with Khambatta Dance Company'sCrowd Control, which draws on the theme of protest movements around the world. The following weekend, KDC will reveal its reworkedBegin. Again.from the previous festival, andJaewoo Jung will dance his solo pieceUninhabited Island.

Ghostfish Brewing 5th Anniversary Weekend CelebrationGhostfish Brewing Company will stretch its fifth birthday into a weekend of festivities. Come through on Friday for the release of their5th Anniversary Doppelbock, come back on Saturday for special menu items and the release of abarrel-aged tart Saison, and, if you end up boozing too hard, roll in on Sunday for a hangover brunch.

1984On the subject of George Orwells literary masterpiece, I stand with Kristen Stewart, who was unfairly maligned for calling the book, alove storyofepic,epic,epicproportion. Though I, too, take issue with all three deployments of the word epic in this context, Stewart is absolutely correct in her analysis. Sure, the book has retained its currency long after its titular date, but, for me, the intensity of its love story and the richness of its description of human sensation has always outshined the prescience of its politics. Radial Theater Project, the local troupe producing Tim Robbins's theatrical adaptation of the story, is well positioned to highlight those qualities with a fantastic cast in the cozy theater at 18th and Union. RICH SMITH

The Disabled ListSeattle poets, comedians, storytellers, and other performerswith disabilities (including Kayla Brown, Dan Hurwitz, and Gibran Saleem) will show off their talents.

The Art in Horror: Horror and the Director"Prestige horror" isn't new; great directors have worked in the genre since the existence of the motion picture. Esteemed local critic Robert Horton will head this screening series of horror masterpieces, like this week's screening of Carl Theodor Dreyer's 1932 film Vampyr. Discover or revisit these classics and discuss them with your fellow movie nerds.

Alki Winter Beer & Food Truck FestivalAs Special Olympics Washington attempts their annual Polar Plunge into the punishingly icy waters of Puget Sound, the Mobile Food Rodeo will provide warming sustenance for plungers and onlookers alike with plenty of food trucks, plus over 20 beers on tap.

Seattle Thorrablt 2020The mid-winter Icelandic festivalorrablt is filled with traditional food (like fermented shark meat), Brennivin schnapps, and music (provided here by Icelandic band Sour Balls).

Glory Hole 2D: A Drag/Art ShowDespite the racy title, this artsy drag showfeaturing performance art and queer frolicking by One, Stasia Coup, Angel Baby Killkilllkill, Bitch Hazel, and Cesareis open to an all-ages audience. Prepare your mind for some out-of-left-field antics.

Ben Moon: DenaliIf you loved Ben Moon's short film Denali, which went viral in 2015 and was reviewed everywhere fromOprah Winfrey'sSuper Soul Sunday toBuzzfeedtoThe Daily Beast, you'll be glad to know that its creator, Ben Moon, has turned it into a book. Join the author for some heartfelt passages about his bond with his most loyal companion, his dog.

Frye Art Museum Community DayArt enthusiasts of all ages are invited to explore the galleries, make art, learn fascinating facts on art tours, watch a movie from SIFF education, and hear music by Magic Key featuring Mike Fox and Seattle University violinists.

WISH_U_WERE_HEREThe Magazine of Glamorous Refusal, which celebrates the power of saying no, is launching its second issue with a one-night art expo featuringpayphone booths, analog video projections by Crackpot Collective, and more fun stuff.

Charlie Parker's 'Yardbird'Jazz icon Charlie Parker gets the operatic treatment in this Seattle Opera production ofDaniel Schnyder'sYardbird, a journey through limbo by Parker, who struggles to complete his last masterpiece amidst a series of flashbacks that showcases the glorious heyday of iconic NYC jazz club Birdland, as well as the failures and victories of Parker's dynamic life.

Snow WhiteTwo actors will portray Snow White, the evil queen, seven dwarfs, the talking mirror, and the huntsman in this ambitious children's theater production written by Greg Banks and directed by Desdemona Chiang.

Seattle Black Film Festival 2020 (Bainbridge Island)I have yet to attend a Langston Hughes African American Film Festival [ed. note: the name has changed this year] that doesnt have an important black-directed or black-themed film thats somehow been missed by the wider film community or is unavailable in any formatweb, disk, cable, theater. CHARLES MUDEDE

Fourth Annual Dumpling FestMy number-one craving in these cold winter months is dumplings in any and all of theirforms, whether theyre xiao long bao or potato pierogi slathered in sour cream. So its withparticular delight that I recommend this cross-cultural celebration of pillowy pockets ofgoodness. Tom Douglas will assemble peddlers of doughy delicacies of every persuasionfrom potstickers to pelmeniin one room, so that you can drift from station to station,stuffing their wares into your face. JULIANNE BELL

Machine House Bake Off 2020Can't get enoughGreat British Bake-Off? At Machine House's "mildly competitive" monthly potluck series, watch contestants vie to turn out the best cakes, pies, breads, and loaves, judged by votes from other participants and patrons and guest "celebrity judges." Competitors can win bonus points for including Machine House brews in their bakes, and the baker with the most tokens at the end of the six months will be crowned the victor and win a $100 gift card, trophy, and custom bake-off champion apron. This week's theme is layer cakes.

