Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By simmons on April 6, 2017

The former Mayor of London mentioned the Nazi dictator 12 times during his interview with Iain Dale on LBC after Jeremy Corbyn suspended him from the party pending an investigation.

The Labour politician went on to defend his controversial remarks which sparked an anti-Semitism row within the Labour Party.

He said: The literal fact about all of this is that if you go on the Holocaust Memorial website in Jerusalem, I dont think anyones going to accuse it of anything anti-Semitic, theyve actually got a document about the agreement between Hitler and the Zionists in the 1930s.

They acknowledged it was controversial and the Zionist leader who signed it was assassinated within a few weeks but I didnt even criticise it, I just stated it was there as a fact.

GETTYLBC

The art of politics is to tell the truth

Ken Livingstone

Dale ripped into Mr Livingstone and asked: But the party clearly disagree with you, surely part of the art of politics is to know when to shut up.

But the former Brent East MP disagreed and said an expulsion would not have been justified.

He said: Well no, the art of politicsisto tell the truth.

I mean the only reason I wasnt expelledyesterday,because the panel had been set up keen to do that, was Im certain that when they went off to make their decision in private their barrister and their lawyer was saying look if you expel Livingstone and it goes to judicial review, you havent got a chance.

Reuters

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Britain's opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn speaks at an anti-racism rally in London

GETTY

What judge is going to say you should discipline someone for telling the truth.

In a statement, Mr Corbyn said people were understandably upset by Mr Livingstones remarks.

He said: "It is deeply disappointing that, despite his long record of standing up to racism, Ken has failed to acknowledge or apologise for the hurt he has caused.

"Many people are understandably upset that he has continued to make offensive remarks which could open him to further disciplinary action.

"Since initiating the disciplinary process, I have not interfered with it and respect the independence of the party's disciplinary bodies.

"But Ken's subsequent comments and actions will now be considered by the National Executive Committee after representations from party members."

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'Know when to SHUT UP' LBC host blasts Ken Livingstone over Hitler and Zionism remarks - Express.co.uk

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Posted By simmons on April 6, 2017

It takes tremendous courage to recognize that the political views that you have held for your entire adult life have been at least partly mistaken. Larry Derfner, a prominent American-turned-Israeli journalist now in his mid-60s, has such courage.

Derfners new memoir, No Country for Jewish Liberals(Just World Books, $26.95)is a brave analysis that will help change history. No liberal Zionist who reads this 260-page, sprightly-written book will be able to close it with their complacency intact. And among what Derfner calls the right-wing chickenhawks of organized American Jewry, there will be teeth-gnashing and a dilemma: should they ignore Derfner and hope that few notice him, or should they launch a campaign to try and smear him?

There is so much in this vital new book that this review is in two parts. First, we will summarize some of Larry Derfners courageous insights, which will shake liberal Zionism to its foundation. In Part 2, we will look more closely at his compelling personal evolution, in which he explains how he was a liberal Zionist himself during his first two decades in Israel, until he changed in his mid-50s.

Here is some of what Larry Derfner believes today. Let us remember that he is no marginal figure, but a successful, respected journalist, who has contributed to American media since 1985 and had a long-running column in the Jerusalem Post until he was fired for his changing views.

Israel is not the victim, but itself provokes the regular conflicts in Gaza and the attacks in Lebanon and Syria. Derfner did successfully place a short versionof this well-reasoned argument in the NewYork TimesOp-Ed section. It is a sharp break with liberal Zionists, who contend Israel is forced to fight, and is also a brave stand for a man who himself served in the Israeli army and whose two Israeli sons are subject to military service.

Israel is a segregated society. Derfner explains that he and his family live in the middle-class town of Modiin, a place with 85,000 residents which includes not a single Palestinian Israeli family, even though a fifth of the Israeli population west of the green line is Palestinian. He says, The way I live now, in a city thats 100 percent Jewish, is the Israeli norm.

Both the 1993 Oslo agreement and the negotiations in 2000 led by Prime Minister Ehud Barak were fatally flawed, and no Palestinian leader could ever have accepted either agreement. Here is another deep disagreement with liberal Zionism, which blames the Palestinians for turning down reasonable deals.

The occupation is not just a flaw, but a morally fatal flaw. Derfner adds, It is different from apartheid, different from Jim Crow, but the same in one overriding way: It is a species of tyranny, a system of government in which the strong trample the weak. The system Israel runs on the three million people of the West Bank is military dictatorship.

The purpose of the occupation isnt security; its conquest. He goes on, If Israel had only been interested in the West Bank and Gaza for security reasons, it wouldnt have built civilian settlements colonies for 600,000 people and counting. Instead, it would have built only military installations. Residential neighborhoods, schools, shopping centers, and parking lots dont give you security. Liberal Zionists are far too squeamish to agree especially when he accurately uses the word colonies.

Israels problem is not what it may become, but what it already is. Derfner argues convincingly that the Israeli right and far-right have already won, that only a small, powerless percentage of Israeli Jews agree with his views: Liberals who for years on end warn Israel about the future are just afraid to admit that the future has long since arrived. Here he is correcting one of the most dangerous examples of bias in the New York Times and the rest of the US mainstream which go to tortuous lengths to cover up the viciousness, violence and the power of the Israeli far right, some of whom are already influential members of the government.

No Country for Jewish Liberals, by Larry Derfner, from Just World Books

Stop blaming both sides equally. Here is another view that should cause liberal Zionists to lose sleep. Derfner writes, . . . if all the influential liberal politicians, diplomats and writers were to suddenly tell the truth about who they think is mainly, if not fully, to blame for the conflict, the pressure on Israel would skyrocket.

US diplomacy is not the solution; its a central part of the problem. Professional Peace Processors like Dennis Ross will turn pale with fear on reading, Negotiations that go nowhere take international pressure off Israel, which is why Netanyahu almost always wants to negotiate.

