Thursday, February 29, 2024
'Zionists not welcome:' Jewish Santa Barbara students face harassment at Multicultural Center in US
On Tuesday, Jewish students were harassed at the University of California Santa Barbara's Multicultural Center (MCC) when signs and messages targeting a Jewish student government president and other Jewish students were placed at the MCC, its social media accounts, and a student dorm room earlier that day and on Monday.
According to Santa Barbara Hillel, its staff members and a group of Jewish students entered the MCC where there were signs on the door warning "Zionists not allowed." The students were confronted by a mob of their peers, who shouted at them, said SB Hillel.
Antisemitic Signs
"Zionists not welcome," was found on Tuesday scrawled on the door of a dorm room door with an arrow pointing to a Mezuzah, a religious talisman traditionally placed on every door frame in a Jewish home.
"Can these anti-zionists make their antisemitism any more obvious?" SB Hillel wrote on Instagram. "When hate persists unchallenged, it spreads."
Most of the signs were placed outside and inside the MCC on Monday, many of them targeting Associated Student President Tessa Veksler. Veksler shared examples of the signs on her Instagram account on Tuesday.
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Wednesday, February 28, 2024
Violent mob forces Jewish students to evacuate through tunnel at UC Berkeley event
A pro-Israel event at UC Berkeley turned chaotic Monday night as Jewish students were forced to evacuate through underground tunnels due to a violent mob of anti-Israel protestors.
The event, titled 'Israel at War: Combat the Lies,' featured Ran Bar-Yoshafat, an IDF reservist who served in Gaza during the current war.
According to reports, several hundred protestors gathered outside the Zellerbach Playhouse, chanting "Intifada! Intifada!" and banging on doors. The situation escalated when the protestors broke a glass door and attempted to force their way into the building. In the chaos, multiple students were injured, with one young woman reportedly hurt while trying to hold a door shut against the aggressive mob.
Eyewitnesses recounted disturbing scenes of physical aggression, with one student witnessing a girl being grabbed by the neck and shoved. Another student reported being verbally assaulted with anti-Semitic slurs and spat at.
Faced with the escalating violence, security guards directed event attendees to evacuate through underground tunnels to ensure their safety. The protest, organized by Bears for Palestine, a local affiliate of the Students for Justice in Palestine movement, drew condemnation from university officials.
University spokesperson Dan Mogulof described the protest as "despicable" and confirmed damage to a door and multiple windows. He criticized the "willingness and readiness of that mob to engage in violent behavior."
Bar-Yoshafat, the IDF reservist, condemned the protestors' actions, emphasizing that the incident was not just an attack on Israel or Jews but also a violation of Western values like freedom of speech. He expressed concern for the safety of the students caught in the chaotic situation, noting that many were shocked by the unexpected violence.
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Tuesday, February 27, 2024
Minister Goldknopf says it’s a ‘mitzvah’ to vote for Hasidic Agudat Yisrael party
Housing Minister Yitzhak Goldknopf it is a "mitzvah" to vote for the Hasidic Agudat Yisrael party — one of the parties that make up the national United Torah Judaism party — in local elections.
Goldknopf says the ultra-Orthodox public must listen to its rabbis as "they and only they determine our conduct."
"This is the time to express absolute loyalty and obedience — and vote for Agudat Yisrael."
Historically, Haredi Jews largely vote in blocs for the same candidates and on the issues laid out by community leaders.
This approach can be seen in every election.
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Friday, February 23, 2024
'My grandmothers' passports were stamped Juden and they ended up in Bergen-Belsen - now my baby's has been marked', say the Jewish parents targeted by Passport Office workers. 'It is a warning sign'
There is a new, second security camera facing the door of Israel and Dorin's cosy North London home.
The first went up shortly after they returned from a family holiday to Jerusalem that coincided with the October 7 massacre, a truly terrifying experience that saw them cowering in a safe room with their three young children.
Knowing from bitter experience that whenever there is tension in the Middle East that Jews are likely to be targeted, back in London, the couple quickly moved to protect themselves and their three children.
The extra layer of security, however, came only this week after the British-Israeli couple — and their darling five-month-old baby daughter Ronnie, all smiles and chuckles when I visit them at home — suddenly found themselves on the frontline of the war against anti-Semitism.
Shockingly, it emerged little Ronnie's birth certificate had been defaced by a Home Office employee after being submitted for her first passport application.
When the certificate was returned in the post, her parents were distraught to see that her father's place of birth — Israel — had been crossed out and the document ripped.
The impact on them has been seismic. Put simply, they no longer feel safe — even here, in their peaceful London suburb.
'My heart beats a little faster each time the doorbell goes,' admits Dorin, 29, talking for the first time about their ordeal and revealing that she now also carries a self-defence spray in her handbag. 'I check and check again who it is before I open the door.'