Wagyu FeastWagyu beer will star in dishes like beef heart tartare, oxtail soup, and broquet in this four-course dinner at the upscale Italian restaurant.

12 Minutes Max at BaseThis show features 12 minutes("surprisingly quick or unfortunately long"Rich Smith) of brand-new work from Pacific Northwest performers, who this time were chosen by curatorsMario Martinez and Kathy Moore. This edition will feature such diverse acts as Melissa Sanderson"Letting Go is an Acquired Taste," based on her "recent personal history as an object of study"; Ben Gale-Schreck's feedback-loop-based "Balloonacentipede"; Sebastian Arredondo's dance "Ceremonia del Flor"; and more. Stay on after the Sunday performance for a party.

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The 57 Best Things To Do in Seattle This Week: February 17-23, 2020 - TheStranger.com

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Posted By admin on February 17, 2020

MARYLAND In 2019, there were 53 incidents of extremism and anti-Semitism in Maryland, according to the Anti-Defamation League. The figure for 2019 decreased from the 74 incidents reported in our state during 2018.

The occurrences in Maryland were among the 4,015 examples of extremist and anti-Semitic incidents that happened nationwide in 2019. The figure reported for 2019 is up almost 32 percent from the 3,052 incidents reported in 2018, according to the ADL.

Here is a sampling of the incidents in Maryland that the non-governmental organization included in its registry:

Anti-Semitic Incident - Vandalism: November 2019

Anti-Semitic Incident - Harassment: July 22, 2019

Anti-Semitic Incident - Harassment; White Supremacist Propaganda: July 22, 2019

Anti-Semitic Incident - Harassment; White Supremacist Propaganda: March 3, 2019

Anti-Semitic Incident - Harassment: May 2019

Related:

The Anti-Defamation League tracks the incidents through news and media reports, government documents (including police reports), victim reports, extremist-related sources and the Center on Extremism investigations, according to a "Frequently Asked Questions" section on the ADL's website.

The Anti-Defamation League's interactive map includes information on incidents involving anti-Semitism, white supremacist propaganda, white supremacist events, extremist-police shootouts, terrorist plots and attacks and extremist murders.

Along with providing the first-of-its-kind interactive and customizable map detailing extremist and anti-Semitic incidents around the nation, the ADL also provides information on the annual quantity of white supremacist propaganda that gets spread throughout the country.

The Anti-Defamation League's Center on Extremism reported 2,713 cases of circulated propaganda by white supremacist groups in 2019, compared with 1,214 cases in 2018.

Oren Segal, director of the League's Center on Extremism, pointed to the prominence of more subtly biased rhetoric in some white supremacist material, emphasizing "patriotism."

By emphasizing language "about empowerment, without some of the blatant racism and hatred," Segal told the Associated Press, white supremacists are using a "tactic to try to get eyes onto their ideas in a way that's cheap, and that brings it to a new generation of people who are learning how to even make sense out of these messages."

The Anti-Defamation League, which was founded in 1913 to combat anti-Semitism as well as other biases, describes its mission as "to stop the defamation of the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment to all."

You can find the complete interactive map on the ADL's website.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Extremism, Anti-Semitism In Maryland: 53 Incidents In 2019 - Annapolis, MD Patch

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White supremacists have also become more active on college campuses, according to the report, which called that trend "alarming."

Reports of white supremacist flyers, posters and other propaganda more than tripled in New Jersey last year, putting the Garden State near the forefront of a troubling national surge, the Anti-Defamation League said.

The ADL's Center on Extremism documented 143 reported cases of supremacist material in New Jersey in 2019, up from 41 the year before.

It was the third straight steep increase in New Jersey, which ranked fifth-highest among states in the U.S. for such incidents. Nationwide, distribution of supremacist literature more than doubled, the group said.

"The barrage of propaganda, which overwhelmingly features veiled white supremacist language with a 'patriotic' slant, is an attempt to normalize the white supremacists' message and bolster recruitment efforts," said Oren Segal, the ADL's vice president for the Center on Extremism.

The materials typically targeted minority groups including Jews, African Americans, Muslims, non-white immigrants and the LGBTQ community, he said. Among their messages: Immigrants must be deported, diversity is bad for America and the Holocaust "didn't happen but should have."

White supremacists have strengthened propaganda efforts across the nation, with the highest number of incidents reported 2,713 since the ADL began tracking the distribution of such materials three years ago.