Boycott Divestment and Sanctions is a necessary part of the solution. Here is where Derfners moral courage shines especially brightly. He lives in Israel, and he may actually be breaking Israeli law by endorsing BDS. He says, Not that I like the idea of advocating the boycott of my own country, but since it is now clear that Israel will not change of its own accord and that America is unwilling to force it to change, theres no way left but the South Africa model to end the occupation, and so BDS seems the lesser of two evils, the greater one being occupation forever.

Liberal Zionists distract by asserting that some BDS advocates actually want to end Israel as a Jewish state. Derfner quotes his own rebuttal, from a piece he wrote in the (excellent) online publication +972:

I have no problem supporting BDS because I know that if Israel ever gets to the point where its ready to concede to international pressure, it will be responding not to the small left-wing groups calling for it to give up Jewish statehood, but to the powerful forces in the democratic world calling for it to give up the occupation alone.

Larry Derfners excellent publisher, Just World Books, is starting to put together a publicity visit to the US. Of course Jewish Voice for Peace will want to hear this courageous and accomplished writer. But other organizations, from J Street to AIPAC all the way over to the Zionist Organization of America, should be eager to book him. College Hillels and synagogues from coast to coast should invite him to speak, just as they have always welcomed Israeli Zionists like Ari Shavit.

But if the liberal Zionists and others do boycott this remarkable man, they should at least read what he has to say about moral and intellectual courage (on page 199):

So often Ill be writing a piece, or thinking about writing one, and Ill become aware that theres something Im afraid to say, something Im even afraid to think. Then Ill dare to think that thought (because once you realize theres something youre afraid to think, you either have to think it or admit that youre a coward).

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New book by Larry Derfner, the American-turned-Israeli journalist, crushes liberal Zionism - Mondoweiss

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Posted By simmons on April 6, 2017

Jewish Chronicle

Social media users share image of coin bearing swastika and Star of David Jewish Chronicle The post claimed "Zionism cosied up to fascists well before the war and that even though they were a tiny minority among European Jewry, they were given a lead vocal role in implementing the purge of Jews from their European home using the exact same ...

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Social media users share image of coin bearing swastika and Star of David - Jewish Chronicle

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Posted By simmons on April 6, 2017

Date: July 18, 2016

Students receiving achievement awards at annual Academic Recognition Program

New York, N.Y. More than 400 students, faculty, staff and family members of graduating students gathered recently at the 92nd Street Y for the Touro College Graduate School of Social Works (GSSW) 2016 Academic Recognition Program.

The happy event, imbued with warmth and humor, celebrated the graduates academic achievements, outstanding community service and inspiring personal triumphs.

In addressing the gathering, Dr. Steven Huberman, GSSWs founding dean, focused in part on the schools overarching philosophy, which is rooted in the Jewish value of tikkun olam, or perfecting the world.

While we may not be able to complete the task, said Dr. Huberman, the Torah says that we should keep on trying.

Patricia E. Salkin, provost for Touros Graduate and Professional Division, expressed gratitude to the faculty training a new generation of social workers, and applauded the graduates for their service to others. There was something inside you that said, I can do more, contribute more and I can make a difference, said Provost Salkin.

In her congratulatory remarks to the graduates, Nadja Graff, vice president, Division of Graduate Studies, hailed the students for their idealism and courage. You are not afraid to be the rock when people are in need, she said. You came with a dream and I urge you to keep that idealism and spirit alive. Dont judge the day by the harvest but by the seeds you plant, and you will plant many seeds each day.

The event highlighted several individual students, including Alina Kheyson, who achieved a 4.0 GPA and was voted valedictorian by the faculty and her peers. Ms. Kheyson also received the Graduate Student of the Year Award from the New York State Social Work Education Association.

Agent of Change

Jonathan Benedek received the National Association of Social Workers-New York City Chapter Student Award from Candida Brooks-Harrison, president-elect of the NASW-NYC Chapter, for his leadership and compassion, as well as his commitment to helping advance the profession. Ms. Brooks-Harrison called him an agent of change.

Mr. Benedek also received the inaugural Ohel Distinguished Community Service Award from the organizations CEO, David Mandel, chair of the Graduate Schools Professional Advisory Committee, who applauded him for going to great lengths to make a difference. Mr. Benedek was also among those students who achieved a 3.9 GPA in their studies.

Annabel Amir and Martina Rodriguez were honored with the Dr. Bernard and Sarah Lander Distinguished Social Work Tikkun Olam Award, which memorializes the legacies of Touro Colleges founder and his wife while paying tribute to students who are striving to make the world a better place for all people, said Professor Allison Bobick, director of student advancement and organizer of the event.

As a college student who advocated for oppressed women, children and families, Ms. Amir fled Kyrgystan, a former Soviet Union state, fearing for her life. In the U.S., she was granted refugee status and provided for herself and her young daughter with low-paying jobs. She worked for UNESCO, the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization, which enabled her to return to Kyrgyzstan, and amid a changing political climate, advocate for people in need. As a single mother with four children, Ms. Amir returned to the U.S., worked as a home health aide, and then enrolled at Touro to become a social worker while holding down a full-time job.

Ms. Rodriguez grew up in the Dominican Republic to a single mother raising three children. At 21, her family made it possible for her to visit the U.S. on a six-month visa. To remain in America, she became an undocumented immigrant and worked long hours in sweat shops and factories. She enrolled in college and completed her B.A. in seven years. She began working as a para-professional at the New York City Department of Education and in 2014, enrolled at Touro, continuing to work 10- to 12-hour shifts, seven days a week. Today she has established Esperanza, or Hope - a not-for-profit organization that provides clothing and school supplies to children in the Dominican Republic.

