Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on April 11, 2022

BERLIN (AP) The leading dictionary of standard German has changed its definition of Jew, or Jude in German, after a recent update caused an uproar in the countrys Jewish community a move reflecting the sensitivities that persist eight decades after the Holocaust.

The Duden dictionary had recently added an explanation to its online edition saying that occasionally, the term Jew is perceived as discriminatory because of the memory of the National Socialist use of language. In these cases, formulations such as Jewish people, Jewish fellow citizens or people of the Jewish faith are usually chosen.

This explanation led to an outcry from leading Jewish groups and individuals who stressed that identifying themselves or being called Jews is not discriminatory, in contrast to what Dudens definition implied.

The head of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Joseph Schuster, said last week that for him the word Jew is neither a swear word nor discriminatory.

Even if Jew is used pejoratively in schoolyards or only hesitantly by some people, and the Duden editors are certainly well-meaning in pointing out this context, everything should be done to avoid solidifying the term as discriminatory, Schuster said.

The executive director of the Central Council of Jews, Daniel Botmann, wrote on Twitter Is it okay to say Jew? Yes! Please dont say Jewish fellow citizens or people of the Jewish faith. Just JEWS. Thank you!

The publisher of Duden reacted to the criticism and updated its definition again Monday to reflect the Jewish communitys input.

Because of their antisemitic use in history and in the present, especially during the Nazi era, the words Jew/Jewess have been debated ... for decades, the entry on the dictionarys website now says. At the same time, the words are widely used as a matter of course and are not perceived as problematic. The Central Council of Jews in Germany, which has the term itself in its name, is in favor of its use.

During the Third Reich, Germanys Nazis and their henchmen murdered 6 million European Jews. After the end of World War II, Germanys once-thriving Jewish community of some 600,000 had been reduced to 15,000.

After the disintegration of the Soviet Union, around 200,000 Jews from Russia, Ukraine and other former Soviet republics immigrated to Germany, bringing renewed Jewish life to the country.

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Posted By admin on April 11, 2022

(RNS) You cannot have a seder without the four children.

If you are Jewish, and even minimally Passover literate, you know those kids. They have a starring role in the Passover Haggadah four children with four different approaches to the festival.

Is comedian Amy Schumer auditioning for the role of the simple kid?

I have been watching Amys new Hulu series, Life and Beth. Amy plays Beth, a millennial woman, complete with all the angst this entails. Amy is great. The series is great.

Let me present my Amy Schumer fan boy cred.

I have followed her comedic career for many years actually, since she was a child. I was Amys rabbi at her childhood synagogue on Long Island. I taught her. I prepared her for her bat mitzvah ceremony. I was friendly with her mother, who is committed to Jewish education, and works as a Jewish educator. The Schumers lived down the street from me. They are a wonderful family, and the synagogue was central to their lives. Senator Chuck Schumer is their cousin.

Imagine, then, my surprise when, early on in the series, Amys mother dies, and the funeral service is held in the synagogue where the Schumer family had spent many good years.

Not only that: who plays the rabbi, standing at the very pulpit where I had stood for eight years in the late 1980s to mid 1990s?

Amys fellow comedian Dave Attell, whose late father was the president of the synagogue, and whose mother makes a cameo in the funeral scene as well.

As for Amys character, Beth she is the Haggadahs simple child.

As Mira Fox wrote in the Forward:

Even as Judaism is foreign to Beth, its constantly present. She frequently references the fact that shes Jewish, even though she knows so little about its rituals and practice that, at one point, she replies to [her new boyfriend] Shlomos Shabbat Shalom with the quintessentially Catholic and also with you.

This is the reality of many secular American Jews and I know because it was my own experience until, as an adult, I dove into Jewish practice. Growing up, I attended a Seder here and there, but we rarely went to synagogue, and when we did, I found it unapproachable; I was too unfamiliar with the ritual to engage. I didnt have a strong foundation in Jewish history or culture or food either. My Jewish identity largely manifested as simply knowing I was Jewish; Beths Jewishness seems to operate on similar terms.

If thats how Schumer experienced Judaism, who am I to say its missing something?

Except, it is not how Amy Schumer experienced Judaism. Hardly. Amy grew up as a proud Jew, surrounded and embraced by a warm Jewish community that really cared about Judaism.

The Amy Schumer we saw in the synagogue scene? That was the real Amy Schumer. She was paying tribute to her roots in that synagogue.

Amy Schumer is not only a comedian. She is an actress. She is playing a part.

Here is the sad reality: her character, Beth, is a reflection of a certain version of millennial Jewish identity.

What do we know about the contours of that Jewish identity?

Consider the findings of the 2020 Pew study, especially in itsportrait of Jews in the 18-49 age category:

I will be the first to admit it, and to self-flagellate: the American synagogue did not always do the best that it could have for Beth.

We tried. Boy, did we try. Our best successes came when we sent Beth and her peers to Jewish summer camps, and got them involved in Jewish youth movements, and got them on Israel programs and then hoped that Hillel would do the trick on the college campus.

But, when you consider the tsunami of cultural and sociological changes, we were the collective David standing up to a societal Goliath.

Is there hope for Beth, and all the other Beths out there?

Totally.

Again, Pew tells us that, compared to their elders, more millennial Jews:

In other words, despite our deepest fears, most young Jews are not in the category of those who dont know how to ask the question. We are not there.

Yet.

I dont know where Life and Beth is going. I will be curious to find out.

But, I will say this.

I would like to pitch a show about a millennial Jew discovering her lost Jewish identity, and encountering it on her own terms, and creating a community of like minded Jews around her.

Hey, Hulu? Netflix? Amazon Prime? Can we talk?

And, Amy my dear student and friend and former neighbor want to star?

Have your people call my people.

Because, in the deepest sense possible, your people are my people.

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Amy Schumer is more Jewish than she thinks - Religion News Service

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Posted By admin on April 11, 2022

James Baldwins landmark essay Negroes Are Anti-Semitic Because Theyre Anti-White is alternatively nuanced and strident, exacting and scattershot, hopeful and fatalistic. Its fairly prophetic too. As we mark the 55th anniversary of its publication let us acknowledge that, in spite of all the outrage (and confusion) the piece created, it was prescient in many ways.

Way back in April of 1967 Baldwin surmised that by being white,Jewish-Americanseven the many Jewish-Americans committed to social justicewere ensnared within a brutal system of what we now call racial capitalism. The economic asymmetries that the system engendered would, in Baldwins augury, doom the civil rights coalition that these minority groups had heroically forged. Too, these structural inequalities would corrode any authentic empathy Jews and Blacks may have felt for one another.

*

Negroes Are Anti-Semitic Because Theyre Anti-White is far more subtle and internally tensile than its title suggests. The subtleties and tensions, however, were lost on countless Jewish leaders. Instead, some saw a passionate justification of Negro anti-Semitism. One rabbi dubbed Baldwin a Negro extremist . . . who has allowed his hostility to whites to run into extra-hostility to Jews.

When we teach this text in our Blacks and Jews class, we point out that Baldwin is actually performing something of an intellectual false flag operation. His essay reads like a sermon, albeit a secular one (see below). He appears to be attacking one thing (i.e., the Jews), yet his true targets lie elsewhere.