White supremacists have also become more active on college campuses, according to the report, which called that trend "alarming." The groups targeted 433 college campuses in 43 states with the propaganda last year, including eight campuses in New Jersey, the report said. The materials often aim to direct students to social media, the ADL said.

While dozens of white supremacist groups distributed information last year, three were responsible for about 90% of activity in New Jersey and beyond, the ADL said: the Texas-based Patriot Front, the American Identity Movement and the New Jersey European Heritage Association.

Efforts to reach the European Heritage Association through its website were unsuccessful on Wednesday. The group's message, according to the site: "The White European peoples in America and abroad are racing towards the cliff of extinction," facing low birth rates and "a tide of third world immigration."

"The future of our world is a dark one, literally and figuratively," says the site. It also says the association is opposed to violence and seeks "peaceful political change through the education of the masses."

Increased awareness may partially explain the increase in incidents, the ADL said in a statement Wednesday. But extremists also are "more emboldened by the current environment," said Evan Bernstein, the ADL's Northeast Division vice president, "and flyering and stickering provides an easy and anonymous way to spread their hateful message to a large audience."

He urged New Jersey residents to push back.

University leaders should speak out against the white supremacist messages and reject messages of hate that spring up on their campus, said the ADL's Segal.

He pointed to the prominence of more subtly biased rhetoric in some of the white supremacist material, emphasizing patriotism, as a sign that the groups are attempting to make their hate more palatable for a 2020 audience.

By emphasizing language about empowerment, without some of the blatant racism and hatred, Segal said, white supremacists are employing a tactic to try to get eyes onto their ideas in a way thats cheap, and that brings it to a new generation of people who are learning how to even make sense out of these messages.

The propaganda incidents tracked for the report encompassed 49 states and occurred most often in 10 states: California, Texas, New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Ohio, Virginia, Kentucky, Washington and Florida. Only Hawaii had no reports.

This article contains material from The Associated Press.

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A few weeks ago, Joseph Gluck made headlines as the hero who stopped a horrifying antisemitic attack that targeted a Hanukkah party in Monsey, New York. Gluck threw a table at the attacker as he was stabbing multiple people at Rabbi Chaim Rottenbergs home-synagogue, known as Rabbi Rottenbergs Shul. He also managed to write down the numbers of the attackers license plate, allowing the police to identify the suspect.Five people were stabbed in the attack, one critically, and the event become a moment that seem to be able to bring together Jews from all across the spectrum, reunited in the solidarity with the victims and in denouncing the rampant antisemitism that in the past two years has grown exponentially in the United States.

For many, the spotlight on the ultra-orthodox community that followed the attack was also an opportunity to denounce how antisemitic attacks at a lower intensity such as insults on the street had too often targeted ultra-Orthodox Jews, who are very easily identifiable, without an adequate response.

However, a gesture that might have been considered the result of this general solidarity, a $20,000 prize granted to Gluck for his heroism by the Jewish Federation of Rockland County and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), ended up in controversy after he decided to turn it down in light of the Zionist values embodied by the organizations.

I was not willing to offer my soul for $20,000," Gluck told News 12 Brooklyn last week. "My identity for $20,000 was not for sale.

His decision should not come as a surprise.

Rabbi Rottenberg and his followers belong to the Kosov Hassidim, a group that originated in Hungary, moved to America between the Wars and shares its origin with the far-larger and better known Vishnitz Hassidim.

Hassidism refers to a Jewish movement that was originated by the teachings of Rabbi Yisrael Ba'al Shem Tov in the 18th century. Over the generations, the followers of the movement split into communities led by different spiritual leaders, known as rebbes. Today, traditional hassidic groups and their followers live an ultra-Orthodox lifestyle, while ultra-Orthodox Jews who do not follow hassidic teachings are usually called Litvaks or Lithuanians, from the country where the counter-movement to hassidism spread.

The Kosov is a very small group. When it comes to Zionism, they follow a mainstream hassidic position they are not pro, but they are not especially anti as other communities. However, I think this episode sheds light on the status of hassidic communities in America at large, Rabbi Levi Cooper who teaches hassidism at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem and has written his doctoral dissertation on the interaction between hassidism and halacha, told The Jerusalem Post.

The biggest and most influential [hassidic sect] in America is Satmar, and they are very anti-Zionist, often setting the tone for the others, he added.

For example, the Vishnitz community in Israel takes money from the state and is involved, but the Vishnitz in Monsey identify more as anti-Zionist.

The ultra-Orthodox anti-Zionist attitude depends on the fact that for these communities, Jews are supposed to be brought back to Israel by God at the time of redemption. Moreover, Israel should be a state fully governed by halacha.

However, as Samuel Heilman, a professor of Sociology at Queens College of the City University of New York and an expert on contemporary Orthodox movements, told the Post, even in America the anti-Zionism attitude might have to do more with the optics than with the reality.