Also honored was Dr. Larry E. Davis, dean of the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work and director of the Center on Race and Social Problems, who was presented with the National Distinguished Social Work Leadership Award. In his acceptance speech, Dr. Davis noted racial conflict represents a major problem in America and a development that social workers with their training and racial and economic diversity are in the best position to assist society in overcoming. He asked graduates to advocate for change and build coalitions with police, city planners and developers. The world needs your talents more than ever. Work to make this a more perfect union, he said.

About the Touro College and University System

Touro is a system of non-profit institutions of higher and professional education. Touro College was chartered in 1970 primarily to enrich the Jewish heritage, and to serve the larger American and global community. Approximately 18,000 students are currently enrolled in its various schools and divisions. Touro College has 29 branch campuses, locations and instructional sites in the New York area, as well as branch campuses and programs in Berlin, Jerusalem and Moscow. New York Medical College, Touro University California and its Nevada branch campus, as well as Touro University Worldwide and its Touro College Los Angeles division are separately accredited institutions within the Touro College and University System. For further information on Touro College, please go to: http://www.touro.edu/news/

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Touro Social Work Recognizes Student Achievement, Community Service - Touro College News

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Posted By admin on April 6, 2017

For Christians worldwide, Resurrection Sunday, or Easter, is the most important celebration of the year. Yet quietly, almost unnoticed by the mainstream media, theres a revolution taking place in the evangelical community.

Believers are increasingly celebrating the biblical festival of Passover and it could change the way Christians view the events of that time forever.

Though Easter is a bedrock of Western culture, it has undeniably pagan origins.

For some evangelicals seeking to recapture the culture of the early church, celebrating Passover like the first followers of Jesus (or Yeshua) is a way to reconnect to the primal roots of the faith. Whats more, a careful reading of Scripture has led many pastors to conclude Jesus was crucified on Passover, thus establishing a deep connection between the Jewish holiday and Holy Week. It also leads to the uncomfortable conclusion many Christians are celebrating the Resurrection on the wrong day.

It has always struck me as strange that the vast majority of Christians in the U.S. and around the world do not observe Passover week, which represents the most important, spiritual and historic actions of Jesus performed for His people from dying on the cross to rising from the dead, said Joseph Farah, author of The Restitution of All Things: Israel, Christians and the End of the Age. In addition, it was the holiest of weeks for Jesus and all of His Apostles and nearly 100 percent of His followers for decades after His resurrection. Its a shocking example of how church tradition has overcome the biblical record and the explicit Hebrew foundation of Christian faith.

In my book, I deal with how harshly Jesus Himself judged those of His generation who put their faith in tradition over the Word of God, said Farah. But isnt that exactly what most Christians, their pastors, teachers and leaders are doing when they create their own holy days and ignore Gods? Im greatly encouraged that more Christians are beginning to deal with this disconnect and recognizing Passover as a very Jewish and very Christian and very biblical holiday.

Its the book that gives you tomorrows news today! Get your autographed copy of The Restitution of All Things: Israel, Christians and the End of the Age.

One of the Christians leading the effort is Bill Cloud, author of Esau Rising and the head of Shoreshim Ministries, which is dedicated to reconnecting Christians with the Hebrew roots of their faith. Cloud claims his message is becoming increasingly accepted among evangelicals.

Ive seen this interest grow dramatically over the last 20 years to the extent that it has given birth to a movement, Cloud told WND. Among the gateways people have used to come into this understanding is the observance of Passover. In my opinion, this is the logical first step for believers in understanding the roots of their faith because this is the festival that focuses on the sacrificial lamb whose blood secured redemption for Gods people. Paul said that Messiah has become our Passover, meaning that He is the Lamb sacrificed for us. It was Yeshua who, within the context of Passover, said, As often as you do this (observing Passover) do it in remembrance of me.'

Paula White, pastor of New Destiny Christian Center in Florida and a speaker at President Donald Trumps inauguration, is among those urging Christians to celebrate Passover. The Israeli newspaper Haaretz quoted a letter from Paula White to her congregants in which she tells them Passover is part of your special heritage that God designed as His own Holy Days with specific instruction given for their observance.

He set the divine appointment, Passover, with His people at a time of release from past bondage and freedom of new life, the letter said.

The concept of divine appointments has been championed by Pastor Mark Biltz of El Shaddai Ministries, another pastor who emphasizes reconnecting Christians with their Hebraic heritage. He received widespread notice by discovering the Blood Moons phenomenon. In his newest book, Gods Day Timer, Biltz explains how certain holy days on the Jewish, or biblical, calendar mark times God has set aside to intervene in human history.

Among the most important is Passover, which Biltz calls essential for Christians to celebrate because it marks when Jesus Christ actually died. According to Biltz, incorporating Passover provides an entirely new way of understanding how Jesus fulfilled prophecy by serving as the Lamb of God.

We find in Luke 22:15 that Jesus said to them, I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer,' Biltz explained. So we see the Last Supper was actually a Passover Seder meal that Jesus was keeping. In Luke 22:19, we find how Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and gave to them, saying, This is my body which is given for you. Do this in memory of me.

When He said, Do this in memory of me, He was talking about how every year when Passover is commemorated we are now to remember His death. This is confirmed by the Apostle Paul when he writes in 1 Corinthians 11:26, For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lords death till he come. For Jesus to be the Messiah, He had to die on the very day the Passover lambs were to be sacrificed. In Leviticus 23:5 we find that it was to be, In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month in the evening, is the Lords Passover.'

For that reason, Biltz believes it is not just encouraged but incumbent upon Christians to celebrate Passover. How are we to preach Christ and Him crucified if we dont even remember or honor His death or the day He died? he asked.

The Bible story is more miraculous and astounding than you could have imagined. See the incredible proof of the unchanging nature of God and the exciting clues to what awaits at the end of days in Gods Day Timer by Mark Biltz, available as a book or documentary now in the WND Superstore.

Biltz says his own congregation has done a corporate Passover Seder every year for the last 16 years, as well as encouraging families to host their own celebrations.