Her husband, meanwhile, admits he fears a 'Molotov cocktail' could be thrown through their window as revenge for speaking out.
Indeed, so intense are their concerns that they could be targeted the Mail is withholding their surname from this interview.
Their brave disclosures — in a tense week that saw MPs express concerns that they could be attacked over a Gaza ceasefire vote, and the Hamas slogan 'From the River to the Sea' projected onto Big Ben — has caused a furore about the growing levels of anti-Semitism in the UK.
Home Secretary James Cleverly attempted to calm matters on Wednesday, saying 'some staff' members of Sopra Steria — a Paris-based company contracted to process British passports — had been suspended pending an investigation.
But Dorin and Israel are still justifiably on edge. After all, when you apply for a passport each and every personal family detail is disclosed.
If such private details are in the hands of such seemingly committed anti-Semites, how safe can this Jewish family be, even in leafy area?
'They have our names, our address, our ages — they know practically everything except my waist size,' says Israel, 32, the owner of a drain engineering company. 'They are handling the most sensitive information and they don't appear to be good people.'
For as the couple reflect, while Israel is a war zone, the UK feels menacing to Jews in a different, but no less palpable, way.
'What happened to us, and all the things that are going on, has made me wonder whether we have a future here — whether our children do,' he continues. 'The people singing "From the River to the Sea" down the streets and in our universities might one day be our leaders.'
Indeed, just a few weeks ago, Dorin saw a schoolboy on her street tearing down posters begging for the release of one of the hostages from October 7.
Shockingly, the posters were of nine-month-old Kfir Bibas, the youngest hostage to be seized by Hamas, whose fate remains unknown.
'I asked what the boy was doing and he just shouted "Free Palestine",' she says. 'This beautiful baby has been kidnapped by terrorists. Where did people get this hate from?
'There is a whole new generation being schooled in anti-Semitism. They don't want us here; they don't want us there; they don't want us to exist. We are a people who try to fit in. We aren't criminals, and this hatred follows us.'
Both parents look down at their smiling baby, utterly unaware of the headlines her birth certificate has created around the world.
'She's a drama queen and she doesn't even know it,' smiles Israel lovingly, as he plants a kiss on her head.
But as he and Dorin discuss in detail what happened, his face becomes grim; at points, they both become emotional.
The story started two weeks ago when they sent off Ronnie's birth certificate for her first passport.
Attached to the back of it was something called an 'apostille certificate' which requires a lawyer's certification, and is necessary for dual nationals to prove the signature and stamp of any UK document is genuine — something Ronnie would need if she also gets an Israeli passport.
Her first British passport arrived last week. Then, a few days later, her birth certificate was returned. The word Israel is on it three times, as place of birth for both parents, and as her father's name. Her father's place of birth had been furiously crossed out. As for the tear, it was clearly intentional.
'When I saw the rip I thought, "Could this have happened by accident?"' says Dorin. 'But it is not a small cut. And when I turned it over, I saw that it went through the apostille [too]. And then I realised that the word Israel had been crossed out.
'Then I became scared; we know there have been many instances of anti-Semitism and then it comes through my letterbox, into my home. How can anyone have so much of a problem with us that they would do this to a baby — not even a child but a baby?'
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Thursday, February 22, 2024
Why This Non-Jewish Congressman Quoted a Famous Hasidic Rabbi
A Very Narrow Bridge" is a popular Hasidic song, one that is embraced by Jews of all denominations.
The words to it, which are from the writings of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, the 18th-century founder of a Hasidic sect, are "The entire world is a very narrow bridge; the main thing is to vanquish fear."
It's a good song for the Sabbath table, or when a friend needs solace.
Also, we now know, for a congressional hearing.
Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., who is a cable news favorite for his confrontational posture toward President Donald Trump and who is not Jewish, quoted Rabbi Nachman in advising Rod Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general, to stay the course however hard the times.
Rosenstein appeared Thursday before the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee to field questions about the investigation led by special prosecutor Robert Mueller into alleged ties between Russia and Trump's campaign and transition team. Rosenstein hired Mueller and because Attorney General Jeff Sessions has recused himself from the investigation, is the only man who can fire him.
Rosenstein repeatedly defended Mueller against calls by Republicans that the special prosecutor should step down because of allegations of bias on his team.
Swalwell had a sometimes tense exchange with Rosenstein, who refused to divulge the nature or even frequency of his conversations with Trump. Swalwell wanted to know if Trump was attempting to influence Rosenstein or press him to fire Mueller. But Swalwell also made clear he admired Rosenstein's forbearance in defending Mueller and advised him to stay the course.