The piece is a symphony of rhetorical misdirections, winks, and toggles. African-Americans, Baldwin argued, perceive Jews as white and thus no different from white Christians. But he also affirmed that Jews are certainly not Christians; they too have run afoul of the old, rugged Roman cross. Yes, Baldwin alleged that Jews in Harlem are inconsiderate landlords, butchers, teachers, and police officers. But, no! Not all of those offenders are Jews. Thinking aloud, Baldwin recognizes that few Jews scale the corporate heights of General Motors, Mobiloil or Pepsi-Cola where white people rule.

Jewish readers in 1967 might have learned so much more from the essay than they actually did. Blacks, after all, certainly had a rich perspective on the inhumanity of white Christians. If Blacks perceived JewsJews!as indistinguishable from the latter, then what might this say about the moral standing of the Jewish-American community? Did the perception not recommend introspection, a course correction?

The question was mostly ignored (and still is). It was easier for Jews to linger on Baldwins oversights. He overlooked, as Whoopi Goldberg recently did on The View, the fact Jewish-Americans had been racially assigned in many different and contradictory ways (e.g., white, non-white, European, non-European, Semitic, Caucasian, Hebrew, Asiatic, Levantine, etc). He overlooked that the majority of world Jewry is non-white. He overlooked, to borrow a phrase from Cynthia Ozick, that There are black Jews. There have been black Jews for millennia.[they] can be seen giggling and wriggling in any cluster of Israeli schoolchildren. How could Baldwin have strolled down 125th Street in Harlem without seeing a Black Jew?

The Jews as white hypothesis could be overlooked and dismissed on those grounds. But that dismissal could not alter a fundamental truth. In a country beholden to a rigid Black/white binary, most Jews were now white. When given the opportunity, the majoritythough certainly not allof American Jews, passed. Only in recent years have Jewish communities begun to ponder the implications of this collective move for their Black compatriots.

*

All of which brings us to Baldwins true target in Negroes Are Anti-Semitic. Unnoticed in the copious commentary on the essay are his profound insights on what scholars today call racial capitalism. A heady concept, it explores how capitalism has created, manufactured, and exploited racial identities in ways that enrich some, and immiserate others. In America, the process has been operative from the advent of the slave trade, through the period of Jim Crow and segregation, right up to the present moment.

Baldwins maestro stroke was to depersonalize the debate. He reframed passionate Black/Jewish conflicts within the cold economic structures of racial capitalism. The dislike that some Blacks felt towards Jews, he instructed, wasnt really caused by Jews at all. In a manner reminiscent of, lets say, the Indian caste system, these secondary human beings were shunted into northeastern cities and ghettos by the dint of their marginality vis a vis white Christians. Sharing these spaces, the duo was stuck in a dismal, interdependent relation of hierarchy.

Latecomers to whiteness, but now white nonetheless, Jews entered this system of exploitation. They too abided by the logic of racial capitalism. This logic, Baldwin alleged, even dictated their well-known philanthropic impulses. The author decried the circulation of conscience money. This referred to donations given by Jews to civil rights causes which served the purpose of keeping the Negro happy in his place, and out of white neighborhoods.

The problem Baldwin identified, then, had to do with a vast civilizational apparatus of inequality, not Jews. This Marxist-tinged approach emphasized system over character, structure over personality. Not all of these white people were cruel, Baldwin declares, on the contrary, I remember some who were certainly as thoughtful as the bleak circumstances allowedbut all of them were exploiting us, and that was why we hated them. On the backstroke, the author was imploring his Black readers to be anti-capitalist, but not anti-Semitic.

*

Rhetorically, Negroes Are Anti-Semitic has the dynamic tempo and Saints!-When-I-think-of-the-goodness-of-Jesus-my-Soul-cries-Hallelujah! prompts of a sermon delivered in an African-American Pentecostal house of worship. Its no coincidence that precisely such a church was a major influence on Baldwins intellectual activism. The elder literary giant was always grappling with his younger self: the wunderkind junior minister at Fireside Pentecostal Assembly church, the talented apostate who left the fold at age 17. His pen became his cross and sword.

This accounts for a rhetorical technique deployed in Negroes Are Anti-Semitic known as signifying. A staple of the Black preachers tool kit, signifying performs the absurdity of W.E.B. Du Boiss magisterial question in the opening lines of The Souls of Black Folk: How does it feel to be a problem. Veiled in rhythmic cadences and punctuated through adroit alliteration, signifying from the pulpit trivializes and exacerbates what philosopher-preacher Cornel West theorizes as the tragic-comic sense of Black life.

To signify the word is to be simultaneously serious and playful, mournful and joyous, loving and brazen, while almost always concealing the true culprit under attack. It is also to take considerable pleasure in words and their infinite possibilities of meaning. Baldwin convincingly evokes, as is so often the case in Black preaching, the trickster character analyzed in Henry Louis Gates, Jr.s groundbreaking Signifying Monkey: A Theory of African-American Literary Criticism.

Blacks are anti-Semitic because they are anti-white. This is classic signifying. The locution confounds. One imagines the intrigued reader saying: We are what? They are who? Preacher/Trickster Baldwin is regaling his congregation with pokes at Jews and white folks (and Jews as white folks). Or so it seems.

In true signifying fashion, Baldwin suddenly, but subtly, shifts his target. The man who once had the audacity to quip One doesnt, in Harlem, long remain standing on any auction block, begins to indulge one of his favorite intellectual pastimes: critiquing his own people.

The great writer muses on the brutality of Black cops. He reflects upon the curious coalition that owns Harlem including some churches . . . . and some Negroes. His audiencehalf rapt, half perplexedlistens as he exposes the Black ghettos disdain for Jews who exploit their whiteness at the expense of their Black sisters and brothers. It is bitter to watch, sighed Baldwin, the Jewish storekeeper locking up his store for the night, and going home. Going, with your money in his pocket, to a clean neighborhood, miles from you, which you will not be allowed to enter.

What some may have construed as a provocation aimed at Jews, we decipher as equally a provocation aimed at Blacks. This is the altar-call; the moment where Baldwin expectsdare we say demandsthat Black folk come clean about their loathing of Jewish financial success. I refuse to hate Jews . . . because I know how it feels to be hated, Baldwin concludes. Though, sotto voce, he signifies: You hate them dont you? Dont you! And yet: you call yourselves Christians? Like any good preacher, Baldwin exposes his listeners contradictions as a reminder of their frailties. This is the pathway to healing wounded people.

*

There is some more, rather personal, self-signifying going on in Negroes Are Anti-Semitic.

Five weeks before the article appeared in the New York Times Sunday Magazine, Baldwin resigned from the advisory board of Liberator, a Black nationalist magazine. His resignation was prompted by Harlem writer Eddie Ellis who wrote a series entitled Semitism in the Black Ghetto. Elliss pieces focused on police brutality, and Jewish economic colonialism in Black communities. The articles called out Jews for their heavy-handed role in shaping the Civil Rights movement. In response, Baldwin demurred: I think it is most distinctly unhelpful, and I think it is immoral, to blame Harlem on the Jew.

The criticism of Ellis presages a pattern that figures often in Black-Jewish relations. It begins when a relatively obscure Black writer/cleric/leader/entertainer/athlete spews anti-Semitic slurs. Soon thereafter a more established Black figure is expected to denounce the malefactor. One thinks of cases ranging from Minister Louis Farrakhan to Nick Cannon.

One also thinks of double standards. For how often are other white people asked to denounce, lets say, Mel Gibsons anti-Semitic musings? Theyre Jewish people that run The New York Times, former President Donald Trump recently said. Was Joe Biden urged to condemn these remarks?

