Monday, October 30, 2023
Riot Over Plane From Israel Highlights Threat of Ethnic Strife in Russia
An uprising in southern Russia, where rioters stormed an airport tarmac apparently searching for Jewish passengers on a flight from Israel, has shocked Jews in Russia and beyond, drawn condemnation from the Israeli government and prompted the Kremlin to call a meeting to address the clashes.
Hundreds of young men stormed the main airport in the predominately Muslim republic of Dagestan on Sunday night, searching for a commercial flight from Tel Aviv. Videos and some images on social media showed some of the rioters holding Palestinian flags and carrying signs opposing the war in Gaza, possibly spurred on by a Telegram messaging channel that urged them to "catch" the passengers of the incoming flight from Israel.
The government in Tel Aviv, in a statement, said Monday that it expected the Russian authorities to protect all Israeli citizens and Jews and to act firmly against the rioters, describing the episode as "wild incitement directed at Jews and Israelis."
At least 20 people were injured in the riot, and dozens of people were arrested. The government in the predominantly Muslim republic said Monday that the outburst had been calmed and vowed to prevent further clashes. Russian aviation authorities said that the airport, in Makhachkala, the republic's capital, would reopen on Tuesday.
The uprising highlighted the challenges that the Kremlin faces in managing the various parts of its vast multiethnic and multireligious country.
It also underscored how the Kremlin's decision to distance itself from Israel and from Israel's mission to drive out Hamas terrorists can cause instability at home.
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Friday, October 27, 2023
Brooklyn’s Orthodox Community Told to Stay Inside During Saturday Pro-Palestine Rally: ’Jews Should Definitely Avoid the Area’
Orthodox Jews in Brooklyn, NY are being advised to avoid a busy stretch of the Crown Heights neighborhood that will be the site of a Palestine liberation march Saturday afternoon, according to a news site affiliated with the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community.
"Jews should definitely avoid the area," an anonymous "security source" said. "There's no intel at this time in which direction the protest will head. Locals should definitely stay away from Eastern Parkway in that area," the source added.
The source appeared to be referring to an event titled "Flood Brooklyn For Gaza," which is organized by the pro-Palestinian group Within Our Lifetime.
The organization held a similar demonstration in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn last Saturday, where at least one Orthodox Jewish group attended to stand in solidarity with Palestinians. The event remained mostly peaceful, although 19 people were arrested during clashes with police, according to the New York Times.
The protest is set to begin at 3 p.m. at the Brooklyn Museum, which is located about a mile away from the world headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic movement, in one of the most densely populated Orthodox Jewish communities in the U.S.
The neighborhood is a sensitive area for some Jewish New Yorkers, as it was the site of the infamous Crown Heights Riots that took place about 30 years ago.
In 1991, a Chabad motorcade struck and killed a 7-year-old Guyanese immigrant, prompting several days of destruction and looting against Jewish businesses in the neighborhood and at least one killing.
Crown Heights continues to be a hub for Hasidic Jews, who make up about a quarter of the neighborhood's population, according to the Brooklyn Jewish Historical Initiative.
Local rabbis said they had already spoken with officials from the NYPD, who had assured them that there would be an increased police presence in the area on Saturday, the Jewish Shabbat.
A rabbi from the Crown Heights Jewish Community Council said he had been briefed by the NYPD that organizers planned to walk near the house of Senator Majority Leader Chuck Schumer in nearby Park Slope.
Pro-Palestine activists have condemned Schumer for failing to call for a ceasefire in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.
Thousands of protesters, including several descendants of Holocaust survivors, attended a rally outside the senator's home last Friday. Fifty-seven people, including two New York State assembly members, were arrested for blocking traffic.
Tensions between pro-Palestine and pro-Israel groups have reached a boiling point in the wake of Hamas' surprise terrorist attack on Israel on October 7.
Last week, two men were charged with multiple hate crimes after they allegedly shouted anti-Muslim slurs while attacking three others, per the Times.
On Wednesday, videos showed Jewish students sheltering inside the Cooper Union library as pro-Palestinian protesters allegedly shouted and banged on the walls from the other side.
The Israel-Palestine conflict has so far claimed the lives of more than 1,400 Israelis, according to the Israeli government, and 7,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza.
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Thursday, October 26, 2023
Corporal Punishment in Private Schools Is Outlawed in New York
New York has banned the use of corporal punishment in all private schools, making it one of just a handful of states in the nation to bar teachers in all types of schools from hitting students.
The law, which was signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday after being unanimously approved by the State Legislature in June, was proposed in response to a New York Times investigation that revealed the use of corporal punishment in many schools in the Hasidic Jewish community. The ban will apply to all private schools.