We have had probably one of the worlds largest Seders with over 1,500 people, he said. Christians from every denomination come and you can go to our website and watch some of our past Seders.

Biltzs ministry is not the only church organizing official Passover celebrations. Countless churches around the country are marking the biblical holiday around the country.

For example:

Arkansas

First United Methodist Church is hosting a traditional Passover Seder table with all the articles of the Jewish celebration to be followed by a presentation called Messiah in The Passover, which will show how Jesus fulfilled the ancient feast of Passover. A spokesman told the Pine Bluff Commercial: Messiah in The Passover gives the Christian community insight into Jewish traditions so that the Jewish roots of Christianity can be better understood. This program also helps the Jewish and Christian communities understand their common heritage.

California

Mountain Bible Church in California is hosting a traditional Passover dinner on April 9.

Becky Mason of Mountain Bible writes: The Seder dinner is indeed a meal, but everything about it is also symbolic. Showing the redemption of the Israelites from bondage, it also illustrates how Christ rescues us today when we trust and obey Him. It is important to understand the foundation of what we believe.

Georgia

Several Christian and Jewish congregations are joining forces to host a Community Seder at College Place United Methodist Church in Brunswick, Georgia. The Brunswick News reports Temple Beth Tefilloh, Atlama Presbyterian Church, Christ Church Frederica, College Place United Methodist Church, First Presbyterian Church of Brunswick, First United Methodist Church of Brunswick, St. James Lutheran Church, St. Simons Presbyterian Church, Unitarian Universalists of Coastal Georgia and FaithWorks will all be participating.

Idaho

St. Theresas Parish in Orofino is hosting an annual interdenominational Christian Seder-Passover Meal on April 12, in cooperation with the Orofino Methodist Church and Ascension Lutheran Church.

Ohio

First Presbyterian Church in Paulding will host a Christ in the Passover presentation by Peter Blitshteyn of Jews for Jesus. David Brickner, executive director of Jews for Jesus, stated: We exist to make the Messiahship of Jesus an unavoidable issue to our Jewish people worldwide.

Controversy

Jews for Jesus has reportedly hosted the Christ in the Passover presentation at over 38,000 churches. The Jewish newspaper Forward, in an article covering how evangelicals are adopting Passover, described Messianic Jews as a sort of bridge, introducing Jewish rituals or appearing as ambassadors of sorts. The Forward sneered Jews who believe in Messiah are seen as apostates by most mainstream Jews, [though] Messianics still identify as Jewish

Some Jews have long opposed efforts by Christians to celebrate Passover, calling it an example of cultural appropriation. Rabbi Mark Miller of the Houston Rabbinical Association expressed concern about Christian churches independently hosting Seders.

If a non-Jewish group wants to celebrate a Seder, Id prefer they do in a Jewish setting, he told the Houston Chronicle in 2010.

The Forward repeated Rabbi James Rudin of the American Jewish Committees charge from 1997 that Christians celebrating Seders completely distorts the meaning of the practice.

However, pastor Bill Cloud says such objections dont hold up.

Christians should embrace Passover, not as a Jewish holiday, but as a biblical feast that acknowledges the suffering of the Messiah, he told WND. Furthermore, with all due respect to our Jewish friends, though they have faithfully kept the Passover for 3,500 years, it is not an exclusively Jewish feast. According to Scripture, God ordained Passover as one of His memorial feasts so why wouldnt believers in the Messiah of Israel want to participate in this as well?

Rabbi Jonathan Cahn, who heads one of the largest Messianic ministries in the world in the Beth Israel Worship Center, said the entire debate should be reframed. After all, God never actually mandated Easter.

But he mandated Passover.

Passover is the communion, the Lords Supper, in its original form and riches, he told WND. Its what the disciples celebrated throughout their lives, at the Last Supper, and undoubtedly after that in remembrance of the Lord. The Lord never gave a holiday called Easter, but He did specifically give a holiday called Passover. And it was Passover on which He chose to die.

Cahn, the New York Times bestselling author of The Harbinger and his newest title, The Book of Mysteries, argues the celebration of Passover provides a systemic way of understanding Christs death and resurrection. The entire Good Friday/Easter cycle is really Passover, he explained. In fact, for centuries, the early Christians celebrated Messiahs death and resurrection at Passover.

Take the first step on a journey which will transform your life. The keys to spiritual knowledge are presented as you embark on an incredible yearlong quest in The Book of Mysteries, the latest cant miss book by messianic rabbi Jonathan Cahn. Makes an incredible gift! Available now at the WND Superstore.

Passover is filled with amazing riches and revelations about God, Messiah, and each of us. Each element holds a mystery and a revelation several of these mysteries appear in The Book of Mysteries. The mysteries of the Passover Seder include that of the Afikomen, the mysterious piece of matzah that is wrapped in a cloth and hidden away, the mystery of the Four Cups, the mystery of the Zeroah, the object on the plate that has to do with the creation of the universe, the mystery of the Dipping and much more. Even the Psalms that are read at the Passover, the same Psalms that were read two thousand years ago and by Messiah and the disciples, contain the mystery of His death.

Rabbi Cahn argues Passover isnt just about understanding the past, but the future. And he believes it can be a powerful tool for witnessing.

The Passover Seder also contains the mystery of the second coming, as the door is opened symbolically for the prophet Elijah whom we know is the precursor of that day, he said. Passover is filled with the message of salvation. So it becomes a witnessing tool of the Gospel to those who dont yet believe, Jew and Gentile. And for the believer, its an amazing revelation of our salvation.

Cahns own ministry celebrates Passover with a massive celebration every year.

At the Jerusalem Center/Beth Israel, on the Friday night approaching Passover we hold a Passover Seder/Last Supper Celebration, which is free and open to all, that all may experience the beauty of the Lords Supper in all its fullness, he said. And we literally have hundreds of people from all walks of life, all nations and backgrounds, and all denominations rejoicing together in the Lords wonders, presence, and blessings. Thus, the Passover is a gift not only to the Jewish people, but to all believers. How could it be otherwise? The day of our salvation, the day Messiah died for each of us was Passover.