In any case, its unclear if Baldwin was pushed to rebuke Ellis, or if his own moral compass directed his intervention. We suspect the latter. Yet as far as many Jews were concerned, Baldwins ideas were indistinguishable from the ones he castigated! As we noted above, his argument looks to capitalism, not to Jews, as the source of the problem. Say what you will about signifyingit astonishes, it delights, it titillates, but it also confuses.

*

Aside from its authors genius and literary elan, Negroes Are Anti-Semitic is the beneficiary of its historical moment. Shortly after its publication (April 9, 1967), the Six-Day War broke out in the Middle East. Almost exactly one year later, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated.

Baldwins essay is perched between epochs. Before the piece, there was the feel-good narrative of the Grand Alliance. That would be the liberal Black-Jewish juggernaut which scored monumental victories in the 1950s and 1960s culminating in the Voting Rights and Civil Rights Acts. After the piece, came the murder of Dr. King and the rise of a younger generation of Black leaders. Not being liberals, and not feeling good about America, they rejected the church-based, integrationist, gradualist, leadership of their elders.

The new Black Power movement also rejected the Grand Alliance. Stokely Carmichael, depicted Israel as a white, colonial-settler enterprise oppressing Palestinians (now cast in the role of symbolic African-Americans). Some scholars argue this critique was less about Jews and more about signaling to the old Christian guard that the new generation meant business.

Jewish-Americans also shifted between 1967 and 1968. They once exhibited a muted sense of pride, coupled with deep existential dread, about Israels future. After the war, a sense of euphoria seized the community. Muted no longer, Jews would defend Israel from its most vociferous criticsmany of whom happened to be Black! In so doing, they even adapted Black Powers rhetorical swagger and ethnic affirmation. Jewish-Americans, if they so desired, could be Jewish, not white or just white.

People dont read carefully. Theres a reason educators rarely signify the word. In 1967, many readers assumed Negroes Are Anti-Semitic conveyed the Black perspective. Jews read the title and drew obvious conclusions. By 1968, the Grand Alliance was tottering. Soon came a half century of spectacularly public brawls, ranging from the Ocean Hill-Brownsville teachers strike, to the Andrew Young Affair, to debates about Affirmative Action, to Crown Heights, and beyond.

Today, the Grand Alliance languishes in what we call its afterglow stage. It was never Baldwins intention to extinguish its flame. Rather, he wanted to mourn a failing democracy beholden to a brutal system of racial-economic exploitation. He wanted to identify white Christianitys singular role in producing and propagating anti-Blackness and anti-Semitism.

_________________________________

Terrence L. Johnson and Jacques Berlinerblaus latest booksis Blacks and Jews in America: An Invitation to Dialogue (Georgetown University Press). The authors wish to thank Tara Neil for her editorial assistance.

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Blacks and Jews: Fifty-Five Years After James Baldwin's Negroes Are Anti-Semitic Because They're Anti-White - Literary Hub

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Posted By admin on April 11, 2022

Mayim Bialik has become arguably the most visible Jewish face on TV, thanks to her gig hosting Jeopardy! and her presence on ever-present The Big Bang Theory reruns. But for her latest project, As They Made Us, Bialik stepped behind the camera to write and direct a semi-autobiographical, low-key melodrama about a Jewish family encountering death and dysfunction.

Will it have tearjerker moments? Well, itisproduced by Chicken Soup for the Soul (via its film distribution arm, Screen Media).

Dianna Agronof Glee fame plays Abigail, a divorced mother and full-time print magazine writer who is somehow still able to afford a sparkling house. The generic Jewish publication that employs her, titled The Modern Jew (no joke), must pay quite well although her mother Barbara (Candace Bergen) demands to know why she hasnt gotten a cover story yet.

Barbara is like that, needling and poking in her adult daughters life like many a Jewish mother, spreading ill will about others while blind to the troubles at her own doorstep: namely, that her husband Eugene (Dustin Hoffman, alternating between his cuddly and abrasive personas) has a degenerative illness. Hes gotta eat more! an in-denial Barbara yells at the doctor trying to convince her he needs hospice care. Maybe if you gave him an enema he would make room for more food.

This is a family story, so the drama focuses on interpersonal dynamics and long-held grudges. There are many flashbacks to Abigails younger days living under her parents roof, where we see that her father, a failed novelist who always regretted settling down with a family, was often physically abusive to his children. Bialik, whohad the cast and crew recognize the Sabbathwhile on set,told the Jewish Telegraphic Agencys sister publication Kvellerthat she wrote the script in the aftermath of her own fathers death, shortly before Passover 2015.

Bialik casts her Big Bang Theory co-star Simon Helberg as Abbys brother Nathan, a hipster academic who, owing to his childhood trauma, has avoided his parents his entire adult life leaving Abby to clean up their messes. We assume at first that Nathans central anger lies with their father for his explosive outbursts, but in fact it becomes clear their moms endless insults did the more lasting damage: His wreckage was tangible. Hers was so insidious and disturbing.

Judaism becomes a quiet stabilizing force in the story, with Abby pushing her kids to saythe Shema prayerevery night before bed even as her world crumbles around her, and Agrons character wearing Bialiks own Star of David necklace throughout the film. (The household appears not to keep kosher, but there are hand-drawn menorahs taped on the walls.) When grief enters the story in its third act, the Shema comes out againas does a Yiddish song, Voz Geven Iz Geven Un Nito, that has been a lullaby in multiple generations of Bialiks family.

We never learn why Abby got divorced, although we can gather her parents didnt exactly model a healthy marriage for her. In this and other ways, the subtleties of the films family dynamics can be quiet as a whisper. Bialik admits that one aspect of the familys tension, the fact that Abigail is more religiously observant than her parents, goes largely unaddressed in the film, telling Kveller, Thats a whole other movie. Still, the one we have will likely feel familiar to many a Jewish family that has encountered grief and strife.

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Mayim Bialik assembles a very Jewish cast in her directorial debut J. - The Jewish News of Northern California

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Posted By admin on April 11, 2022

My mother has been brainwashed by Russian propaganda.

Aside from a brief phone call during the first week of the war, I havent been communicating with her. Its too painful to expend energy on reasoning with her while my people are getting killed at the front lines. I choose to spend that time and energy caring for people who need it, like the three elderly families in my building. I am at peace with my decision, but losing my mother to Russian propaganda breaks my heart.

Im a Ukrainian Jew who was born and raised in Kyiv, and at 30 years old, Im just slightly younger than the free nation of Ukraine. I have lived abroad in China, Germany, and Israel, and have worked in the corporate world and in Jewish education. I have had opportunities to develop myself and see what the world has to offer. My mother, in contrast, grew up in the Soviet Union. She was able to be brainwashed into thinking that the Ukrainian military is exterminating its own citizens. I was born in freedom, and I am able to see the truth.

I am always critical of everything I see and experience. I understand that when I watch television, for example, I am being invited to share in a reality that was created by someone else. But my mom, who grew up in the Soviet Union, was forced to experience the reality that the Soviet Union created.

I regularly commiserate with my older siblings, but its very hard for us to grapple with the truth that my mother is lost to Russian disinformation. This war and the Russian propaganda is dividing countless families just like ours.

My mother liked the Soviet Union, and the utopian ideals it convinced her were a reality. It was a world in which everything was straightforward, and there was no room for any criticism.