"Corporal punishment is unacceptable," Ms. Hochul said in a statement. "This new law will ensure students in every New York school are protected from mistreatment."
Corporal punishment, defined as "any act of physical force upon a pupil for the purpose of punishing that pupil," has been prohibited in New York's public schools since 1985. But there was such no such ban on the punishment in private schools.
When lawmakers began discussing the bill earlier this year, they learned that Iowa and New Jersey were the only states that had a total ban, according to research done by the Legislature. In July, Maryland also banned such punishments.
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The Times series, drawing on 911 calls and interviews with dozens of recent students, showed that teachers in many Hasidic all-boys schools had made regular use of corporal punishment.
Representatives of the Hasidic schools have said that their instructors do not use corporal punishment and that any isolated incidents occurred less frequently than in other types of schools.
On Thursday, Richard Bamberger, a spokesman for some Hasidic yeshivas, said in a statement that leaders of the schools had no issue with the new law.
"Yeshivas don't engage in corporal punishment and did not have any opposition to this bill," Mr. Bamberger said. "What they do oppose is the inaccurate suggestion that the legislation arose because of an abuse problem in yeshivas, which the Senate sponsor publicly stated is false."
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Wednesday, October 25, 2023
Hear about how Sara Braun moved from Holland to NYC and became ‘That Black Hasidic Lady’
Sara Braun grew up as a Black Jewish woman in a small town in the Netherlands, which was, she says, exactly what most North Americans imagine: windmills stretching up from fields of tulips and delicious smells wafting from rustic kitchens. But that's where the picturesque scenes end. While her Blackness was more or less accepted—treated as exotic, though not demeaned—her Judaism was not. She downplayed her religious identity all through her school years… until she turned 18 and moved to New York City with just $400 in her pocket.
From there, she found herself embracing the Hasidic lifestyle, marrying a Jewish man and intuitively speaking Yiddish to her newborn children. She has since become a singer, motivational speaker and mother of five children, offering her story as one of inspiration for women looking to chase their dreams—even if that means taking leaps and making sacrifices.
She recounts her journeys, both geographical and spiritual, in a book released earlier this year, That Black Hasidic Lady. She sat down with Rivka Campbell for an extended interview on The CJN's podcast about fascinating Jews of colour, Rivkush.
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Tuesday, October 24, 2023
Gun sales surging among Jewish Americans in wake of Hamas attack on Israel
Gun sales have surged among Jews throughout the United States since Hamas attacked Israel more than two weeks ago.
Firearm instructors and Jewish security groups across the country say they have been flooded with new clientele since the Oct. 7 assault, according to NBC News. Gun shop owners in Florida say they have seen more Jews purchase firearms in recent weeks than ever before.
"We've definitely seen a tremendous increase in religious Jewish people, Orthodox people, purchasing firearms," said David Kowalsky, who owns Florida Gun Store in the town of Hollywood, and also offers firearms training classes. "I've seen a surge in interest in individual training as well as group training."
Kowalsky, who is Jewish, said local synagogues had asked him to host gun training seminars and shooting sessions in the past week. He said most participants at one gun safety seminar were new to guns, per NBC.
"These are mothers, teachers, the majority of them are mostly people who have never interacted with firearms or thought about owning them," he told the news outlet. "There's a safety concern. I think people are nervous about what's going on and what can happen."
An Anti-Defamation League report earlier this year found antisemitic incidents in the U.S. were up 36% before the war in Israel and Gaza. Assaults, vandalism and harassment were higher in 2022 than in any year since the league began keeping records in 1979.
Rabbi Yossi Eilfort, who runs a nonprofit in Los Angeles that offers self-defense classes and firearm training to the Jewish community, said his organization has received more than 600 calls in the past week, NBC reported.
Dallas-Fort Worth area television station WFFA reported that one gun shop owner says he's seen a 300% increase in gun sales at his two locations immediately after the war started.
"It's been a really big change this last three or four days," David Prince, of Eagle Gun Range, told the TV station. "The people coming in and saying they are scared for their lives, because of their religion they are expecting to be attacked."
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Monday, October 23, 2023
Ultra-Orthodox Jews are supporting Israel’s war efforts - here's how
Since the beginning of the horrific attacks against Israel on October 7, the haredi (ultra-Orthodox) sector has prioritized supporting the war efforts.
Israel had found itself profoundly divided in the past few years, especially in the few months before the war started. The fact that haredi men are exempted from serving in the army has been generally considered one of the reasons for deepening the rift between different communities in the country.
However, since Operation Swords of Iron began, the narrative has shifted. Videos and photos circulating on social networks now showcase haredi and women actively raising donations of money, food, and other supplies for soldiers. Many participate in volunteer efforts to assist residents of the border communities who have lost their homes. In addition, an unprecedented number of haredi individuals have applied to join the IDF for the war, while others exempt from reserves have requested to serve voluntarily.