Bill Cloud also says his own family and his church celebrates the holiday. And he urges all believers to do the same.

As for our family, this will be the 27th year we have observed Passover in remembrance of the Messiahs sacrifice, he told WND. Needless to say, it has become an integral part of our life (as are the other biblical feasts). Coming to understand the Hebrew roots of my faith has been one of lifes most enriching experiences. It has helped me to better understand the words of Yeshua and to appreciate the depths of Gods Word. I enthusiastically recommend that Christians participate in a Passover Seder this year it just might change your life.

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Passover (not Easter) is real reason for the season - WND.com

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Posted By admin on April 6, 2017

Las Vegas police searching the JCC of Southern Nevada after a bomb threat forced an evacuation of the building, Feb. 27, 2017. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

(JTA) MostAmericans do not hold anti-Semitic views and are worried about violence against Jews, according to pollsby the Anti-Defamation League.

Only 14 percent of Americans expressed anti-Semitic attitudes, a slight increase from 10 percent in 2015, according to the data, which wasreleased Thursday. Older and less educated respondents were the most likely to hold anti-Jewish views.

However, 52 percent of respondents said they were concerned about anti-Semitic violence andan even higher proportion, 76 percent, were worried about violence against Muslims, the ADL found.

Forty-seven percent of respondentssaid there was moreanti-Semitism during the 2016 presidential campaign than in previous times. Nearly half of Americans, 49 percent, said Donald Trump had not done enough to discourage anti-Jewish sentiments as a candidate, while 39 percent said he had.

A poll by the Anti-Defamation League found that a plurality of Americans say there was more anti-Semitism during the 2016 presidential campaign than before. (Anti-Defamation League)

The polls found that a higher proportionof Muslim Americans, 34 percent, held anti-Semitic views than the general population.That number, the ADL noted, is lower than among Muslims in Europe and the Middle East and North Africa, where 55 and 75 percent hold anti-Jewish views, respectively. The polls also found that half of Muslim Americans hold a favorable view of Israel and most Muslim Americans, 89 percent, were worried about violence against them and Islamic institutions.

The good news in this research is that today a large majority of Americans do not subscribe to common anti-Semitic stereotypes, Jonathan Greenblatt, ADLs national director, said in a statement.

Its also encouraging that a record number of Americans are concerned about violence against the Jewish and Muslim communities, and are troubled at how intolerance has infected our politics. But its discouraging to know that Muslims and other minorities feel unsafe. Clearly, there is still a lot of work to do.

Interviews were conducted last October as well as inJanuary and February of this year. The polls had a margin of error of 1.6 to 3 percent.

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Few Americans hold anti-Semitic views, most concerned about violence against Jews, ADL polls find - Jewish Telegraphic Agency

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Posted By simmons on April 3, 2017

Delegitimisation is the favourite attack word used by defenders of Israels unique (mis)understanding of democracy.

Its usually deployed to accuse human rights campaigners of wanting to wipe the Jewish State off the face of the earth for daring to suggest an alternative and fairer way of running the country.The apocalyptic rhetoric is designed to close down a debate about institutional discrimination and portray the call for Palestinian rights as the most poisonous act of antisemitism since the Holocaust.

It often works.

In fact most of our political leaders have wholeheartedly bought into the linguistic scam of delegitimisation.

But theres another delegitimisation taking place, one that should be of far more concern for anyone that cares about the past and the future of Jews and Judaism. This delegitimisation works by gnawing away, year by year, at our right to uphold the most universal values of our Jewish heritage.

Passover is the most popular and well observed of all Jewish festivals. This years eight day celebration of redemption, liberation and religious and political freedom begins on Monday 10th April. But long ago our uncritical commitment to the project of Jewish nationalism began to undermine it. So much so, that Passover today has become little more than an annual act of communal hypocrisy. And in this year of bitter anniversaries (Balfour, the UN partition plan, the Occupation of the West Bank, the siege of Gaza) well be taking that hypocrisy to depressingly new heights.

Zionism, which set out to create a modern redemption of the Jewish People, has slowly and surely destroyed the integrity of our Passover remembrance. The ongoing persecution of the Palestinian people in the service of a misguided notion of Jewish national self-determination has delegitimised our right to proclaim our foundational story of religious and political freedom. Why would anyone take seriously our right to speak out as Jews on the great moral issues of the day when we fail to face into the moral catastrophe of our own making?

For centuries our retelling of the Exodus story served a vital purpose. It bound us together in a narrative that put religious and political liberation at the centre of Jewish consciousness.

We told ourselves this story in good times and bad.

The medieval Jewish philosophers of Andalusia told it in Spain under the benign rule of Islam. The Jewish fisherman of Salonica told it in 16th century Greece. The sweatshop tailors of Whitechapel and the Lower East Side told it. We told it, as best we could, just before the liquidation of the Warsaw Ghetto in 1943. We even told it in the concentration camps.

As a minority people living beside sometimes welcoming but often hostile neighbours, Passover was a sustaining act of solidarity and a celebration of our Jewish values. Its hardly surprising that its remained so popular.

But for those with eyes to see, ears to hear and the heart to learn, celebrating Passover in the 21st century has become a near impossibility.

We can pretend that its okay to separate our religious tradition from the politics of the day. But in truth weve never done that.

In the words of our Seder night liturgy, in every generation new Pharaohs have risen up against us. And at Passover they were always at the front of our minds, the unwelcome guest at our table.

We looked at our surroundings and read into our storytelling our present condition. Yes, we ended our meal with the words Next year in Jerusalem but few made the effort to actually get there. In practice Jerusalem was an expression of the ideals of liberation and justice rather than a physical destination.