In the ultra-Orthodox world, political Zionism is problematic, explained Heilman. We also have to keep in mind that this is a community where the pressure to conform is extremely high.

According to Heilman, the public nature of Monsey attack and what followed is a key to understand also Glucks decision to turn down the prize.

The hassidic communities here receive funds from federal and local institutions, and many of its members work, so they are wealthier than in Israel. But they do also accept money from Jewish federations and similar Jewish institutions connected to Israel they just do it quietly, he added.

Within the spectrum of hassidic communities, including in the US, there are different nuances.

The most notable exception is represented by the most well-known hassidic group in the world: Chabad-Lubavitch, who fully cooperate with the State of Israel and its institutions, even though Heilman notes that at the core of its ideology, Chabad also presents an anti-Zionist position, very evident in all the Rebbes teachings.

As the line between Modern and ultra-Orthodox becomes more pronounced, another kind of movement has developed, the so called hardali from the merging of the Hebrew word haredi and dati leumi, national-religious who are ultra-Orthodox in lifestyle but Zionist in ideology.

Moreover, it is important not to forget that in Israel, the vast majority of ultra-Orthodox groups have reached some form of acknowledgment, if not cooperation, with the state, in some cases even as members of Knesset or ministers sitting in coalition with Zionist parties, such as the case of Health Minister Ya'acov Litzman, a member of the Gerrer Hassidim.

After turning down the prize from the Federation and the ADL, Gluck still received an equivalent sum raised by his community at an event to honor him in Williamsburg last Thursday according to Yeshiva World.

The report added that Rabbi Dovid Feldman, a man known for his ferocious anti-Zionism, which has brought him to meet with figures such as former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, also attended the event.

According to JTA, he gave a statement to News 12 saying that the ADL and Jewish Federation were about to issue a statement to encourage and promote the Zionist idea of Jewish self-defense, of fighting back, of fighting our enemies, which happens to be contrary to our tradition.

With the rising of antisemitism in America and in most of the Western World, fighting back like Gluck did when he chased out the perpetrator of the attack in Monsey may instead become more and more of a necessity, not only physically or with weapons but also with a higher level of solidarity and support across the political and religious divides in the Jewish community. The spirit of cohesion that was raised after Monsey should not be lost.

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Displays and demonstrations in support of white supremacy doubled in the United States last year, according to a new study, and Texas led the country in incidents.

In 2019, there were just over 2,700 instances nationally in which white supremacists demonstrated or distributed material that was racist, anti-Semitic or anti-LGBTQ, according to the Anti-Defamation League's report.That's more than a six-fold increase since 2017.

The ADL, a nongovernmental organization that monitors hate speech, says two-thirds of those incidents involved the Texas-based group known as Patriot Front, which formed out of a group that helped organize theUnite the Rightrally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017.

Renee Lafair with ADL in Austin says that because of the group, Texas is atop the list of states when it comes to incidents of racist propaganda, with 228 incidents in 2019.

"Patriot Front is the reason that Texas has the highest activity for any state in 2019," she said.

Despite that activity, she says the group's recruitment and its overall influence are inflated. There are just a few dozen members in Texas and a few hundred nationally, and outside of their attempts to propagandize racism, their communications are largely limited to online chat services like Discord.

The study's authors say hate groups are continuing propaganda campaigns on college campuses.

There were 630 documented instances of that last year. Lafair says the campaigns present a challenge for universities, which must walk a fine line in protecting people's right to free speech, while trying to combat hate speech.

"The approaches we've seen on campuses that have been effective have been when administration says, you know, you have a First Amendment right to do what you want," she said, "but understand that that is not a part of our culture that we're building at this campus and that everyone is welcome here and this is an inclusive campus."

UT Austin and Texas State have both seen a handful of incidents involving neo-Nazis and white nationalists over the last year, but overall the report says white nationalists have "failed to gain a foothold" on campuses.

Got a tip? Email Andrew Weber at aweber@kut.org. Follow him on Twitter @England_Weber.

If you found the reporting above valuable, please consider making a donation to support it. Your gift pays for everything you find on KUT.org. Thanks for donating today.

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Report Finds Texas Led The Nation In White Supremacy Propaganda Incidents In 2019 - KUT