"Mr. Deputy Attorney General, your investigation is a very narrow bridge," Swalwell said. "The important part, I believe for our country is for you to not be afraid. In these trying times, we need you to be fearless. We have a president who is willing to involve himself in ongoing investigations that involve he and his family."
I asked Swalwell about the quote's origins. "It's a quote from Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav," he said in an email. "Occasionally, it comes to mind."
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Wednesday, February 21, 2024
IDF will have to draft ultra-Orthodox Jews without new law, A-G says
The State of Israel will be forced to draft ultra-Orthodox Jews into the IDF if a new bill is not brought into law by April 1, attorney-general Gali Baharav-Miara stated in a letter to the High Court of Justice on Wednesday.
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Tuesday, February 20, 2024
Marjorie Taylor Greene Applauds Jewish Couple Carrying Semi-Automatic Rifles at Wedding, “It’s Real”
Nachman Mostofsky, Executive Director and Vice President of the organization Amariah, shared a wedding photo of a newly married Orthodox Jewish couple in Lakewood, New Jersey. The young bride and groom are smiling at each other while holding semiautomatic guns.
Mostofsky, who describes himself as an "American Conservative and Zionist," reported that "The photo is not AI. It's real." He added: "Because Orthodox Jews have had enough of liberals allowing antisemites to attack us. Mazel tov to the young couple!"
U.S. Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) replied: "This is GREAT! Mazel Tov!!"
Below is a photo of Mostofsky with former President Donald Trump whom Mostofsky refered to as "the future Two-Time Champion!"
Greene is not the only MAGA loyalist to support Mostofsky and Amariah, (אֲמַרְיָה) which means in Hebrew, "promised by God."
The organization, which teaches Zionism and "Strong Republic American Exceptionalism" promotes endorsements from MAGA supporters including former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee and former Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, both of whom have traveled to Jerusalem with Amariah.
Note about the Lakewood Orthodox community: In November, Rabbi Avi Schnall, a former registered Republican, won a state Assembly seat as a Democrat in the 30th Legislative District in Monmouth and Ocean counties. He beat four-term incumbent GOP Assembly Ned Thomson "by a comfortable 11,400-vote margin. Voter turnout topped 30% in the district, high for an off-year election."
Ben Dworkin, director of the Rowan Institute for Public Policy and Citizenship, said of Schnall's anomalous win: "The leadership of that constituency made a specific decision to put one of its own in the Legislature. But they did not want to be in the Republican minority. And so, even though they are part of a deep red Ocean County, they rallied behind Rabbi Avi Schnall to elect him as a Democrat."
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Friday, February 16, 2024
Next move for Seven Springs unclear after state village laws change
In the months since new state rules made it more difficult to form villages in New York, the town of Monroe has been pushing petitioners for the proposed village of Seven Springs to make a move in their years-long legal battle to form a new municipality: show that support for the new village meets the increased population requirements or give it up.
To that end, Monroe town attorney Brian Nugent sent a letter to state Supreme Court Justice Sandra B. Sciortino on Jan. 24 asking that the petitioners articulate their next step in light of the new laws. Nugent noted that the new regulations require a proposed village to have at least 2,000 residents, which is perhaps the biggest issue for the Seven Springs pitch since its incorporation petition said it would have just over 600 residents.
Nugent also argued that even if the petitioners claim the proposed village's population has increased since the petition was filed in 2018, any outstanding motions they've filed are moot because they need to collect more signatures.
It's been a battle from the get-go for the petitioners seeking to create Seven Springs, which would be a primarily Hasidic community on land that includes about 2 square miles of northern Monroe and near Kiryas Joel, another Hasidic community.
Last April, an appeals panel upheld the petition's validity after Monroe and Kiryas Joel challenged it. That ruling sent the petition back to Monroe Supervisor Tony Cardone. In September, Cardone again rejected it, saying it did not provide an adequate description of the area it sought to incorporate. Then, in December, the state's village formation laws changed.
After Gov. Kathy Hochul enacted the new regulations, Steven Barshov, the petitioners' attorney, said he planned to challenge the rules in state and possibly federal court, claiming they violated the right to petition the government.
"That right (to petition) has been violated by this law," Barshov told the Times Union in December. "Whether that is a violation of the federal constitution, the state constitution, or both, is something that I am looking into right now."
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Thursday, February 15, 2024
This Hasidic Woman Runs a Thriving Lingerie Shop
If I could take a guess, I would say Hasidic Judaism and lingerie don't often go hand in hand in the minds of many out there. Often, the narrative presented in the media is that couples can only have sex through a sheet, or in shows like Unorthodox, solely at the whim of one's husband. Women are second-class citizens and certainly do not have any sort of relationship with their own sexuality, right?
Well, this article is about to challenge all of that and reroute any preconceived notions just in time for Valentine's Day.