She worked at a shoe factory, where she earned a pretty high salary, and her life was pretty good. She had nothing to complain about.

When the Soviet Union fell, everybody was forced to think for themselves for the first time, and my mother was not ready. She was not equipped with the proper skills to survive in this new world Ukraine was creating. She was lost, and I understand how she became an easy target for Russian propaganda extolling Soviet values, Soviet culture, the myth of how it was cool and great during the Soviet times.

But even if Russia recreates the Soviet Union, the Russian World that Putin talks about, it wont be the same. The Soviet Union is a thing of the past. Yet my mother still believes in that fiction, that fairy-tale.

There is a saying in Russian: Its not difficult to trick me because I want to be tricked.

We all want to believe in miracles. A sort of magic was promised to my mom by the Soviet Union, and for her and other people her age, no matter the facts, no matter the arguments I have, it is so hard for her to question anything. No matter what I say, it only makes her belief stronger.

Incredibly, my mothers faith in Russian propaganda does not waver even when her life is threatened. She lives close to a plant that produces electro-energy that was being bombed by the Russians.

During our only phone call during the war, I said to her explicitly, Russia was bombing this plant right next to your apartment, shells are falling 10 kilometers from your home, and you still dont believe that its Russia attacking us?

No, that is Ukrainians bombing their own citizens, their own power plants.

Mom, why would they do something like that?

Because theyre trying to make a genocide against Ukrainians.

I tried a different tactic.

Mom, the rockets that theyre firing are really expensive new technology, and the Ukrainian military doesnt have them. How can Ukraine be firing them if theyre too poor to have them?

They stole those rockets from Russia and then they fired them.

I spent 20 minutes on the phone trying to convince her, but all our conversation did was convince me of how deeply the propaganda is rooted in her head.

There is no liberal tradition within Russia. Nobody who isnt dreaming of a Soviet Union restored to its glory days wants to be associated with this totally isolated country that is going to experience economic collapse.

Step by step, Vladimir Putin united this country against him. He doesnt even understand how much he helped this country come together.

Ukrainian is more than a nationality a Ukrainian is a person who cherishes the democratic values and this country.

Ukraine will never again be a part of Russia, even if people like my mother long for it to be.

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I am a Ukrainian Jew. I have lost my mother to Russian disinformation J. - The Jewish News of Northern California

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Posted By admin on April 11, 2022

They suffered minor to moderate injuries, the army is investigating the circumstances of the incident

Two Israeli Hasidic Jews were shot and wounded overnight Sunday to Monday as they attempted to reach Joseph's Tomb near Nablus in the West Bank, the Israeli army said.

The two men, who belong to the Berland sect of the Breslov Hasidic community, attempted to reach the religious site without coordinating with the Israel Defense Forces, which usually oversee visits by Jewish worshippers.

According to the army, they also broke through a roadblock at the entrance to Nablus.

The incident comes a day after acts of vandalism by Palestinians on parts of the shrine. Both pilgrims wanted to help restore the site, Channel 12 reported.

After being targeted by gunfire, they reached a military checkpoint near the shrine, where first aid was given to them.

They were later evacuated to Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikvah, the army said, with light to moderate wounds.

The army is investigating the circumstances of the incident.

During the night from Saturday to Sunday, Palestinians from the Balata refugee camp vandalized the shrine located on the outskirts of the city of Nablus, acts deemed "extremely serious" by Defense Minister Benny Gantz.

The head of diplomacy, Yair Lapid, for his part denounced the "shocking" images, and "a serious attack not only on the Tomb itself, but also on the deep beliefs of the Jewish people."

Overnight from Sunday to Monday, Palestinians again broke into Joseph's Tomb and caused damage, according to media reports. Israel's Kan News showed video footage of the apparent second attack on the holy site.

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2 Hasidic Jews Shot On Their Way To Joseph's Tomb - i24NEWS

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Posted By admin on April 11, 2022

When Rachel Stegman noticed her son was struggling inschool, she didn't want torepeathistory.

She'd had difficulties in school herselfbecause of what she now believes is undiagnosed autism. Her son, whom she described as "amazingly visual and artistic," experiencedsensory overload on top of challenges with executive functioning and keeping up with the assignments at his public school.

He was ultimately diagnosed with autism and later transferredto Pardes Jewish Day School, a private school near Scottsdale and Cactus roads. There, he had an Individualized Educational Plan, or IEP,and started receiving services from Gesher Disability Resources.

The organization wasstarted in 1985 under the name Council for Jews with Special Needs, with the aim of making typical Jewish activities and services more accessible to people with disabilities.

Executive director Amy Hummell said the organization has four focus areas education, religion, residential and social that all come together to help people lead "fuller lives" regardless of their different abilities.

Their programs currently includeSimchat Shabbat, anabbreviated and modified Shabbat service held at Congregation Beth Israel each month, social gatheringsand Jewish group homes for adults with disabilities.

In 2014, Gesher added education services to the mix, which Stegman said has "been great" for helping her son work to overcome learning challenges.Her 8-year-old daughter,also diagnosed with autism, will soon be gettingsimilar assistance.

Students in the program typically receive services twice per week, either in the form of Gesher teachers going to their school or students going to Gesher's suite in the Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center in Scottsdale, Hummell said.

Stegman said she appreciates the cultural understanding her children have gotten through Gesher.

Thoughher family is not religiously Jewish, she said she received "extensive" Jewish education growing up and that it's important thather childrenunderstand their heritage.

Gesher teachers, for example, are able to assist herchildren with Hebrew lessons, taking into account their learning differences and teaching them complex ideas in a way they can grasp.

Stegmansaid she revels in giving her children opportunities that weren't available to her years ago.

"If I had had this, I think I would be a lot better off today," she said.

Sheila Shafferwas working at Phoenix Hebrew Academy, which serves students from pre-school through middle school,in 2014when she identified six students who needed additional support. After being told the school could not provide a full-time special education teacher for them, Shaffer sought other ways to help.

The school contracted two Gesher employees to workwith the students,and with seed money that Shaffer obtained through a grant, she said the educationprogram "just blossomed."

She intended to retire last year after an education career spanning more than four decades, but Hummell persuaded her to officially join the Gesher team.She's been working as the organization's program specialist since July.

Each of Gesher's teachers are certified special education teachers with "all the credentials of a regular classroom teacher," Shaffer said. They work not only with students but also with teachers, helping them identify those with learning challenges and finding ways to assist.

As time went on, Shaffer said school enrollment numbers increased because of the newly-offered services for students with disabilities, and that the program eventually expanded to thehigh school levelso that those students could continue receiving the same support.

It made a huge difference, Shaffer said.

"I watched them come in as these little people and leave as these very capable, self-confident, organized, ready to conquer the world students who went to high school without as much fear," she said.

Gesher currently offers services at sixJewish day schools and is a qualified vendor with Paradise Valley Unified School District and Phoenix Union High School District.

What was once a six-student cohort has now become a 100-student caseload for Gesher, which now has four full-time and two part-time teachers.

And with the expansion of the program has come greater recognition and trust from the Jewish community, which has led to further opportunities for growth.

"It's kind of a two-way street now," Shaffer said. "It used to just be us going out, now people are calling and going 'Can you help?'"

Hummell said it "means the world" to provide services to students who may not have otherwise received them, helping them develop skills that will serve them throughout school and beyond.