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It is an undeniable fact that antisemitism is rising around the world. Again.Earlier this week, it was reported that antisemitic attacks in Britain rose by 27% from 2018 to 2019. Antisemitic vandalism rose by 11%.An Anti-Defamation League survey of 9,000 adults in 18 countries showed that one in four people have strongly negative opinions of Jews. These people admitted to believing that Jews were responsible for war, disease and other troubles.France has a large Jewish population, and is home to the most Jews outside of Israel and the United States. France saw a 74% rise in antisemitic incidents in 2018 from 2017, according to French officials.Here in the United States, from 2013 to 2018, there was a 150% increase in antisemitic incidents.These incidents range from people hurling antisemitic insults to hurling bricks, people polluting Jewish prayer spaces with swastikas to polluting Jewish prayer spaces with bullets and knives.Many historians agree that antisemitism is reaching levels globally not seen since the Holocaust.But I am heartened to see the Jewish community, our neighbors, standing tall despite this hatred. Despite the attacks, vandalism and terrorist actions, the Jewish community is still celebrating its faith.Last week, more than 25,000 Jews journeyed to Newark, New Jersey, for a celebration of Jewish study. Dirshu, the largest Jewish education organization in the world, hosted three events concurrently, celebrating the culmination of the Daf Yomi (daily page) Talmudic cycle of study.Already, Dirshu had held 10 such celebrations in Israel, England, France and more. Thanks to Dirshu and its leadership under Rabbi Dovid Hofstedter, Jews around the world gathered to celebrate their pride and Judaism.These events featured song, dance, keynote speakers and fellowship. Jews around the world proclaimed that they will not be silenced by hatred and will not change their way of life. I admire this greatly and stand with them. I especially wish to make special mention of Rabbi Dovid Hofstedter, whom I greatly admire and respect. It is thanks to Rabbi Hofstedter and his vision some many years ago that out of the darkness and ashes of the Holocaust, the largest Torah organization in the world was conceived.The celebration this past week in New Jersey was so large that it had to be expanded to three venues: the Prudential Center, the New Jersey Performing Arts Center and Newark Symphony Hall. Despite recent acts of hatred meant to sow more hatred and fear, tickets sold out in record numbers, prompting the need for securing two additional venues.THE NORTHEASTERN area of the United States, which is home to the nations greatest percentage of Jews, has also recently been rocked by several antisemitic incidents. In early December, a gunman killed four people in a kosher grocery store in Jersey City. During the final days of Hanukkah, a man entered a rabbis home in Monsey, New York, and stabbed several celebrants. New York City has seen a marked increase in antisemitic incidents, from vandalized Jewish cemeteries to Jews being randomly assaulted on the streets.Nevertheless, my Jewish neighbors are not hiding, though some people have advised them to do so. They are remaining proud and open, showing that they will not allow fear to alter them, their beliefs or their actions.This message is well in line with Dirshus message as well. Through Dirshu, hundreds of thousands of Jewish men around the world study Jewish scripture and teachings. This in turn makes them more connected to the community, to God and to their families.I first became aware of Dirshu a few years ago through its outreach arms Day of Jewish Unity. Each year, Dirshus outreach arm, Acheinu, organizes the Day of Jewish Unity to encourage people globally Jewish and otherwise to come together and pray for peace.Additionally, all participants are asked to refrain from gossip and to really consider the impact their words can have on the world, all in line with the teachings of a rabbi named Chofetz Chaim (desires life).The Day of Jewish Unity is about peace, kindness and civility. It is a reminder that hatred can never make the world better, and that civility, even in the face of disagreement, is a virtue.As someone who has been involved in politics and heavily criticized by both sides of the aisle, I know how powerful words are. I appreciate the Day of Jewish Unitys message of civility, both because it is a message I deeply want conveyed to my detractors, and because it is a message that I myself sometimes have a difficult time embodying.Dirshu teaches that regardless of the struggles you endure, the cruelty you face or the doubts you experience you must fight to keep your integrity. Your moral compass should always point north, even when the compasses of those around you point elsewhere. Plaudits are due to Rabbi Hofstedter for his vision, continued leadership and commitment to spreading the light of Judaism around the world.The writer is an American financier and entrepreneur who served as White House director of communications.

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Promoting Jewish learning is the greatest revenge against our enemies - The Jerusalem Post

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A photograph of a group of Riverside teenagers posing with a Nazi symbol in front of a Confederate flag that began circulating on social media last week has prompted backlash from students and parents.

The photo shows eight Martin Luther King High School students some smiling with a Confederate flag and a Trump 2020 banner. One of the students is holding a representation of a swastika. Another is flashing a hand gesture tha white supremacist groups claim represents the letters WP, for white power, according to the Anti-Defamation League.

The image, which was taken off-campus, was circulated among the student body last week. The situation has sparked fear and anger on campus, principal Michael West said.

At this time in our country, the frank reality is that political and social views are strongly held by individuals, West said in a video circulated Monday. Individual views, while people are entitled to them, may be in direct conflict with those of others, our school and our district values.

He suggested that teachers and school staff set aside time to talk with students about diversity, tolerance, respect and how to use social media in a positive way.

The school administration this year created an equity committee tasked with developing programs and events aimed at improving respect and racial harmony on campus. The school has also started a multicultural leadership class and is organizing what it calls synergy days to help students recognize and respect their differences, but also find value in and appreciation for their similarities, West said.

This teachable moment will not be lost on us, he said.