Whats different in this generation is that we have become the Pharaoh, we have become the oppressor and destroyer of others. But unlike those previous generations we dont allow our present condition to intrude at our Passover table. That would make things far too awkward and uncomfortable.

For those Jews who recognise the seriousness of our present condition, we find ourselves in a very narrow place this Passover. But perhaps thats the one aspect of the festival that hasnt been delegitimised.

In Hebrew we call Ancient Egypt Mitzrayim. Our rabbis have made great play with the root meanings of this word creating a strong theological theme that underpins our annual retelling of the Exodus.

The word Mitzrayim, can be understood as meaning to border, to shut or to limit. It can mean to bind, to tie up, to be restricted. It can mean scant, tight or cramped. But most commonly you hear Mitzrayim talked of as the narrow place.

This Passover, being Jewish and calling for equal rights for all who live in Israel/Palestine is a very narrow place to be.

I posted this in my Facebook page last month reflecting on how cramped and constricted life had become for dissenting Jews over the last twelve months.

Thanks to a series of increasingly absurd decisions, by people with apparently only a glancing acquaintance with Jewish history, religion and basic humanity, I now find myself portrayed as a dangerous radical. Heres how it happened:

First, the Chief Rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis said I wasnt Jewish because Im not a Zionist.

Then, Prime Minister Theresa May said Im antisemitic because I question Zionisms notion of Jewish national self-determination.

And now, the Israel Knesset has decided Im a would be terrorist because I support non violent protest in support of human rights.

Did I go mad. Or did the world?

Plenty of Facebook friends assured me my sanity was not in question. But where does that leave the world? And if Passover has lost all legitimacy what should a dissenting Jew do with their time during this key religious festival?

There are alternative Passover gatherings if you live in the right cities around the world, including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. There are Seder night supplements written to provide thought provoking content to add to the liturgy of the traditional Haggadah service book. But I have another suggestion this year.

This Passover abandon the traditional Haggadah. Set aside the alternative Haggadahs too. Leave the supplements alone.

Instead adopt an entirely different religious text.

My proposed liturgical replacement also tells the story of slaves and of a Pharaoh. It also describes oppression and it shows a route to liberation. It represents all that makes Passover delegitimised and, simultaneously, exactly how it can be made legitimate once again. It was published last month on the 15th March.

My recommended reading for your Passover celebration is the UNs Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) report on Israeli Practices towards the Palestinian People and the Question of Apartheid.Its authors are Professor Richard Falk, a former United Nations special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied and professor emeritus of international law at Princeton University; and Virginia Tilley, professor of political science at Southern Illinois University.

Their report is not a rant or a hate fest against Israel. Its measured in tone and scholarly in the presentation and analysis of international law. It even anticipates and addresses the main objections to its findings.

Its conclusions are well argued: In different ways, Israel operates policies, with clear purpose and intent, that create an apartheid situation for Palestinians in Israel itself; in annexed East Jerusalem; in the Occupied territories of the West Bank and Gaza; and for Palestinian refugees.

The outrage from the Trump and Netanyahu administrations was so instantaneous that they clearly hadnt had time to read the report they were condemning. But putting the words Israeli and Apartheid in the same sentence was more than enough. Two days later on the 17th March the report was removed from the ESCWA website at the insistence of the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and Rima Khalaf, the head of ESCWA, resigned her position saying: it is my duty not to conceal a clear crime, and I stand by all the conclusions of the report,.

Once again, the truth is too painful, too difficult, too political to face.

But the report is a worthy Passover text for this year. If we read it, carefully and faithfully, if we pay attention to its descriptions and analysis, it can free both Jews and Palestinians from our joint (but very differently experienced) modern slavery to Zionism. And, if enough others join this movement of liberation, then we Jews may even find a way back to a legitimate Jewish Passover.

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Zionism, Apartheid and the Delegitimisation of Passover - Patheos (blog)

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Posted By simmons on April 3, 2017

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In defence of Livingstone - Herald Scotland

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Posted By admin on April 3, 2017

A protest at Uncle Ike's in April of 2016. The Stranger

The conflicts between Uncle Ike's owner Ian Eisenberg and his Central District neighbors are no secret. Eisenberg's flashy 23rd and Union pot shop has become symbolic of gentrification and resentment on a street corner where neighborhood drug dealers once sold their product at risk of arrest.

Eisenberg's controversial business and his relationships with his neighborsincluding a local churchmake up one dimension of the ongoing conflict. The fact that his flagship store popped up in a historically black, Jewish, and formerly red-lined neighborhood where residents are currently being priced out is another.

A video Eisenberg recently posted to his Facebook page shows another disturbing side of the trouble on 23rd and Union. It deals with Eisenberg's Jewish heritage. The video, uploaded on April 1, shows Eisenberg filming Omari Tahir-Garrett, a longtime Central District activist, as Tahir-Garrett tells Eisenberg to "go back to Germany" and "let them Nazis get on you again."

The 33-second video was made while, across the street from Eisenberg's store, an "anti-displacement block party" (others called it, simply, a protest) was taking place. The video begins with Eisenberg asking "Why's that?" to something Tahir-Garrett, walking along street barricades outside the pot shop, said.

"Because them church people don't want you there," Tahir-Garrett says as his son, K. Wyking Garrett, ushers him away from Eisenberg's camera. "And you're not going to be here long, neither."

"Why?" Eisenberg presses. "What's going to happen, Omari?"

"What do you mean what's going to happen?" Tahir-Garrett, visibly angry, says.

Eisenberg asks again: "What's going to happen?

"What's going to happen? You're going to go back where you came from," Tahir-Garrett says.

"Where's that?" Eisenberg asks.

"Germany!" Tahir-Garrett says.

"What's going to happen in Germany?" Eisenberg asks.

Tahir-Garrett continues: "Yeah, you're going to go back to Germany... Let them Nazis get on you again," Tahir-Garrett says.