"It's not justone plus one is two. It's why is one plus one two and taking it to the next level, because sometimes that's the biggest challenge," Hummell said. "There's memorization and then there's really understanding what they're trying to learn."

Hummell said Gesher is "mission-focused, mission-driven and quite frankly, mission successful."

"The teachers feel validated, the students feel validated, the parents feel validated, and I think when you have a specific community, like the Jewish community, being able to have trustworthy resources ... that's safety and security all wrapped up in a wonderful package," she said.

She hopes for the program to continue growing in order to meet the needs of all students, teachers and schools in the Valley's Jewish community.

"The sky's the limit," she said.

Reach the reporter at bfrank@arizonarepublic.comor 602-444-8529.Follow her on Twitter @brieannafrank.

Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral today.

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'The sky's the limit': Gesher Disability Resources working to meet needs of Jewish students with disabilities - The Arizona Republic

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Posted By admin on April 11, 2022

It took more than 40 years, but now Egypt is gradually waking up to the potential of economic ties with Israel.

Its hardly anything resembling the warm and powerful embrace of the United Arab Emirates in the wake of the 2020 Abraham Accords, but signs abound that the regime of President Abdel-Fattah al-Sissi wants to strengthen economic ties above and beyond the $15 billion natural gas deal the two countries reached four years ago.

The signs are most evident in the tourism sector. Last October, state-owned EgyptAir began flying to Tel Aviv under its own name rather than through its unflagged Air Sinai affiliate, and this month the first direct flights between Ben-Gurion International Airport and the Sinai resort of Sharm el-Sheikh took place.

Earlier in the year, the leader of Egypts Coptic Church gave official imprimatur to his followers pilgrimages to Jerusalem. Egypts Tourism Ministry even sports a Jewish Heritage section on its website as a come-on for Israeli visitors.

Meanwhile, Israeli gas exports to Egypt are growing quickly. The first gas began flowing in January 2020 through a Sinai pipeline delivering 5 billion cubic meters annually. That figure has expanded by as much as 50 percent since the end of February, when more gas began to be sent via a pipeline running through Jordan. The number will rise even more with plans to increase the Sinai pipelines capacity to 6.5 BCM.

The government of Egypt and the elite now realize that economic ties with Israel are a net positive. They have seen the success of the UAE and Israel, and they think they should jump on board, says Hussain Abdul-Hussain, a research fellow at the Washington-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

To see the speed at which the UAE moved to establish business, trade and investment ties with Israel, you only need to look at the size of bilateral trade, which reached $1.15 billion in 2021, the first year after the Abraham Accords were signed. The two countries agreed on terms for a free trade agreement earlier this month, and cross-border investment, led by Mubadala Petroleums $1 billion purchase of a stake in Israels Tamar gas field, has taken off.

By comparison, Israeli-Egyptian trade, not counting energy, came to just $246 million last year, most of it Israeli exports to Egyptian companies in the framework of U.S.-sponsored qualified industrial zones. QIZ rules allow Egyptian companies to export their goods duty-free to the United States as long as a little over 10 percent of the products value was made in Israel.

In 2019, before COVID put an end to tourism, some 500,000 Israelis visited Egypt. But nearly all of them are taking beach holidays at isolated Sinai resorts reachable by car. Few Israelis tour the rest of Egypt and only 8,000 Egyptians visited Israel in 2019.

The difference, experts say, is attitude. While the Emiratis have accepted Israel with open arms welcoming Israeli tourists and openly hosting business executives, for instance Egypts opening to Israel remains an elite phenomenon.

At this point, the awareness [of the change] is at the top level of government and the private sector it has not seeped through to the rest of the population, which remains, to put it nicely, skeptical towards Israel, Abdul-Hussain says.

That means that while commercial ties with Egypt may be growing, they wont be much in evidence no glittery investment conferences or press releases announcing deals, as there have been in the UAE. Thats due to hostile public opinion, which only gets worse every time Israel and Hamas clash in deadly fighting.

Within Egypt, public sentiment against Israel is very high thats not going to change in the foreseeable future, as much as Sissi would like to make the change, says Gabriel Mitchell, director of undergraduate studies at the University of Notre Dames Tantur Center in Jerusalem.

The powerful professional syndicates, which organize doctors, lawyers and even artists, are a major source of anti-Israel feelings. Even if the Muslim Brotherhoods influence in them has diminished since it was banned by Sissi, anyone doing anything that smacks of normalization with Israel is likely to be called out. The private sector remains wary, Mitchell says.

So long as they arent protected by the government or in some way affiliated with the military or intelligence community, its far more difficult for Egyptian businesses to cooperate with an Israeli company, Mitchell says. Its not that theres anything built into the economic system resistant to business with Israel but due to social factors how they would be perceived by Egyptian and other Middle Eastern partners.

Thus its no surprise that in March 2021 the Israeli delegation to the biggest get-together of Israeli and Egyptian business executives in two decades was led by then-Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen and was held in Sharm el-Sheikh (a kind of desert Geneva for bilateral meetings) rather than Cairo. At the Egyptians request, the meeting got almost no media attention, and if any deals have emerged from it, theyve been kept private.

Still, the militarys role in the Egyptian economy shouldnt be underestimated. The size and scope of the armys business empire is murky, but its believed to comprise 60 or so companies with an annual turnover as high as $7 billion, The Financial Times reported last year.

Growing rapidly under Sissis rule, army-affiliated companies now encompass wide swaths of the economy, including the role of prime contractor for Egypts new $45 billion capital city. Tellingly, East Gas, which holds the Egyptian stake in the pipeline bringing Israeli gas to Egypt, is controlled by Egyptian intelligence, according to the Egyptian news site Mada.

Sissis efforts to strengthen commercial ties with Israel comes as Egypt struggles to generate enough economic growth to create the 1 million new jobs that it needs each year.

More recently, the economy has been buffeted by the Ukraine war, which has interrupted critical supplies of imported wheat. Last month, the Egyptian pound was devalued 14 percent, which will exacerbate inflation.

At this point, Sissi and his government are trying everything to make the economy work, Abdul-Hussain says.

The Abraham Accords are also changing attitudes by making commercial ties with Israel more acceptable, he adds. The UAE is causing regional economic integration, and if youre Egypt or Jordan, or any other country, its in your interest to jump on board. Things are happening you only have to capture a piece of it.

For now, however, the business opportunities will be limited to easier targets like Sinai tourism, Mitchell says. Promising sectors are in areas like agricultural and water technology, where Egypt faces enormous challenges. One way Israeli companies can enter the Egyptian market is via joint ventures with Emirati or European companies that would lower the Israelis profile, he suggests.

Mitchell sees the atmosphere in Egypt slowly getting warmer, as long as Sissi remains in power. But it will take time.

Everyone understands this and is committed to a long-term approach, he says. Israel has the desire [to strengthen economic ties] and typically likes to charge ahead, but Israel has a long history with Egypt and understands that Egypt works at its own pace.

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What the UAE taught Egypt on doing business with Israel - Haaretz

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Posted By admin on April 11, 2022

Two rows of white cotton tents, flapping in the warm wind next to a large factory, is all one can see at first. Erected in the sands of the desert a place where temperatures approach 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) most of the year this mysterious new camp seems foreign to its surroundings, a fata morgana of times long gone. The seas southern section has been completely altered over the last century; virtually nothing remains of its natural state.

