(New York Jewish Week) — In 1970, New York State passed one of the most expansive abortion rights laws in the country, its legislation putting into motion the eventual adoption of Roe v. Wade in 1973. But the legislation almost didn’t pass. It was only thanks to George Michaels, a Jewish Democrat in the New […]
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(JR) — The Dutch elections in November sent shockwaves through Europe, as voters delivered victory to Geert Wilders, a hard-right populist known for crusading against Islam, immigrants and the European Union — along with professing support for Israel. But for some Dutch Jews, who have watched an atmosphere of fear and antisemitism grow since the […]
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BERLIN (JR) — Recognizing Israel’s right to exist is now mandatory for those who want to become German citizens in the former East German state of Saxony-Anhalt. Applicants living in the state will have to confirm in writing “that they recognize Israel’s right to exist and condemn any efforts directed against the existence of the […]
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((JR)) — Norman Lear, the Jewish TV pioneer behind iconic comedies of the 1970s and 1980s that helped bring social commentary and Black characters into the mainstream, has died at 101. Lear’s death was announced by a spokesperson for his family, according to The New York Times. The decorated creator of “All In The Family,” […]
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BUENOS AIRES (JR) — South America is getting its first Jewish university next year. The Latin American Rabbinical Seminary in Buenos Aires — which is affiliated with the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York, the Conservative movement’s flagship — obtained legal approval last month to establish the Isaac Abarbanel Jewish University Institute. The school will confer diploma, […]
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(New York Jewish Week) — In March 2022, Jack Waksal thought he recognized Sam Ron, the keynote speaker at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum’s annual South Florida dinner in Boca Raton. But he couldn’t quite place him — after all, at 97, Waksal had met thousands of people during his lifetime. But when Ron said the […]
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(New York Jewish Week) — First things first: Despite its name, there is no erotica and sometimes no Hanukkah in the Hanukkah Erotica Book Club. Instead, the “book club” is actually a biweekly podcast about Jewish romance novels. Hosted by close friends and stepsisters Malya Levin and Rachel Mintz — who goes by her “Hebrew” […]
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((JR)) — An Israeli reservist on leave from the war in Gaza sneaks back into his house in the middle of the night to surprise his wife and sons. Another opens the door of his daughter’s preschool classroom and steps inside. Another stands behind his mother’s desk at work, waiting for her to turn and […]
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(JR) — Nearly three decades ago, Rodolfo Barra resigned as Argentina’s justice minister in the wake of revelations about his past membership in a violent antisemitic group. Now, the newly elected prime minister has tapped Barras to head the country’s top legal office. The appointment by Javier Milei, a far-right upstart who backs Israel and […]
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(JR) — Throughout Hollywood history, many stars of Jewish ancestry have soft-pedaled that heritage, changing their names or speaking rarely, if at all, about their Jewishness. No one can accuse Barbra Streisand of either. The singer and actress of the stage and screen — one of the most beloved Jewish American icons of the past […]
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