This isn't the first time anti-Semitic comments have been lodged at Eisenberg. Last September, Charles Mudede wrote about a Black Lives Matter march that wound down to 23rd and Union. During that march, one speakerit was unclear who he was affiliated withtold Eisenberg via loudspeaker that it wasn't right of him to come into black neighborhoods, "especially when you're coming from Israel." The speaker then said that Eisenberg was former "IDF," or Israeli Defense Forces. To be clear, Eisenberg was born and raised in Seattle and has never been in the IDF. (As for Germany, Eisenberg says he's spent "two days, one night in Dusseldorfdoes that count?" His family history doesn't include any German ancestry, as far as he knows. His great-grandparents, who were Jews of Hungarian and Russian descent, first moved to the Central District in 1907 and lived at 23rd and Cherry.)

This was Mudede's take on last September's events:

But the problem in all of this is not so much the speaker's apparent anti-Semitism, but that the crowd listening to his offensive speecha crowd that's demanding racial justice from societydoesn't make it clear that such statements are unacceptable. (There are some rumblings but nothing definitive.) The fact that it was allowed to happen with apparently little challenge, no direct confrontation, and no outright denouncement is deeply troubling. It gives the impression that BLM activists or those who are sympathetic to the cause are cool with the zero-sum game of fighting racism with racism.

I reached out to Wyking Garrett, Tahir-Garrett's son who was with him during the confrontation, in the hopes of talking to him and his father. He sent me a long statement in response that doesn't directly denounce what Tahir-Garrett said, but alleges that Eisenberg circulated the video in a deliberate attempt to mislead people about organizations that Wyking and his father organize and participate in: Africatown, Black Dot, and the Umoja Peace Center.

"Its easy to denounce troublesome remarks that rightly offend our common sensibilities," the statement reads. "Its more difficult, however, to fight against an imperialist, colonialist, 'manifest destiny' mindset thats spent centuries embedded in the American consciousness."

I did learn, however, that aside from the long, ongoing conflicts around development on the corner of 23rd and Union, there's a more immediate context to the video. Earlier in the afternoon, around 2 p.m., a fight broke out between neighborhood activists and Uncle Ike's security.

The two sides tell opposing narratives about what happened. What's not debated: People at the event across the street from the shop were playing music and chanting, and Uncle Ike's Glass Shop turned the volume up on its loudspeakers in response.

Things escalated from there. According to the police report filed after the incident, Uncle Ike's security claimed that protesters were blocking the entrance of the driveway and that protesters assaulted security when they "attempted to escort them away from the entrance." Police also spoke to a witness who said the opposite: that Uncle Ike's security assaulted him. That person's friends also told police that Uncle Ike's security had punched another person in the face and that the person needed medical attention, but when the fire department arrived and asked to see the injured person, the group was unwilling to cooperate.

"We don't know if somebody was injured," Seattle police spokesperson Detective Mark Jamieson said. "Nobody was arrested. We wrote a report documenting what occurred. And that's it at this point."

I spoke to Eisenberg and an activist who was present during the confrontation, and both filled in more details of the opposing narratives. Eisenberg told me that whenever he goes out in the neighborhood, a couple of people start screaming at him and taking video of him, and that he decided to do the same thing. The activist, 31-year-old DJ Martinez, told me that it's Eisenberg who harasses and films the activists.

Martinez told me that Tahir-Garrett was upset about the person allegedly injured during the fight.

Eisenberg also told me that Tahir-Garrett has been making similar comments for years. Tahir-Garrett has a complicated history as an activist: In 2001, he hit former Seattle mayor Paul Schell in the face with a bullhorn and served 21 months in prison for second-degree assault. Earlier this month, protests broke out when Tahir-Garrett was evicted from his home at the UMOJA Peace Center. The eviction came after a long and complicated court fight with his landlord, who at times had allowed Tahir-Garrett to live on the property rent-free.

I asked Martinez what he made of Tahir-Garrett's comments.

Here's what he said:

Omari's been through a lot. No one is asking Omari what he thinks. He's an elder in our community, and I see these comments on these posts that are so toxic and are so telling of a lack of compassion. We don't send our elders to a nursing home because they say fucked up things (...) Omari doesn't give a shit about religion. I don't think he's anti-Semitic or anything like that. I think he's an elder with a lot of trauma and hurt. UMOJA was attacked and his things are destroyed. And when you have a smarmy guy like Ian Eisenberg turning his music up, it's triggering, and it's so complicated that it can't be narrowed down.

I pressed Martinez on whether he would denounce what Tahir-Garrett said, but he mostly dodged the question. And then I told him I had to be real with him: that while I understood the bigger context of the confrontation, I'm also Jewish and what Tahir-Garrett said was painful. Martinez told me he was just human, and processing a lot of complicated feelings. I am, too.

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Central District Activist Tells Jewish Uncle Ike's Owner to "Go Back to Germany" So Nazis Can "Get" Him Again - TheStranger.com

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Posted By admin on April 3, 2017

This excerpt from The Big 50: Detroit Tigers: The Men and Moments that Made the Detroit Tigers by Tom Gage is printed with the permission of Triumph Books. For more information and to order a copy, please visit http://www.triumphbooks.com/big50tigers.

Im going back in. Were in trouble, and theres only one thing to doreturn to the service. Hank Greenberg, December 9, 1941

He was a true star. He hit home runs. He drove in runs. He was friendly, handsome, and articulate. In todays world Hammerin Hank Greenberg would have been a multimedia, social media, andany type of mediadarling. And although he was a target of slurs for his Jewish heritagebaseball being the hotbed of prejudice that it washe became a hero. Not just to fellow Jews, but to all baseball fans who appreciated his dignity, as well as the class with which he conducted himself. I dont recall anyone I ever played with or against having a bad word for him, Hall of Fame pitcher Hal Newhouser once said about him.