I sat down with Rechy Rosenthal, the owner and founder of Myself Lingerie, a thriving bra fitting and intimates business that operates in Brooklyn, Lakewood and online. They sell everything from bras and underwear to sleepwear and swim.
They specialize in making sure any woman entering the shop feels good about herself when she walks out the door. It's about self-empowerment, not buying things just because someone else might like you in it.
Here, Rechy speaks about her journey to starting this company, how Judaism and sexuality intersect in her mind and how you can use lingerie shopping to feel just a little more empowered.
Can you tell me about your personal background and upbringing?
I grew up as an ultra-Orthodox Hasidic Jew, and was always the entrepreneurial type. In high school, I started a cake business that I ran for two years. I sold cakes and other mini desserts to a catering company which kept me pretty busy. Then, I taught for a bit and then joined my parent's business which was a Judaica company. I worked for them for nine years and built up their entire online sales, learning it all as I went.
That's amazing. How did the idea of the lingerie business come up?
It was actually my husband who suggested it 11 years ago. I was married with three kids under three. He came to me and said, "You know, I feel like there's a need for a lingerie store in Borough Park." He knew I had online experience but I had no interest in being "the bra lady." I told him if he wanted to do it, he could do it on his own, and so he did. He scouted and found our original location and designed it himself. He even hired a professional bra fitter who had experience working for Macy's in the '70s and '80s.
As the business moved forward, I ended up helping him place orders from home. I was still working for my parents full-time, then I would put the kids to sleep and work for the lingerie business. I was working around the clock. I realized it was silly to keep doing this — and I was exhausted — so we decided to go all in on the lingerie business. We took our life savings, put it into the company and here we are today.
I did a lot of research on bra fitting and the whole concept of intimate apparel — there's a whole psychological aspect to it. After that, I went in and learned everything hands-on. Our company really focuses primarily on making sure a woman has bras that she feels good and confident in. That's how it all started.
Now, I run the day to day operations and am very busy with marketing, content planning imagery, etc. We do everything in house.
How did you come up with the name?
We wanted to create a safe haven for women. The idea was to come get fitted for bras and feel comfortable doing so. We wanted to create a spa-like experience. I spent my days listening to women, hearing their stories and requests.
Bra shopping has a negative connotation to it somehow. What we've been working on is revolutionizing that. We want to take away the whole shame and anxiety aspect. I put so much effort into training the staff to be gentle and kind. So many women have been abused or body shamed and they're really uncomfortable in their body. Our goal was to turn it into a beautiful experience.
One day I was in the store and a woman came in and shared that her husband was diagnosed with brain cancer. She had been taking care of him around the clock and ran herself ragged. Her friends told her she needed a self care day and she agreed. She decided to use that day to come to Myself Lingerie. I remember that moment so clearly, it was such a pivotal moment for me because it's everything we were looking to build. I really accomplished that mission. She felt so good coming in and getting herself pretty things.
When I come home after a day of work, I feel so accomplished — the women feel so good about themselves afterward. When she feels good, that spills over to everyone else in her life. When you see a teenager even feeling confident in her skin, there's nothing better. That's what I wake up for every single morning.
How do you view the relationship between sexuality and an Orthodox Jewish life?
The way I view it is that sexuality and femininity are at the core of a Jewish life. That's really where it all begins. The beauty in Judaism is that it's kept modest. We don't go out there and talk about our intimate life publicly or advertise that "I bought this cool piece of lingerie." We keep it special within our marriage, and it's the fundamental pillar in every Jewish home. The intimacy and affection between a husband and wife is the foundation of where the whole family life begins.
When a couple has a beautiful relationship, that spills over into the home environment and the culture. You can feel that good energy.
I love that. How do you help women feel confident getting in touch with that sexual side of them when they may be more nervous to do so?
Here is the big thing. I don't view lingerie as for the man. Lingerie is for the woman. Sometimes women will come in and say, "Oh, my husband doesn't like…" and I'll look them in the eye and say, "What do you like?" I always try to open them up and reframe it. I'm not saying to buy something that your husband specifically tells you he doesn't like, but you have to feel beautiful. If you don't like it, you don't buy it. When you feel pretty, that will be the vibe you give off. You will be confident. If you don't feel good in your body then you can put on the prettiest piece of lingerie and it's worthless.
Lingerie can make a strong impact in a marriage but it always begins with the woman. When she feels beautiful and sensual, everything else falls away.
How do you help people who are struggling to feel good in their body?
This is important. I've been working in this business for 11 years and I've never met a woman who went into the fitting room and said, "I love myself just the way I am." There's always something. It's the tummy or they want to be bigger or smaller or flatter. We are so hard on ourselves. I really try and share with them that they are pretty just the way they are. That's how G-d created you.