Most people coming here would never have heard the name Moshe Novomeysky. The founder of the pre-state Potash company that was the precursor of the Dead Sea Works has vanished almost completely from Israeli history. But this new visitor center, recreating in part a harsh work camp for early Zionists inSdom(aka Sodom, the location of the biblical Sodom and Gomorrah), should restore his lost honor and that of his partners.

The wooden buildings, accurately recreated with the aid of in-depth research, are located at the foot of Mount Sdom, where the potash workers camp was located back in the 1930s. There is only one main difference: everything here is air-conditioned.

Novomeysky, a mining engineer from Siberia, first saw the Dead Sea in 1911. After recognizing its economic potential, he spent years trying to obtain a license to mine it. In 1930, he founded the Palestine Potash Company, which was originally based in Kalia, on the northern Dead Sea. From 1934 onward, it also ran operations 80 kilometers to the south, at Sdom, where Dead Sea Works is located to this day.

Because there was no road connecting the two sites at the time (Route 90 was only built in 1970), traveling from one to the other required going by ship a voyage that took eight to 12 hours. The Sdom site was considered the loneliest place in the country at that time.

My grandfather worked as a welder at the company in the 30s, and my father used to say that summer vacations at the workers residences near the factory especially sailing a sailboat on the Dead Sea were some of his best childhood experiences. He was 10 at the time and he, his mother and his brother spent the month of August there.

My favorite part of the story was his description of the admiring looks the other workers gave his young mother when she got off the boat. I looked for my grandfather in the beautiful photographs at the visitor center, but couldnt find him.

As the southern factory grew, residences for the workers families were built there in the mid-30s. A significant portion of the visitor center tour focuses on the heroic persistence of the first workers and the harsh living conditions they had to cope with. The tour at the center included the reconstructed kitchen and dining room, and the tents where the workers lived. It was nice to discover that the workers had ice and lemonade.

During the War of Independence in 1948, the northern factory was abandoned. Kibbutz Beit Haarava was set up near where it used to be (most of its members worked at the factory). The southern factory, at Sdom, was besieged. Five workers remained there to guard it, headed by one of Novomeyskys partners, Moshe Langotsky.

After the war ended, Dead Sea Works a government company that marketed the Dead Seas minerals overseas was established. Since 1968, it has been owned by Israel Chemicals, which was privatized in the 90s. Israel Chemicals is a subsidiary of the Israel Corporation, currently controlled by Idan Ofer.

The Ofer familys license to mine the sea expires in 2030, and the government must make a decision about the seas future by then. Teams comprised of officials from the relevant ministries are supposed to ensure the states interests at the Dead Sea are protected by drafting a new license with improved terms.

Historical justice

Langotsky, Novomeyskys right-hand man, came to the Dead Sea in 1925 and worked at its factory for 44 years. At times, he was there all alone, displaying great courage and persistence. Among other things, he established the companys maritime department a fleet of some 20 ships that plied the Dead Sea.

His son, Yossi Langotsky, is a well-known geologist who was involved in discovering the Tamar and Dalit natural gas fields in the Mediterranean Sea and has won the Israel Defense Prize as well as other awards. The Dead Sea is very close to his heart, and for years he sought to get a visitor center built in Sdom.

The story of the Palestine Potash Company, one of the most glorious chapters in the history of the pre-state Jewish community, was forgotten and obscured in the years after the state was founded, he once wrote. This is mainly because the potash company was depicted by the dominant political players of those years as a capitalist company, ostensibly foreign to Zionist ideology. The potash company was a Zionist enterprise founded at the initiative of individuals imbued with Zionist consciousness, people with economic daring, and scientific and technical expertise who turned it, with the sweat of hundreds of workers brows, into the biggest industrial plant of the pre-state Jewish community.

This week, Langotsky welcomed the visitor centers establishment, terming it a miracle. He said he was involved in starting it and is generally pleased with the result.

Nevertheless, he also had some criticisms of the content. The main problem, he noted, is that it omits the last chapter of Novomeyskys story.

The visionary who founded the company died of a broken heart at age 87 and was buried in Tel Aviv. According to Langotsky, he was furious because in the 50s, when he tried to rehabilitate the company after the War of Independence, then-Prime Minister David Ben-Gurions government informed him that it intended to nationalize it. That forestalled the possibility of securing investments from overseas.

As the disappointed Novomeysky wrote in Haaretz at the time: The company is like a boxer who was taken to the arena with his hands tightly tied behind his back, and then they blame him for losing the match.

Langotsky alleged that at some point, the people in charge of setting up the visitor center decided he was too opinionated and neutered his influence over the content.

The new center is a success, and I dont want quarrels and strife, heaven forbid but there are people who see the place as Disneyland, he said. I understand them. Maybe I wouldnt have done things exactly this way, but this is apparently what will attract a wide audience. And the responses to date have been very good, so maybe Im wrong.

At the same time, I have many questions. For example: Why didnt they make a model of how Mount Sdom came to be? Its legitimate to present the life of the pioneers in the place that was an important component but I feel the main thing thats lacking is that they chose not to address the problematic aspects of the kibbutz movements integration in the factories. On this matter, Novomeysky essentially dug his own grave and its a story they dont want to tell there. Its natural that they would want to present a rosy picture, but Im bothered by the deviation from the historic truth.

The visitor center is important because it can present the historic truth. I have many more reservations, but my main objective commemorating the founding of the Dead Sea Potash Company has been achieved.

It all started25 million years ago

This beautiful facility is a clear case of the cat describing the glories of the cream. In many cases, the center provides historical justice to people who have been marginalized. It also offers a dignified portrayal of the difficulties entailed in founding and running this Zionist enterprise.

Theres an impressive 3-D display that shows the formation of theGreat Rift Valley. I also sailed the Dead Sea with the help of virtual reality glasses and got a detailed explanation of the pioneers living conditions in a place where its almost impossible for people to live.

But beyond all this, a lot of questions arose during my tour of the new visitor center.

The Dead Seas important and dramatic story is clearly told from the viewpoint of the owner: ICL Dead Sea Works. The new visitor center is located on the companys grounds and tells the story of the company and its founders. It was financed by Dead Sea Works, a subsidiary of Israel Chemicals, to the tune of 60 million shekels ($19 million). The Council for the Conservation of Heritage Sites a nonprofit organization with little money that relies on meager government funding came up with the idea and was an active partner in the venture.

But when a commercial company whose goal is to turn a profit is involved in creating content for visitors, and when such a center is located at the scene of one of Israels most serious environmental problems, questions arise.

The Dead Seas water level is falling by 3.9 feet (1.2 meters) a year. Dead Sea Works, located at the seas southern tip, is responsible for about a quarter of this decline; the rest stems from the drop in the amount of water flowing into the sea from the Jordan River.

The tour opens at a large shack that describes the formation of the Great Rift Valley 25 million years ago. Next, sophisticated exhibits depict the routines of work and daily life in the camp. There are also many photographs and reproductions of original items. All this is accompanied by videos starring an actor who portrays Novomeyskys grandson (in reality, the entrepreneur had no offspring) as he traces his grandfathers life work. (The content director is Udi Armoni, the designer Nitzan Refaeli and curator Dr. Meirav Balas.)

Not a dirty word

The last pavilion at the visitor center focuses on questions such as why it was important to build the Dead Sea Works; what the minerals its produces are used for; how it impacts the environment; and what the future of the Dead Sea is. These questions are presented without answers. Visitors are meant to decide for themselves.