The haredi community has a long tradition of volunteering, but their recent involvement has been particularly prominent and widespread.
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Friday, October 20, 2023
US professor posts tweet threatening Jewish journalists and their children - and keeps her job
A US university has kept a professor on staff after she appeared to call for attacks on Jewish journalists and their children in an online post that included knife and axe emoji.
Jemma Decristo, an assistant professor in American studies at the University of California, Davis, posted the message on October 10, three days after Hamas terrorists stormed parts of southern Israel and massacred hundreds of civilians, including scores of babies, children and elderly people.
But, despite pleas from Jewish students, the university only rebuked her on October 19 and said she still remained an employee. Her posts are being investigated by the department.
Decristo wrote on X/Twitter "[One] group of ppl we have easy access to in the US is all these zionist journalists who spread propaganda & misinformation.
"They have houses w addresses, kids in school. They can fear their bosses, but they should fear us more."
She included a knife, an axe and three blood-drop emoji.
Days later, in another post, Decristo wrote: "To the US embassy. US out of everywhere. US GO HOME. US GO HOME" along with three fire emoji.
That post was in response to protestors marching towards the US embassy in Beirut, Lebanon.
In another post, the professor celebrated the fire set at the Israeli embassy in Jordan, responding to the news with "HELL YEAH" and three Palestinian flag emoji.
Hillel at Davis and Sacramento, a centre for Jewish students, released a statement condemning the posts, while hundreds of students demanded the university take action.
The UC Davis chancellor finally wrote to the community about the posts yesterday calling them "antithetical to the values of our university".
Gary S May said in a statement: "I absolutely condemn the posts attributed to a UC Davis faculty member that recently appeared on the social media platform X. I find the comments revolting in every way, and I disagree wholeheartedly with them.
"The provost will refer this matter to the appropriate campus departments that investigate harassment, discrimination and faculty conduct, in consultation with legal counsel regarding First Amendment rights.
"Some have asked why this faculty member continues to be employed at UC Davis. The University of California system has specific procedures for the review of complaints of faculty misconduct consistent with university-wide policies and bylaws.
"The status of complaints lodged against faculty members are confidential personnel matters, so we are unable to publicly comment on the steps we are taking."
Barry Broad, president of the Jewish Federation Of Sacramento. said: "Emotions are running high. We understand that.
"We can't live in a civilised society where threats of violence are acceptable and there are no consequences for making that."
Several social media users wrote to UC Davis via its official account asking for the professor to be fired.
"Jemma Decristo, a professor at your college, is perpetuating microaggressions against a marginalised group which includes suggested violence against children as a retaliatory measure," one user wrote this week.
"Your Jewish students cannot feel safe. I ask you to dismiss Decristo with cause and [without] pay."
Decristo was contacted for comment.
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Wednesday, October 18, 2023
Plans to form Viznitz Hasidic village in Sullivan County halted by lawsuit. What's next?
Plans by the Viznitz Hasidic community to form a new village in Sullivan County have been halted by a lawsuit by opponents who hope to disqualify the village petition.
Two homeowners whose properties were included in the proposed village of Ateres filed the challenge on Oct. 6, shortly before the supervisors of the towns of Thompson and Fallsburg were due to schedule a referendum on the proposal. The town leaders had declared the petition valid a month earlier.
The pending court case, which seeks to invalidate 22 petition signatures, puts on hold any vote by residents of the nearly 1.5-square-mile area in the Catskills that would become New York's newest municipality.
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Friday, October 13, 2023
Jewish students in tears at Palestinian ‘resistance’ rally at University of Washington: ‘They want us killed’
Jewish students at the University of Washington were left terrified and in tears when hundreds of their peers held a "Day of Resistance" rally for Palestinians — advertised with an image of a paraglider like those used by Hamas terrorists in their mass slaughter of Israelis.
Video showed a student tearfully begging an administrator to stop the rally at the university, where an alum is among the more than 1,300 murdered by Hamas over the weekend.
"They want our people dead. They want us killed," she sobbed to a school official, who said there was nothing he could do as hundreds clapped and banged drums.
"How are you allowing this? Why aren't you putting a stop to this?" the student asked as tears rolled down her face.
"They want us dead … Just please end it. Please."
Other videos posted online appeared to show opposing students in a shouting match, with one student saying Israel is "finished" — and another calling a pro-Israeli student a "f–king rapist."
Campus security had to break up a couple of these minor clashes, according to KOMO.
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Teacher tells Jewish students to stand in a corner, just as ‘Israel does to the Palestinians’
A Stanford University lecturer ordered his Jewish students to stand in a corner and told them "this is what Israel does to Palestine", according to reports.