Unfortunately, places like Victoria's Secret made women feel that if they don't look like a model, they're not beautiful. Women come in all shapes and sizes and we all have to be aware of that. I have mothers that come in and say, "Give my daughter a minimizer," and I say, "She's an A-cup, what do you want me to minimize?" They're preaching the wrong things to their daughters. Tell her she's beautiful the way she is. We don't want to look like men, we're created to look like women.
We get pregnant, we give birth, there's a constant fluctuation of weight and size. I also struggle. Everyone wants to be that perfect size 0 but it doesn't exist.
I once heard someone say that when you get in a car to go to an appointment, you're using that as a mode of transportation. You're not criticizing the car, it's just a vehicle to get you from point A to point B. It's the same with our bodies. Our bodies are vehicles we were gifted to get us through life.
This is obviously not a side of the Orthodox world that is usually shown in mainstream media. Do you get any criticism for what you do?
Yes. I have a super special folder that I use to save all the letters that people mail to me criticizing me. I have a separate folder though of beautiful letters of people praising us and thanking us. I think the criticism comes from the fact that we serve such a wide range of people. There are some ultra-Orthodox members who don't want to see the color or have their teens exposed to the pretty stuff. We do have the lingerie in a separate area for that reason. So I do my best to display the blacks and neutrals in the front and keep the more revealing stuff private but you can't please everyone. I'm not here to make anybody upset or uncomfortable but it's okay if not everyone is happy.
You're a mom of seven children and work to make Myself Lingerie amazing full time. How do you manage all of it?
First of all, I have an amazing husband. We're in this business together. I also have a great team of about 30 employees now. I could never do this on my own. It's definitely a juggle though. I am a very organized person by nature so that helps. I have my day down to a science. I'm up between six and six-thirty every day. I need an hour or 45 minutes of quiet when my kids are still asleep. That's also when I get a kickstart for dinner. I can cook a five course meal at 6:30 in the morning. My Shabbos meals are cooked by Thursday morning.
My workday ends at three. That's when it's all about my kids. I go home and try to be present. I will say I'm an amazing homemaker. I like to cook and bake and my family isn't neglected in any way shape or form. I also have a nanny for my baby, I'm not embarrassed to say that.
What else would you want people to know about Myself Lingerie?
We really cater to all types of women. I come from the Chassidish community but it doesn't matter who you are or what your background is. If you're a woman, we've got something for you. We have all different types of sleepwear, headwear, swim, we make sure you have everything you need.
We also accommodate different heights and body sizes. At this point, we go up to a 6x in swim, for example. None of the local stores catered to a larger chested woman and I was so embarrassed to not have anything in larger sizes either. So slowly, we started carrying more and now we have items up to O cups. I never want a woman to come in and feel ashamed that we don't have anything for her.
I understand women may be nervous to step into the world of lingerie but you don't have to feel shy. Our area is in a sectioned off place in the store so you can have privacy in your own little oasis to shop. I put tote bags in every dressing room so you can bring your items to the cashier in them if you don't want others to see. Our website is entirely modest — you won't see lingerie on models, only on white backgrounds. You can order online and pick up in store as well. I'm always trying to make it more accessible.
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Wednesday, February 14, 2024
NYPD search for suspect after beating Jewish man with metal bat
A New York City man attacked a Jewish victim with a metal bat after making antisemitic comments in Queens on Monday.
The NYPD said on Tuesday that they were seeking information relating to the incident.
The American Jewish Committee thanked the police for investigating the incident as a hate crime in a social media post on Wednesday.
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Monday, February 12, 2024
Swiss ski resort restaurant refuses to rent sleds to Jewish people
A restaurant located at the Pischa ski resort in Davos, Switzerland, has sparked outrage after posting a discriminatory message in Hebrew, refusing to rent sleds to Jewish customers.
The sign, displayed prominently at the front of the establishment alleged sled thefts involving Jewish individuals as the reason for the discriminatory policy.
The message, addressed to "Jewish brothers," stated, "Due to various sad incidents, including the theft of a sled, we no longer rent sports equipment to our Jewish brothers. Thank you for your understanding." This discriminatory action has drawn condemnation from both local and international communities.
Officials from the Swiss Association of Jewish Communities (SIG) have expressed shock and condemnation, describing the message as highly discriminatory and anti-Semitic. "The fact that such a letter is hung publicly is shocking," declared general secretary Jonathan Kreutner.
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PSAC faces complaints of discrimination, harassment from Jewish members
The largest union in the Canadian federal public sector is facing 14 discrimination and harassment complaints from its members.
Fourteen Jewish members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) are suing their own union for creating a "culture of discrimination and harassment" following the attacks in Israel by Hamas-led armed groups from Gaza.