The Dead Sea Works declined to be interviewed about the content presented at the new center and referred me to the Council for Preservation of Heritage Sites in Israel. Dead Sea Works president and CEO Raviv Zoller said at the centers opening: ICL planned and spearheaded the reconstruction of the camp and its transformation into an innovative and unique center that tells the story of the heritage and history in an experiential manner that respects the landscape and the environment. We see the center as a source of knowledge on environmental issues, on sustainability, and on the connection of the industry and the plants that have operated in this area since then and until today. Cooperation with the various organizations heightens the importance of the center, which illustrates the companys economic and social contributions since the first Zionist factory in the 30s up until the significant activity of ICL today.

Omri Shalmon, director of the Council for the Preservation of Heritage Sites in Israel, talks about the complexity involved in the connection between a business entity and an organization like the preservation council: For 40 years, people were talking about preserving this important site. Theres a huge story there. Its a place that was built with much toil at the ends of the Earth, its the beginning of industry in Israel, its about pioneering and boldness and economics and using the Dead Sea.

The preservation council is a small organization. We only actively run nine out of the 200 heritage sites in which we are involved. We knew we needed a strong partner to help with this. We negotiated with the Dead Sea Works so they would fund the construction and participate in the site management. They are a business entity and we have a positive collaboration with them. Theres a joint steering committee for content, which I lead.

You need to understand that this is an ongoing process that is far from completion, Shalmon says. Were continuing with the preservation even now mainly in the security building and the residences. The site was opened as a pilot last Sukkot and drew a lot of visitors. We formed teams to work on content and were still putting together the content on the desired subjects, such as the construction of a Zionist factory in the middle of nowhere and what it contributed to the country.

Well also present content about preservation: what is preservation? What constitutes historic materials? I expect all of these things will be done in the coming year. In time, content will also be created about things like the landscape, trails and nature.

He also says this is a great example of the preservation councils activity. Humans have been active in this area since the early 20s and shaped the landscape to suit their needs. This needs to be understood. By its nature, a site like this is highly dynamic. We have disagreements sometimes with the Dead Sea Works, but basically what we have is a good dialogue with a large private company that operates in the area.

Should the site address the state of the Dead Sea? Should it talk about the sinkholes, for instance?

I think so. The sinkholes are only touched on minimally. It is mentioned in the tour. The big issue is the rift. The Great Syria-African rift is an event that affected everything that man has done here since prehistoric times. Is it right for this to presented there? I believe so, but others could oppose this position. I think it could be included but not in a defiant way. It does not clearly contradict what is shown there.

Is this something that can be discussed with the Dead Sea Works?

I think its an interesting example, because its obvious that this is something that interests the people we are working with there. Remember, this is their land. They are the sovereign, and I am very pleased that weve been able to create a dialogue with them. That is not something to be taken for granted. Interest is not a dirty word, you have to know how to make the most of it.

Last year, an excavation project began at the Dead Sea called the Salt Harvest with the aim of halting the rise in the sea level in the southern section. The Dead Sea Works is responsible for the execution of the project and for financing 80 percent of it (at a cost of 7 billion shekels). The rest of the funding is coming from the government.

In your view, is it even possible for the visitor center to ignore such an issue?

Shalmon: The Salt Harvest has not come up in any of our discussions. The Dead Sea Works looks out for us and we look out for them. In this mix, if youre a partner who is able to cooperate, you win. The Dead Sea Works maintain the site, and thats a big thing. We have a serious say about the content and, to me, thats an advantage.

On the way home, on the winding road up to Arad, I remembered that 18 months ago, I wrote an angry piece about the idea of building a museum for the salvation of the Dead Sea in the southern city, with photos by U.S. Spencer Tunick (best known for organizing large-scale nude shoots).

After the visit to Sdom, I understand that the new visitor center there, as important it may be, cannot serve as a museum of the Dead Sea. That requires a broad and value-based perspective that is not connected to business. Moreover, saving the lowest place on Earth requires genuine work and not just a sophisticated and impressive exhibition.

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A work camp in the lowest place on earth is Israel's latest tourist attraction - Haaretz

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Posted By admin on April 11, 2022

Whats going on this week in Pittsburgh, April 11-17? Find out here. Be sure to visit each organizations website and social media for Covid safety protocols. Know of a cool event? Email us.

Monday, April 11: Public Meeting at Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh Main6:30-7:30 p.m.Want to hear firsthand from library staff and trustees about recent accomplishments and plans for the coming year? The public meeting in CLPs South Wing Reading Room includes a State of the Library presentation, an open question and answer session, time for personal conversations and a social gathering. Go here to submit comments or questions.

Monday, April 11: Robin Wall Kimmerer at Carnegie Music Hall7:30 p.m.With Earth Day around the corner, its the perfect time to hear this talk by award-winning botanist, professor and writer Robin Wall Kimmerer. A member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, Kimmerer will discuss her book, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants as part of Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures Ten Evenings series. Buy tickets.

Tuesday, April 12: Pirates Home Opener at PNC Park4:12 p.m.Now that the MLB lockout is over and winter appears to be in the rear-view mirror were ready for the first pitch to be thrown. Celebrate the ballparks opening day aka 412 Day on the North Shore when the Pirates host the Chicago Cubs. A limited number of recently released tickets are available for $4.12 while supplies last.

Malcolm Williams, Start Living Your Dreams. Photo by Rich Lee Prints.

Tuesday, April 12: Fashion Fair: Heart on a Sleeve x Willie Gee Trunk Show at True T Studios4:12-8:12 p.m.Be among the first to see and be inspired by the new unisex spring collection co-created by Pittsburgh-based fashion designers Malcolm Anthony Williams (Willie Gee) and Reggie Howze (Heart of a Sleeve). The collaborative haute couture line was created as part of a Queer Media Artist Residency with True T PGH.

Hugo Cruz. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Tuesday, April 12: History of Cuban Jazz at the Greer Cabaret Theater5-7 p.m.Add a spark to your Tuesday nights and celebrate Jazz Appreciation Month with this free music series. Experience the rich history of Cuban jazz at tonights kickoff, when the world-renowned drummer and composer Hugo Cruz shares a multi-media presentation featuring live performance, videos and recorded music.

Wednesday, April 13: Murder on the Orient Express at the OReilly Theater8 p.m.Hop aboard the worlds most luxurious train where a murder mystery unfolds. Adapted by renowned playwright Ken Ludwig, Agatha Christies beloved 1934 classic will take on a new dimension with a fresh comic flair. Find out what ensues when a suspicious businessman is found murdered in his cabin after a freak snowstorm halts the train in its tracks. Join detective Hercule Poirot and the motley crew of passengers who all become suspects from service staff to Russian royalty. Directed by PPT Artist Director Marya Sea Kaminksi, the production features a blockbuster cast now through May 1. Buy tickets.

Ecolution. Photo by John Colombo.

Wednesday, April 13: Ecolution Fashion Gala at Carnegie Music Hall8 p.m.Did you know that the fashion industry is the planets fourth-biggest polluter? Designing locally and thinking globally, one of Pittsburghs most unique fashion shows is addressing the climate crisis by merging haute couture with thoughtful design. To illuminate this years theme of Earth Matters Now, 20 artists transformed sustainable, recyclable and organic materials into stellar environmentally savvy ensembles. Fashionistas will be treated to dance performances by slowdanger and Stacyee Pearl, tunes from DJ Soy Sos and entertainment by Miss Thea Trix. Buy tickets.