It is not clear whether the eight students in the photograph will face disciplinary action.

Timothy Walker, the Riverside Unified School Districts assistant superintendent of pupil services, said he could not discuss any possible punishment, citing privacy rights. He said the district is conducting an investigation.

Were trying to bring the community together. This is an issue of feelings out there in homes and communities that are brought to school, he said. We try to focus on educational programs and support our kids in a social, emotional realm. Part of that is to support them when controversies occur.

Of MLKs 3,000 students, the largest portion 38% are white, according to recent data from the California Department of Education, with Latino students making up about 36%, and Asian and black students just over 8% each.

Gray Mavheria, who is black and has two children in the school, told the Press-Enterprise that these are not new issues for the campus. His children have been referred to as cotton picking and have been told to sit at the back of the bus, he said.

I looked at the picture and said, Who does this? he told the newspaper. I call it Hell High School because of what theyve put my kids through and other minority kids through.

A report released Wednesday by the Anti-Defamation Leagues Center on Extremism showed an increase in white supremacist propaganda in 2019. The report showed 2,713 cases reported last year, which include the distribution of racist, anti-Semitic and anti-LGBTQ fliers, stickers, banners and posters. That number is more than double what the center recorded in 2018, the report states.

While the report showed propaganda touched every state except Hawaii, the highest levels were centered in 10 states, including California, data show.

The Riverside photo is the most recent in a series of incidents involving Southern California schools.

In May 2019, the Newport-Mesa Unified School District investigated a series of overtly racist messages shared among young people, including students from Newport Harbor High School in Newport Beach, in a private Instagram group.

One group member asked whether anyone wanted a souvenir while the person was in Alabama and Mississippi, noting, Ill get you a real confederate flag.

Another person in the group then asked: Do they still sell black people down there?

The person taking the trip responded: If they do, Ill get everyone a new plantation worker.

The same school made national headlines months earlier when a group of students at a party posed with red plastic cups arranged in the shape of a swastika as some stood with hands outstretched in Nazi salutes.

Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at Cal State San Bernardino, said the photo and others like it are meant to be a bonding experience for young people who are ignorant and are trying to send a message to a changing society.

At a time when over 40% of Americans say whites are under attack, these young people are sending a shock message that theyre still relevant, and the biggest reverberation youll get is when you hook into tribal prejudice, Levin said. Some of this is youthful rebellion, but dont kid yourself: Its also another example of the sociopolitical mainstreaming of white supremacy and Nazi symbols.

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Participants at the No Hate. No Fear. rally in New York City on Jan. 5, 2020. Photo: Rivka Segal.

JNS.org Mitchell D. Silber, former director of intelligence analysis at the New York City Police Department, started as the executive director of the Community Security Initiative at the UJA-Federation of New York and the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York on Feb. 3 to help secure Jewish institutions in the New York region.

The move was done in partnership with the Paul E. Singer Foundation, Carolyn and Marc Rowan, and several foundations, according to UJA in a statementannouncing the move.

In his new role, Silber, 50, will lead a team of an additional five new security professionals to help provide protection to Jewish religious and cultural institutions in all five boroughs of New York City, in Westchester and on Long Island. This will include developing the infrastructure to support and train professionals in synagogues, Jewish community centers and schools.

JNS talked with Silberby phone on Feb 11. The interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

February 17, 2020 4:52 pm

Q: What are your goals in your new position?

A:My goals are to vastly improve the security profile that covers Jewish life in the Greater New York City Area to include those institutions like synagogues, schools, camps, JCCs, as well as the Jewish security in the streets in and around those institutions. And really to reduce the climate of fear that unfortunately exists now.

Q: Why did you decide to take on this challenge?

A:Im not really a person who sits on the sidelines watching the action happen. Im much better as a participant. After 9/11, I left a career in corporate finance to get into the world of counterterrorism to protect in the city. I had a societal obligation to step up, so this was a very similar decision.

Q: Compared to late last year, whats the current safety situation in the New York Jewish community?

A:Thats a difficult question to answer because there are multiple elements to it.

On one side, its what the threat is.

After 9/11, we knew there was a threat from Al-Qaeda and ISIS, and their homegrown followers. Weve always known theres been an Iran, Hezbollah threat against Jewish institutions in the United States.

After Pittsburgh and Poway, our eyes were shocked open to see theres a right-wing extremist threat, a white-supremacist threat that now targets Jews. After Jersey City, we learned that there was afringe as they may beBlack Israelite threat against Jewish communities in New York, plus neighborhood antisemitism, which is the term I use to talk about the phenomenon that is happening in Brooklyn, like that Hanukkah week in December.

The security situation is based on the threats. The threats are a broad spectrum; there are lots of them, and theyre all very different.

And theres the question of what do we do on the defensive side to protect against them.