"Immediately following Hamas' October 7, 2023 terrorist attack against Israel, PSAC began advocating unbalanced and biased views towards Israel and creating a culture of fear, discrimination and bias towards Jewish PSAC members," according to the complaints.
The complaints – filed before the Canadian Human Rights Commission – detail how, on Oct. 14, 2023, PSAC published "a bulletin briefly condemning the attacks, followed by a more comprehensive condemnation of Israel's alleged actions," according to the complaints.
"The manner in which PSAC presented its views was harmful and offensive towards Jewish members, particularly the complainants," according to the complaints detailed in this document.
'Solidarity with Palestine' webinar
Also, on Oct. 28, 2023, PSAC published its "Solidarity with Palestine" webinar. In it, PSAC "accused Israel of colonialism, and of committing apartheid and genocide, common antisemitic tropes used to delegitimate the Jewish presence in the middle east," according to the document.
"Jewish members of PSAC, specifically including the Complainants, were offended and shocked at the lack of impartiality," according to the document.
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Friday, February 09, 2024
Australian Jews on high alert after public list of ‘Zionists’ fuels harassment
Australian police are investigating threats against a 5-year-old Jewish child amid an uproar over the publication online of a list of hundred of Jewish creatives' personal information by pro-Palestinian activists.
Hundreds of Jewish academics and creatives who joined a private WhatsApp group last year had their personal information shared publicly by prominent pro-Palestinian activists this week.
At least one family has gone into hiding amid ensuing harassment, Josh Burns, a Jewish Australian lawmaker, said during a radio interview on Friday morning, prompting shock from the interviewer.
"They were completely shattered by this whole experience, where a sort of lynch mob of people were attacking them," Burns said. "We're not talking about people who are in any way connected to the conflict in the Middle East. We're talking about ordinary Australian citizens who happen to be Jewish."
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Thursday, February 08, 2024
Court Issues New Ruling Over Chabad World Headquarters
On January 19, the New York Court of Appeals ruled on the ownership of the shul at 770 Eastern Parkway in Crown Heights, Brooklyn —also known simply as 770—that could determine the future of the worldwide Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic movement. Since the 1994 death of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the seventh and final leader of the Lubavitcher Hasidic sect, two factions of his followers have been caught in a tumultuous legal battle only complicated by their interpretations of the Rebbe's wishes. The January 19 decision was made just eleven days after nine yeshiva students were arrested for getting in an altercation with the police in front of 770. The students had blockaded the shul from construction workers attempting to seal off an illegally excavated tunnel under the shul.
Chabad's long legal battle over 770
Chabad Lubavitch is a branch of Orthodox Hasidic Judaism which started in Lubavitch, Russia, in 1775. In 1940, Chabad's headquarters moved to New York City and since then, Chabad has grown into one of the largest Jewish movements in the world with over 5,000 Chabad Lubavitch centers worldwide and an extensive publishing arm and online presence. Hasidic movements often revolve around a charismatic rabbi, or rebbe, who serve as spiritual leaders. Schneerson, often seen as one of the most influential Jews of the 20th century—led Chabad from the early 1950s until his death in 1994.
Today, Chabad Lubavitch's main public facing initiatives are organized by Agudas Chassidei Chabad (Agudas)—which sets the policies and initiatives for the Chabad movement. On its website, Agudas defines itself as "the pre-eminent Chabad body to which all other Chabad institutions and organizations around the globe are connected, and which is responsible for representing them to the outside world and for coming to their aid when they are in distress." They write that Schneerson left the organization all of his possessions when he died, and that he personally instructed some of his followers to make the organization in order to "combine all Chabad Chassidim into a single group and to promote their soul-bond with the source of their spiritual vitality"—namely their rebbes and their teachings. Agudas is headed by Rabbi Avraham I. Shemtov. Chabad's educational arm in charge of coordinating educational outreach worldwide, Merkos L'inyonei Chinuch (Merkos), is directed by Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky and Rabbi Yehuda Krinsky and also received Schneerson's imprimatur for its initiatives on college campuses and online.
Meanwhile, the actual shul at 770—which has great spiritual significance to Lubavitcher Hasids for being the former home of Schneerson—has been under the control of Congregation Lubavitch, Inc. (CLI), and the shul's caretakers, also known as the Gabboim—Zalmar Lipser and Avrohom Holtzberg. CLI and Agudas/Merkos have been locked in legal battles over control of the shul for 20 years, with the court case circulating through different courts with different judges delivering different rulings. Most recently, on January 19, the New York Court of Appeals granted ownership rights of all the buildings associated with 770 Eastern Parkway to Agudas and Merkos while simultaneously overturning a civil court decision by ruling that the Gabboim could not be evicted.