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Thursday, October 12, 2023
Religious People Have Better Well Being Than Others
Gallup World Poll data from 2012-2022 find, on a number of wellbeing measures, that people who are religious have better well being than people who are not," according to the report published on October 10, 2023. Hasidic Rabbis have taught that for 250 years.
Martin Buber, the great Jewish philosopher and scholar of Hasidism, asserted more than a half century ago that, "the purpose of all great religions and religious movements is to engender a life of elation and fervor which no (later painful) experience can dampen and stifle." In this light I offer a sample of Hasidic wisdom sayings that I believe can be used as a departure point by Priests and Ministers as well as Rabbis.
For many people, Hasidic Jews are noticeable because of their Amish-like dress and ultra orthodox behavior. But it is their unique stress on trusting in God and elevating one's soul through joyful religious activities that makes them distinctive. The following wisdom sayings give a taste of the inner spiritual life of Hassidim (Pious Jews).
One of the most important teachings of Hassidic Rabbis was not to worry about the future or sacrifice present joy because you fear it will not last very long. After all, most things people worry about never occur. As Rabbi Mordecai of Lekhovitz taught, "We must not worry. Only one worry is O.K. We should worry about (always) being worried."
Rabbi Menahem Mendel of Kotzk was very strict in selecting disciples. He asked each new student: "What hiddush (new insight) have you brought me?" A good teacher wants a disciple who is not only open to new insights from his teacher; but is capable of providing them for others.
Rabbi Menachem Mendel also taught: Strife exists only because each faction claims that (religious) TRUTH is on its side. When "Truth is cast to the ground" (Daniel 8:12) the automatic result is peace. He once asked his disciples "Where can you find God? The other sages say that God is everywhere. I say God is wherever a person lets God in."
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Wednesday, October 11, 2023
Biden calls Hamas attacks in Israel the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust
President Joe Biden says the weekend attack by Hamas militants on Israel was the deadliest against Jews since the Holocaust and called it a "campaign of pure cruelty."
Biden made the remarks while speaking Wednesday with Jewish leaders as the U.S. said the number of U.S. citizens killed during the Hamas-Israel war had risen to 22.
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Tuesday, October 10, 2023
Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Israel attacks reveal a deeper hatred of Jews
Rep. Ilhan Omar really can't help herself when it comes to Israel and the Jews.
Scant days after Hamas launched its brutal attacks on Israel, killing and raping indiscriminately and taking toddlers hostage, the Squad member took to X to denounce … the Jewish state.
She called Israel's response to the attacks a "war crime" and demanded that Washington oppose it and cut off arms sales to the embattled nation.
No one should be surprised: Omar (D-Minn.) has made her hostility to Jews plain for years.
In 2019, she implied that American lawmakers who support Israel had been bribed to do so by AIPAC with a tweet saying, "it's all about the Benjamins baby." In 2012, she tweeted, "Israel has hypnotized the world."
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Monday, October 09, 2023
Gov. Abbott spends $4M to secure Jewish schools, synagogues, blocks purchase of Gaza goods
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) took two actions Monday related to the ongoing Israel-Hamas War, including spending millions to further secure Jewish synagogues and schools and issuing an executive order that prevents state agencies from buying goods produced in the Gaza Strip.
Around 1,400 Israelis and Palestinians are dead two days after Hamas launched an attack that caught Israel's vaunted military and intelligence apparatus completely off guard and led to fierce battles in its streets for the first time in decades. At least nine Americans are among the dead. Israel's military ordered a complete siege on the Gaza Strip on Monday, halting deliveries of food, water, fuel and supplies to its 2.3 million people as it pounded the Hamas-ruled territory with waves of airstrikes in retaliation for the militants' bloody weekend incursion.
The Texas governor's office offered his support for Israel on Monday saying $4 million was being allocated from the Governor's Public Safety Office to 31 Jewish organizations in Texas for physical security enhancements and other safety improvements.
"Working with local partners across Texas, we are actively increasing security at Jewish and Israel-related locations such as synagogues and schools. In response to these cowardly attacks, we stand united with our Jewish neighbors and we repudiate terrorism and anti-Semitism," Abbott said in a statement.
The governor's office said Abbott directed the Texas Department of Public Safety to "work with local partners and federal intelligence agencies on heightened public safety measures, with an intensified focus by the Joint Terrorism Task Force and Texas Fusion Center to elevate awareness about potential threats by Hamas or Hezbollah organizations against the Jewish community in Texas."
Additionally, Abbott issued an executive order Monday directing all Texas state agencies to refrain from purchasing goods produced in or exported from the Gaza Strip and from any organization or state actor with ties to Hamas.
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