The Community Security Initiative is the first step in better safeguarding our institutions, hardening the targets and make our communities more aware of what they need to be doing to protect themselves. Were just starting this process.

Q: Are the threats against Jews more physical than verbal, vice versa or equally both?

A: Generally, when one looks at antisemitic incidents, whether its in New York or Europe, the pool of incidents when you include verbal is very large, and physical is a smaller subset of that, so thats just the nature of these type of things. Fewer people are actually going to act on their thoughts in a violent way. But those are the ones Im most concerned about.

Im concerned about the physical security of Jews in the Greater New York City area from attacks, from assaults. Preventing people from saying nasty things, I wish it wouldnt happen but thats less of a priority for me.

Q: But cant verbal attacks evolve into physical attacks in which we should stop the threats before they get worse?

A:That sounds good, but the truth of the matter is that you cant stop someone from a verbal threat. Thats not going to be a focus on my effort. If I focus on everything, Im not going to accomplish anything. So what were focusing on are the physical threats that hurt or damage people. There are other organizations like the Anti-Defamation League that fight antisemitism.

Q: In your experience, what has led to this uptick, specificallyin anti-Jewish crime? Have you seen other ethnicitiestargeted in New York as well these past two years?

A:I dont know the reasons to explain the uptick in antisemitism in New York. Id like to know whats driving it, where are the catalysts.

Countrywide, we live in a time when conspiracy theories run rampant. Jews are, one way or another, targeted as being responsible. Were in a national mood, post-2008 economic crisis, where its very much anti-economic elites, and Jews are nationally assigned a place among the economic elites even though thats not entirely true.

Were also in an anti-immigrant mood in the country and even though Jews arent the immigrants these days, Jews, as a community having been immigrants throughout our history, are sympathetic to immigrants, and we are often seen as the enabler of immigrants.

Robert Bowers struck out against the Jewish community in Pittsburgh because they were associated with the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, which was no longer helping Jewish immigrants in the United States, but other immigrants. In his apocalyptic race war, Jews were enabling the browning of America, and therefore, we were a feared target.

Q: Do you thinkthat New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo are doing enough to protect the Jewish community?

A:Their actions since the end of the year are to be commended, whether its the governor forreleasing funds that had been allocated for Jewish security, as well as releasing new funds for houses of worship that the Jewish community was seeking. The mayor has been supportive in allocating additional police to the neighborhoods where a lot of these antisemitic events occurred.

There is more work to be done, but were certainly getting indications that Albany and City Hall realize the threat and want to be helpful in whichever ways they can.

Q: The newly implemented New York bail reform hascome under fire from the Jewish community for releasing suspects accused of committing antisemitic attacks. Whats your stance on the law?

A:The legislators and the activists who were for bail reform were all with the best intentions, but the way the legislation ultimately came out had flaws. Certainly, weve seen those flaws with examples of Tiffany Harris, who assaulted and cursed at three Jewish women in an anti-Semitic attack, and had to be arrested two more times before City Hall decided to intervene. Otherwise, she would have been released another time. So that cant be the way the designers of this legislation expected it to function.

The question is how can you reform the law in a way that keeps elements of it that were useful, but actually maintain some kind of law-enforcement deterrence that doesnt encourage people because they think theyre going to be released immediately.

Q: How would you reform the bail law?

A:One way that strikes me is if the infraction has anything to do with hate and if its any type of hate-related criminality, I would think there might be some kind of carve-out, and theres a higher threshold before someone is released and back on the streets.

Q: What more can our elected leaders do? Increase funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program?

A:Both in New York State and at the federal level, there at the Department of Homeland Security, there are security grants. Weve heard [NY] Senator [Chuck] Schumer talk about increasing the number in the Nonprofit Security Grant Program from $90 million to $360 million; that would be fantastic. Expediting that would be great. The state has already augmented its funding for houses of worship in New York. With law enforcement, special attention needs to be paid to Jewish institutions in jurisdictions these days. Its an unfortunate aspect of the environment that were in with Jewish houses of worship. Its unfortunately whats required right now.

Q: Recipients of the Nonprofit Security Grant Program can use up to 50 percent of funds for armed personnel. If they want to use more, they need a waiver from FEMA. Should Congress allow recipients to use up to 100 percent of the money towards such a purpose?

A:When youre protecting an institution, there are lots of elements. Armed guards are one element of it. Hardening a door, as basic as it may sound, is critical. We see in Germany, this individual attack the Halle synagogue on Yom Kippur. The reinforced door that had been paid for by Jewish organizations saved the day. Similarly, you want to have that blast-mitigation, bullet-resistant, shatter-proof film on the glass on windows.

So there are other elements to it besides armed guards that are as equally as important. We dont want to neglect infrastructure security.

Q: Besides the job requirements, how has your new role compared to being in the NYPD?