Friday, April 15: Queer Afterlives in Artist Archives with the Mattress Factory12-3 p.m.This month, the Northside museum is presenting a free event series celebrating what would have been the 64th birthday of artist Greer Lankton. The series coincides with the launch of a definitive online archive designed to celebrate the acclaimed artist. Todays virtual symposium convenes archivists, scholars and artists whose work engages with archives, the histories of Queer art and the identities it can reveal. Proving a reexamination of Lanktons creative practice, life, collections and community, the symposium will also help guide final selections for an exhibition at Pitts University Art Gallery opening in the fall. Register for free.

Friday, April 15: The Twenty-Sided Tavern at the Greer Cabaret Theater7 p.m.Ready to play the part of a hero? The jokes and the ale will flow freely during this immersive theater experience produced by the Pittsburgh CLO Cabaret. Step into a tavern where you control the story, you choose the characters, guide the hilarious hijinks and even encounter dungeons and dragons. Theater-goers will access the adventure via an innovative smartphone technology called Gamiotics thats rewriting the book on audience participation. Buy tickets.

Saturday, April 16: Spring Wildflower Hike in Frick Park10-11:30 a.m.Spring is indeed springing so get out there! During this leisurely 1.5-mile hike with the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy, youll learn to identify many types of vibrant wildflowers found in Frick Park, including Virginia bluebell, trout lily and white trillium. Register for free.

Saturday, April 16: Eggstravaganza at the National Aviary10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.Hop over to the North Side for an egg-cellent avian adventure! Stroll through lush tropical habitats, meet beautiful birds and join an egg-themed scavenger hunt. The springtime family fun also includes story times, creative crafts and take-home prizes. Buy tickets.

Saturday, April 16: SLAY: Artemisia Gentileschi & Kehinde Wiley at The Frick Pittsburgh10 a.m.-5 p.m.In what is certain to be one of the most significant art happenings in Pittsburgh this year, this first-of-its-kind exhibition pairs two masterpieces of the same subject painted 400 years apart. The first is by Artemisia Gentileschi, the most successful female painter of 17th-century Italy, and the second by Kehinde Wiley, the internationally acclaimed Black American contemporary artist. Both monumental paintings depict an Old Testament war story in which the heroic Jewish widow Judith beheads the Assyrian General Holofernes and saves her city from destruction. The compelling juxtaposition aims to spark fresh questions and serve as catalyst for important conversations about timeless themes, including identity, power, inequality, oppression and war. Register for free tickets.

Saturday, April 16: Egg-stravaganza at Carnegie Museum of Natural History10 a.m.-5 p.m.Think you can find eggs and nests of all shapes and sizes from tiny insects to giant dinosaurs hidden throughout the museum? Follow egg-themed clues to search for specimens, earn stamps as you go, then collect your bag full of egg-citing springtime goodies to take home. Buy tickets.

Saturday, April 16: JADED Program Series Downtown12-12:45 p.m. & 3-4 p.m.A new public program series produced by the art collective JADED is celebrating the culture of the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. Artists Anny Chen, Lena Chen and Caroline Yoo formed JADED in response to the horrific shootings in Atlanta on March 16, 2021. Events will share local histories, preserve cherished family recipes and customs, and nurture intergenerational dialogue. The goal is to forge interethnic coalitions to create more safe spaces of kinship and address racial trauma while celebrating cultural heritage. Todays lineup includes a Walking Tour of Chinatown led by Shirley Yee and a performance with Jason Chu, Alan Z and MC Tingbudong. View a schedule.

Photo courtesy of Tara Geyer / August Wilson African American Cultural Center.

Saturday, April 16: The Writers Landscape at the August Wilson African American Cultural Center12-5 p.m.Theres no better place for the first-ever permanent exhibition dedicated to Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and Hill District native August Wilson. Dont miss this unprecedented opportunity to be immersed in Wilsons vision and see firsthand how the playwright drew his greatest inspiration from the city and its people. The 3,600-square-foot exhibit features interactive displays, projections, estate artifacts, and re-creations of ephemera spanning 100 years. Take a seat in the Hill District coffee shop that inspired Wilsons characters and stories. Step into a replica of Wilsons home office showcasing his manuscripts, record collection and beloved 1920s writing desk. Check out original objects featured in Wilsons Broadway productions, including a 1956 Rock Ola 1448 jukebox. Augmenting the exhibit are audio recordings performed by award-winning actors such as Ruben Santiago-Hudson and Phylicia Rashad. Free tickets will be available April 11.

The Kid, Charlie Chaplin, 1921. Film still courtesy of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust.

Saturday, April 16: Charlie Chaplins The Kid at 100 at the Harris Theater7:30 p.m.Today marks 133 years since the birth of one of the film industrys most iconic figures. Pittsburghers are invited to celebrate the craft and legacy of actor, filmmaker and composer Charlie Chaplin during this one-night event. Watch a screening of the beautifully restored print of Chaplins groundbreaking 1921 film, The Kid followed by an illustrated talk and discussion presented by Pittsburgh-based mime artist and comedy choreographer Dan Kamin. Author of The Comedy of Charlie Chaplin: Artistry in Motion, Kamin trained Robert Downey, Jr. for his Oscar-nominated performance in Chaplin. Buy tickets.

Sunday, April 17: Virtual Spring Festival of The EggVarious timesDive into spring with the Cathedral of Learnings Nationality Room Committees. The virtual family festival is packed with interactive videos and an egg marketplace exploring a wide range of cultural traditions. Easter is the perfect time to check out video demonstrations spotlighting egg decorating, palm weaving, ethnic cooking, butter lamb carving, Easter customs, cookie baking, spring crafts, jelly bean games and more!

Sunday, April 17: Spring Mushrooms in Frick Park10-11 a.m.Have fun with fungi during this free Earth Month event hosted by the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy. Join the two-mile hike led by Western Pennsylvania Mushroom Club Stephen Bucklin to discover different species found in spring, how to identify them, and what these fascinating fungi are up to in our city parks. Register for free.

Photo courtesy of Kennywood.

Sunday, April 17: Opening Day at Kennywood11 a.m.-6 p.m.Kennywoods open! Opening with refurbished attractions one week sooner than previously planned, the historic amusement park welcomes the general public on Easter Sunday. Celebrating its 125th anniversary, the season kicks off with the Swing into Spring Festival, which includes live music, family activities and expanded food and beverage offerings. As part of an multimillion-dollar renovation, Kennywood will unveil a refreshed gift shop, ticketing improvements, new walkways and directional signage, and upgrades to The Old Mill, Thunderbolt and Phantoms Revenge. And on May 28, the beloved Kangaroo will reopen with a new concrete foundation, a fresh coat of paint and LED lights. Buy tickets.

For morethings to do in Pittsburgh, read10 April events not to miss in Pittsburgh, from a Beer Barge to a Car Bazaar.For live music, check outThe 25 best concerts coming to Pittsburgh in April, from Jack White to Girl Talk.

Pittsburgh event calendarPittsburgh event guidePittsburgh event listingsPittsburgh eventsPittsburgh events in AprilThings to do in AprilThings to do in PittsburghWhat to do this weekWhat to do this weekend

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What to do this week, from Slay and Ecolution to August Wilson and Charlie Chaplin - NEXTpittsburgh

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