What was the greatest achievement of Greenbergs career? There is no shortage of choices. It might have been the home run he hit for the Tigers in his first game back from World War II. He hadnt played in a major league game since 1941, but in the eighth inning of his return on July 1, 1945, he connected with the bases empty.

Or it could have been the grand slam he hit to clinch the American League pennant for the Tigers on the final day of that same season. Greenberg was hitting just .219 after 29 games into his return from military service when he suddenly caught fire and hit .547 in his next 15 games. By the time the Tigers were down to needing just one more victory, his batting average was .309. It was a soggy Sunday afternoon in St. Louis for the opener of a possible doubleheader against the Browns. The Tigers led the Washington Senators by one game, but the Senators had no games remaining. If the Tigers had lost to the Browns, they would have had to play again. Weeklong rains had made a swamp of Sportsmans Park, so it was in the mud, and with only 5,582 on hand, that the Tigers trailed 32 in the top of the ninth when Greenbergafter an intentional walk to Doc Cramer loaded the baseshit the dramatic slam that clinched the A.L. pennant. The next day the Detroit Free Press called it the most thrilling home run in the history of baseball.

After that the Tigers downed the Chicago Cubs in seven games to win the World Series. Greenberg hit the Tigers only home runs, knocking two out of the park. The choices for his greatest achievement, however, dont end there. There were the 184 runs he drove in during the 1937 season. Then again, it might have been when he was named the A.L.s Most Valuable Player in 1935 or the second time he won the award in 1940.

Likely, though, his most significant achievement had nothing at all to do with baseball.

It almost certainly was Greenbergs unwavering sense of duty to his country. The year was 1941, the month was April, more than seven months before Pearl Harbor. With war raging in Europe, President Franklin D. Roosevelt had signed the Selective Training and Service Act the year before, meaning that conscription was back.

Baseball players were suddenly eligible to be drafted, even if they had several major league seasons under their belts, Greenberg had made himself an immediate candidate to be drafted when he became the first A.L. player to register. The future Hall of Famer had flat feet, a condition that looked as if it might make him exempt. But when he passed a second exam, the probability of being drafted became a reality. Local speculation ran rampant about when it might occur. Sooner rather than later, it turned out. After hitting two home runs on May 6, Greenberg reported for military service the next morning. Uncle Sam is the only boss I know now, he said.

The constant publicity about the draft process had been difficult on him. When the day finally arrived, he welcomed it. It will be a relief to get in the army and have all this bother over with, he told the Detroit Free Press.

The two home runs he hit in his final game before reporting did not surprise anyone familiar with his career. Greenberg was a prodigious slugger. He threatened Babe Ruths record of 60 home runs in 1938 before falling short with 58. He also could have eclipsed 500 career home runs if military service had not intervened.

Power defined him as a hitter; honor defined him as a person. Sometimes the two elements meshed. In the September pennant race of 1934, Greenberg didnt play on the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) but had earlier changed his mind about playing on Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year). He responded by hitting two home runs in a 21 victory against the Boston Red Sox. By playing on one holiday, but not the other, he was true to his faith as well as to his profession.

Comfortable on baseballs biggest stage, Greenberg also hit five home runs in the 23 World Series games in which he played. In 12 major league seasons, he hit at least 25 home runs eight times and more than 35 home runs five times. Whenever he fell short of his normal numbers, there was a legitimate reason. In 1933, for instance, he hit only 12 home runs, but he was a 22-year-old rookie that year. Despite hitting .301, neither he nor his power had fully matured. In 1936 Greenberg was limited to 12 gamesand to one home runbecause of a broken left wrist sustained in a collision at first base. The initial prognosis was that he would miss a month to six weeks, but he ended up sitting out the rest of the season.

Not yet accepting the injurys severity, Hank thought he was recovering faster than expected in late May, only to hear from New York Yankees manager Joe McCarthy that these wrist injuries are bad, which was why McCarthy doubted from the time it happened that Greenberg would be of much help the rest of the year. However, the hope of playing again kept teasing the Tigers big first baseman. In June it was thought Greenberg would return on July 1, but he didnt. Saying he had suffered through the tortures of the damned by not being able to play, one target date for his return followed another. But his wrist didnt fully heal until October. Except for 55 plate appearances in April, he lost the entire 1936 season.

Such a setback was minor, however, compared to the challenge Greenberg faced five years later when the slugger became a soldier. He reported for duty in May, but the attack on Pearl Harbor occurred two days after his honorable discharge in December, 1941, so he went right back into the army. By that time, Hank had long since become a role model. Among Jews he was really a pathfinder, remembered Al Rosen, both a major league player and executive during his career. Coming through the minors, Im sure he encountered a lot of anti-Semitism. I guess if you want to draw an analogy, it would be the equivalent of what Jackie Robinson went through.

Opposing fans were rough on Greenberg after he reached the majors. The New York City native often heard himself being called that dirty Jew.

But he was so highly regarded for the way he conducted himself that the Free Press, when Greenberg was drafted, wrote an editorial calling him an honor to the game, an honor to your people, and to your country. All Detroit wishes you the best in the new game of life you are about to undertake. We know you will give it all you have.

There was never a question about Greenberg giving it his all. His commitment to being a soldier was no less complete than it had been to becoming the best hitter he could be. But his playing days were possibly over. In May of 1942, Greenberg told the New York World-Telegram, Im through with baseball. Im not kidding myself about this war; Im going to be in a long timefour or five years, maybe. What Im going to do when I come out, I dont know, dont really care much at the moment. But I know I am through as a ballplayer.

Greenberg was certainly wrong about his future. He wasnt through as a ballplayer. He went on to become an honored soldier as well as an honored player who led the A.L. in 1946 in both home runs (44) and RBIs (127). Such a season might have been his finest momentif his finest hadnt already taken place by so quickly going back in.

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Read an excerpt from Tom Gage's The Big 50 - Bless You Boys (blog)

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