These legal battles are inflected by religious differences about whether Schneerson was the—or a—Jewish messiah. When Schneerson became the rebbe in 1951, he told the public that their generation would bring forth the messiah, and in 1991, said that Jews must continue to do everything in their power to make this a reality because their mission had not been accomplished yet. Chabad adherents have had different understandings of Schneerson's public address, with some believing Schneerson was implicitly declaring himself the Messiah and others interpreting his remarks as more of a general call to action. Since then, a divide has persisted inside Chabad for nearly 30 years between "Meshichists," who believe Schneerson is the messiah and still physically alive, and "anti-Meshichists" who dispute that belief.
The court case concerning 770's ownership has also stalled efforts to accomplish Schneerson's deeply personal goal to expand 770, which he iterated in his text Beis Rabbineu Shebibavel when he called on every Jewish man and woman to get involved in 770's expansion. According to Rabbi Gershon Avtzon, the founder and Rosh Yeshiva of the Yeshivas Lubavitch Cincinnati, legitimate efforts at expansion have stalled for years because of the legal expenses over the contested ownership of the building. Currently, expansion seems impossible for the foreseeable future and the tunnel has also undermined the efforts of official organizations like 770 Expand to grow 770 through legitimate ways. The tunnels appear to have been dug by a group of Meshichists from Tzfat, Israel, known as the Tzvatim, who has reportedly been protected by the Gabboim and allowed free reign in the shul at 770. The discovery in January of the 60 feet long by 8 feet wide tunnel caused the NYC Department of Buildings to issue a vacate order for 770.
The New York Court of Appeals' ruling on the fate of the shul at 770 brings, for the time being, an end to a conflict that has left Chabad rattled for the last 20 years. The Executive Director of the Crown Heights Jewish Community Council, Rabbi Eli Cohen, who supports the Gabboim/CLI, told COLlive.com the gabboim will comply with the court order now that the case is resolved and looked forward to working with Agudas/Merkos to restore order to the shul.
The bigger picture for Chabad
Chabad's internal divisions have consequences that go beyond 770's expansion efforts and the court case. The tunnel's exposure has brought negative publicity to Chabad even though most of its members don't identify with the extreme actions of the Tzfatim yeshiva students. The issue has also prompted a slew of antisemitic conspiracy theories purporting to explain what the true purpose of the tunnel was. Conspiracy theorists went to X to accuse Jews of having built the tunnels to participate in satanic rituals or child trafficking, with some users speaking about baby strollers or mattresses found in the tunnels to support their dubious claims. One user with 144.5k followers said the ordeal gave "strong 'Simon of Trent' vibes," referring to a murder case in 1475 that set off a surge of antisemitism after Jews were falsely accused of blood libel.
The Center for Extremism at the American Defamation League called the circulating posts which drew parallels to Hamas' tunnels in Gaza and accused Jews of being both above the law and involved in trafficking extremely pernicious for fueling antisemitic rumors. Chabad's spokesperson, Motti Seligson, told the Associated Press that the sensationalism running rampant online is only making a situation that is already "immensely painful" for Chabad and the Jewish community worse.
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Wednesday, February 07, 2024
Anti-Semitic license plate sparks outrage in Sydney's Jewish community
Australia's Jewish community is in uproar over a set of number plates that appear to celebrate Hamas' attack on Israel.
Former Liberal candidate Freya Leach, a university student who ran in the 2023 state election, shared a photo of the plates attached to a white Ford Ranger on Thursday.
She claimed the ute was spotted in Western Sydney and asked, 'how is this allowed?', tagging NSW Premier Chris Minns.
The plate, which reads 'OCT7TH', is believed to reference the date Hamas soldiers killed more than 1,000 civilians in Israel, triggering the war in Gaza.
The photo has since gone viral online and has been condemned by the Australian Jewish Association (AJA) as 'sick'.
'That's so disgusting,' one outraged commenter wrote.
'How can anyone justify this?,' another asked.
AJA announced late Wednesday night that it had taken steps to hopefully get the plates recalled and cancelled.
It also claimed that a complaint was previously made to myPlates, the company responsible for all custom number plates in NSW, on January 23.
However, the plates have not yet been recalled, the Daily Telegraph reported.
AJA also claimed it initiated calls for the number plate to be removed through a Sydney MP.
Ms Leach followed her tweet with another later on Wednesday in which she claimed she received a message saying the plate 'was registered a few years prior according to police'.
She labelled the interpretation a 'very unfortunate coincidence'.
'I didn't want to believe that a fellow Australian could be capable of such disgusting anti-Semitism,' she later wrote.
'Alas, NSW Transport has confirmed "the plate was, in fact, registered in December of last year – well after the attack." Stop the hate Australia!
