Author: Sara Wood

(J. The Jewish News of Northern California via JTA) — The year was 1968. Young people from around the country were descending on San Francisco looking for ways to express themselves, making efforts — sometimes heroic, sometimes tragic — to free themselves from the bonds of American society. At the same time, a group of Jews came […]

(JTA) — Four and a half feet of snow had just fallen on East Aurora, New York, but Kim Kaiser and her fellow volunteers through Jewish Family Services of Western New York weren’t willing to compromise on their Thanksgiving plans. Those plans involved joining a community Thanksgiving feast on Tuesday night, two days before the […]

(JTA) — A top Jewish community security consultant accused the University of Arizona of ignoring antisemitism as a warning sign in a case that culminated in the shooting death of a professor. “Professor Thomas Meixner lost his life because antisemitism is not being taken seriously enough,” Michael Masters, the CEO of the Secure Community Network, […]

LAS VEGAS (JTA) — For Republican Jews looking for an alternative to Donald Trump in 2024’s presidential race, Ted Cruz presented a tantalizing choice on Saturday — at least for a few minutes. “When I arrived in the Senate 10 years ago, I set a goal to be the leading defender of Israel in the […]

(JTA) — Kyrie Irving returned Sunday from an eight-game suspension after again apologizing for promoting an antisemitic film on Twitter.  “I just want to offer my deep apologies to all those who were impacted over these last few weeks, specifically my Jewish relatives, my Black relatives, all races and cultures,” Irving said prior to Sunday’s […]

(JTA) — Six months after a lawsuit claimed that he mishandled an allegation of sexual assault between campers at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires, the camp’s former director, Rabbi Ethan Linden, has a new job. Linden began a role as director of educational operations and design for the Shalom Hartman Institute on Monday, the Jewish […]

WALTHAM, Massachusetts (JTA) — The days before Thanksgiving break were supposed to be packed at Brandeis University’s Hillel: There was a talk on Sunday about sexuality in Judaism, a ceremony for students who participated in a study program and a forum for candidates running to help lead the campus Jewish center. Instead, Hillel canceled everything […]

(JTA) — Elon Musk bantered with Kanye West and trolled the Anti-Defamation League this weekend, signalling the no-bigots-barred free-for-all he apparently hopes the platform will become. The rapper and designer who also goes by Ye was banned last month from Twitter for threatening Jews, and then freed from Twitter jail on Nov. 4 for a […]

LAS VEGAS (JTA) — Benjamin Netanyahu’s acceptance of a Republican invitation to speak to Congress in 2015 to decry the Obama administration’s Iran policy notoriously helped bring about a rupture between the once and future Israeli prime minister and Democrats. Now Netanyahu says the decision helped cement secret ties with Arab countries that led five […]

(JTA) — Steny Hoyer, the longtime No. 2 leader of Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives who was known for decades for his closeness to AIPAC, is stepping down from his leadership position. Hoyer, 83, the current majority leader, has been close for decades to Maryland’s Jewish community. He announced his departure Thursday, the […]