A:In some ways, there are a lot of similarities. Once again, its sort of protecting New York from a wide spectrum of threats and knowing as much as we can about what those threats look like will better inform our efforts.

Obviously, at NYPD, I was part of a 35,000-person small army.

Here, were a unit, a team of seven, so were going to have to punch above our weight to get it done. Its a little bit of a startup; the NYPD is obviously not a startup. We have our seed funding. If we can deliver results this early, well be able to increase the resources that we can draw upon and build out more holistically.

Many of the same threats that I dealt with at the NYPD in the counterterrorism world are similar threats we have to deal with in the Jewish security world.

Q: Besides the common If you see something, say something, what advice do you have for the Jewish community when it comes to being vigilant?

A:One of the things Id like to put in place is classes not only where people can learn Krav Maga as part of self-defense, but also situational awareness.

Everyone in the community is going to have to play a role in terms of their awareness, noticing things. If you see something, say something is great, but we actually need a higher level of understanding of what it is that people should be looking for.

Hopefully, well be able to roll out classes in the Greater New York Area that can provide guidance of what might be suspicious that you might not otherwise think and the mechanism for reporting it, so that we can have better situational awareness and maybe advanced warning if something comes our way.

Q: Is there anything else you wish to add?

A:In this new role, in the Community Security initiative, were going to need alliances because we cant do it all on our own, and there are two organizations that were working on setting up alliances with.

One is called the Community Security Service. Its an organization that provides volunteers who can augment the physical security of institutions where there are another set of eyes and ears that know about surveillance and counter-surveillance, and also little bit about self-defense. We plan on partnering with them in a big way in the Greater New York City Area because we think theyre an important force multiplier.

The second is the Anti-Defamation League and its Center on Extremism, which has a robust online analysis capability. Theyve helped contribute to the identification of half-a-dozen people in the United States since Pittsburgh who gave indications that they were preparing violent attacks against Jews and others. We want to be a beneficiary of their intelligence flow.

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New Security Head Aims to Protect New York Jewish Institutions and Help Reduce Climate of Fear - Algemeiner

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Posted By admin on February 17, 2020

Photo By Jonathan Simcoe

Emergency dispatchers received a call from co-workers at the Florida Turnpike in Metro, Orlando, saying that Mason Trever Toney stabbed and killed his boss, William Steven Knight, with a trowel over a political debate. He was charged with first-degree murder and is currently being held in Orange County without bond. Such an occurrence exemplifies the harsh political divide currently plaguing the U.S. Political violence that has been on the rise since 2016, when a large polarization in political beliefs erupted throughout the country during Donald Trumps presidential election.

While Toney is strictly anti-government, Knight was a large supporter of President Trump. Toney is very outspoken about his beliefs that the government is bad and out to get him, according to his arrest affidavit. Co-workers said that, despite their political differences, Toney and Knight were friends outside of work.

A 2018 FBI report showed a 17 % increase in hate crimes compared to 2017. The following year, the Fragile States Index ranked the U.S. among the top five most worsened countries for political stability. In 2018, the Anti-Defamation League deemed the year the fourth deadliest year since 1970 for domestic extremist violence, ranking only behind 2015, 2016 and 1995, the year of the Oklahoma City bombing.

The polarization of political opinions is further demonstrated by research conducted by scholars Nathan Kalmoe and Lilliana Mason, who found that in 2018, 20% of Republicans and 15% of Democrats believe that if members of the other party are going to behave badly, they should be treated like animals.

Their recent studies found that 3% of Americans believed that violence was justified if it advanced partisan goals while an additional 5% felt that such violence was moderately justifiable.

Political violence in 2019 was also carefully examined. ACLEDs U.S. Pilot Project collected data on political violence and protest events across the country from July to September 2019. The findings showed that nearly 3,200 political violence and protest events [occurred] during this pilot period. Such political violence was classified as lethal despite its limited nature; almost 50 fatalities reported were primarily due to mass shootings and excessive force by police.

Toneys alleged murder of pro-Trump Knight is far from being the first act of political violence to occur during Trumps presidency. A yawning chasm has divided members of the Democratic and Republican parties, and with the approach of the 2020 presidential election, tensions are brewing yet again.

It is crucial to remember that we are all humans. For one to have an opinion that differs from your own does not make them worthy of such violent acts. Each individual experiences life through their own unique lens. So, naturally, some will tend to form beliefs that could potentially contradict those of others. Instead of acting in a hostile manner, we should open our arms in a welcoming embrace. Diversity characterizes our humanity; to reject our differences is to reject what makes us human. Please, be civil throughout this election process. Not all will get their way as such is inevitable. Our best option is to grit our teeth, bear the results and attempt to better our lives accordingly.

Alessandra Arif is a City News Intern for the 2020 winter quarter. She can be reached at aearif@uci.edu

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Polarization Of Political Opinion Spurring Political Violence? - New University

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