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Tuesday, February 06, 2024
Pearl Berg, world’s oldest Jewish person and 9th-oldest overall, dies at 114
Pearl Berg, thought to be the oldest Jewish person in the world and the third oldest American, died Thursday in Los Angeles. She was 114.
A philanthropist active in her local Hadassah chapter, Berg was married for 58 years to Mark Berg, a businessman and investor. He died in 1989.
"She maybe had a sip of Sabbath wine but she didn't drink, she didn't smoke, she ate sensibly, she had good emotional balance and she clearly had remarkable genes," Berg's youngest son, Robert Berg, told the Los Angeles Times.
Berg was born Oct. 1, 1909, in Indiana and raised in Pittsburgh, where she was confirmed at Rodef Shalom Congregation and attended secretarial school. In a tribute written on her 114th birthday, Rabbi John Rosove of Temple Israel of Hollywood, where Berg was a member, remembered that her parents, Archiebald and Anna (née Gerson) Synenberg, were "itinerant photographers" who traveled widely looking for work, and her father later ran a used car business. When that enterprise failed, the family moved to Los Angeles, where Berg met her husband.
"Jewish life was always a priority in Pearl's life," wrote Rosove. "She and Mark joined Temple Israel of Hollywood in 1938 where they raised their sons Alan and Robert," who survive her, as does a granddaughter, Belinda Berg. "She was an avid supporter of Hadassah," serving for two years as served as president of the Nordea chapter in Los Angeles, "and a lifelong supporter of the State of Israel."
After the death of her husband, Berg joined a book club, regularly attended concerts and plays, and became more involved with a bridge group, according to the Gerontology Research Group, which studies "supercentenarians" and confirms their ages. As a member of Temple Israel's Sisterhood, she wrote "notes to bereaved families on behalf of the temple, which she continued to do until the age of 105," according to the GRC.
At the time of her death, Berg was the ninth oldest living person in the world.
Another Jewish member of the supercentenarian study, Louise Levy, died last year in New York at 112. There are no other Jews among the verified 50 oldest people in the world. But a Jewish sculptor named Morrie Markoff recently entered the supercentenarian club, turning 110 in January.
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Monday, February 05, 2024
BBC fires employee who called Jews 'parasites,' claimed Holocaust was 'holohoax'
The BBC fired a senior scheduling coordinator Sunday for antisemitic Facebook posts calling Jews "Nazi apartheid parasites" and the Holocaust a "holohoax."
The corporation dismissed Dawn Queva for nearly a decade of disrespectful posts after learning about them last week. Queva alleged Jews have engaged in human trafficking for hundreds of years and are committing genocide against Palestinians.
"26 million Russians died in WWII but all we here [sic] and made never to forget are the JeWISH 6 million. NEVER MIND THAT THE ROTHSCHILDS funded their own holohoax," Queva posted on Facebook, according to the New York Post. "They funded and made money off [Africans'] free labor on their plantations for 30 generations deep."
She also claimed Ashkenazi Jews are a "subcontinental European caucAsian invader colonizer species" who are "thieving squatters."
"To be JewISH is to practice a religion loosely based on the Hebraic faith," Queva wrote, according to TheDailyMail.com. "And Japheth (those who say they are Jew but are of the synagogue of Satan) shall dwell in the tents of Shem!"
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Friday, February 02, 2024
New Jersey man pleads guilty to hate crimes after assaulting, driving into Orthodox Jews
A New Jersey man has admitted to carrying out a series of hate crimes in the Lakewood area, including attempting to run down members of the Orthodox Jewish community with a car, officials announced.
Dion Marsh on Thursday pleaded guilty in a federal court hearing in Trenton to five counts of violating the federal Hate Crimes Prevention Act, including "willfully causing bodily injury to five victims, and attempting to kill and cause injuries with dangerous weapons to four of them, because they were Jewish," the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey announced. He also faced one count of carjacking.
Marsh's violent spree began on April 8, 2022 around 1:20 p.m., when he forced a man dressed in traditional Orthodox Jewish attire out of his vehicle, assaulting and injuring him in the process, before speeding off in the stolen car, according to court documents related to the case.
Later the same evening, Marsh, driving around Lakewood in a different vehicle, tried to ram into another two men, both of them similarly wearing garb associated with the Orthodox Jewish faith.
The first incident happened around 5:20 p.m., while the second victim, who was left with broken bones, was hit less than an hour later, around 6:06 p.m. The U.S. Attorney's Office called both attacks clear attempts to kill.
Marsh then swapped vehicles and again took to the streets of Lakewood, this time in the car he stole earlier in the day, court documents said. Around 6:55 p.m., Marsh again tried to run down another man in traditional dress before exiting the vehicle and stabbing him in the chest.
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