Ukraine's first lady headed to Israel, Conservative movement recruiting teens to be rabbis, Reddit makes it harder to patrol antisemites, and Mel Brooks on the essence of Jewish humor. |
Former President Donald Trump arrived in Florida Monday in advance of his court appearance today. (Getty) |
President Trump is accused of violating the Espionage Act. So were many Jews. The former president is expected to be arraigned today on 31 criminal counts relating to the Espionage Act, for retaining classified documents after leaving the White House. Our contributor Benjamin Ivry looked back at Jews accused under the same Act, which was passed in 1917. Paper route: Among the most notorious violators of the Espionage Act were Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, who were convicted of spying for the Soviet Union in 1953. Jonathan Pollard was charged in 1985 with selling classified information to Israel. And Daniel Ellsberg, a whistleblower who helped publish the Pentagon Papers to oppose the Vietnam War, was prosecuted under the Act in 1973. Robert who? There were also some less-famous Jews caught in the Act’s crosshairs – including Robert Goldstein, a Hollywood costume designer-turned-movie director. He worked on a 1917 film about the American Revolution that painted British soldiers in a negative light. It came out during World War I, and President Woodrow Wilson wanted to suppress any potential hostility towards an ally. On the other hand: The Espionage Act has also been used to combat antisemitism. The government invoked it in 1942 to deny a postal permit to the Rev. Charles Coughlin, a Catholic priest who espoused Nazi sentiments, halting circulation of his weekly publication. |
Hey kid, wanna be a rabbi? Facing a shortage, Conservative movement looks to teens:The Jewish Theological Seminary has just seven rabbinical students finishing their first year, and a similar number slated to start the program this fall. Concerned, the Conservative movement sent an email to its rabbis asking them to keep an eye out for young people who could replace them someday. Even if they don’t have “synagogue skills,” explained one rabbi, look for “kids who are articulate, insightful and have high emotional intelligence. Take them and mentor them.” Read the story ➤ A 13-year-old died by suicide. His mother borrows from a Jewish mourning ritual to save the lives of strangers: Anat Feldman is collecting stones, painting them and inscribing them with an Instagram handle that raises awareness around suicide. The rocks have landed throughout Israel as well as in Canada, Greece, the Netherlands, India, Denmark and Thailand. “I wouldn’t say it gives meaning to his death,” she said of her son, Shahak, who jumped to his death from an apartment building shortly after his bar mitzvah — and a breakup. “But if we can keep one family from the horror we experienced, that would be important.” Read the story ➤ Reddit users concerned about hate speech shut the platform down in protest: Most of Reddit’s communities, including its Jewish ones, went dark Monday to protest the social media platform’s new decision to crack down on third-party apps, which went into effect this week. The change makes it harder for the site’s volunteer moderators to patrol white supremacists, proselytizers and antisemites. Read the story ➤
And one more: Mark Robinson, a GOP candidate for governor of North Carolina, likened the current political climate in the U.S. to Nazi-era Germany and compared his political opponents to Hitler.
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WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY |
Newly built houses in an Israeli settlement near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. (Getty) |
🇮🇱 Israeli officials told the Biden administration that they intend to move forward with plans to build thousands of new homes in Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank. (Axios) 🇺🇦 Olena Zelenskyy, the first lady of Ukraine, is set to visit Israel next week. She was invited by Michal Herzog, wife of Israel’s President Isaac Herzog, whom she met at King Charles’ coronation. The two are working on a project using Israeli mental health programs to help with Ukrainians suffering from PTSD. (Jerusalem Post) 🤷 Who co-signed the $500,000 bond for Rep. George Santos, the Republican from New York who pleaded not guilty to 13 federal charges? Santos says it’s his family, not donors or lobbyists, but refuses to release their names. (CNN) 🕎 London’s Jewish Museum is shutting down indefinitely amid financial difficulties, and looking for a new location. Among the 40,000 objects in the museum’s collection is the oldest Hanukkiah made in Britain and a 17th-century ark from a Venetian synagogue. (JTA) 🏖️ An Israeli woman walking on the beach discovered an ancient figurine of an Egyptian goddess that experts think is more than 3,000 years old. She gave the stone to the Israel Antiquities Authority, which has called for the public to turn in any relics they find. (Times of Israel) 🎭 Director Judd Apatow interviewed Mel Brooks in advance of Brooks’ 97th birthday later this month. The two discussed Brooks’ time serving in World War II, the rise in antisemitism and the essence of Jewish humor. (The Atlantic)
What else we’re reading ➤ Hitler wanted this painting for his personal museum — now it’s on display in Boston ... Jewish summer camps are an American tradition rooted in World War II … How a Brooklyn neighborhood became the ‘Klezmer Shtetl.’
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On this day in history (1924): The modern city of Bnei Brak was founded. Located about three miles from Tel Aviv, the city’s 185,000 residents are mostly Haredi Jews. It was the site of a rabbinic enclave in Talmudic times, and was depicted on television in 2006 by the Israeli miniseries A Touch Away. 7:30 p.m. Israel time: Ground is being broken at Hebrew University for what will be the world’s largest Albert Einstein museum. When complete, the building will house 85,000 documents, Einstein’s Nobel Prize and the original theory of relativity. Read the story ➤
It’s World Pet Memorial Day, and we’re asking: Should you sit shiva for Spot?
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The haze from the Canadian wildfires has moved on, but extreme weather events may become the new norm due to climate change. Our Rukhl Schaechter shares how to talk about fires in Yiddish. --- Thanks to Mira Fox, Tani Levitt and Talya Zax for contributing to today’s newsletter. You can reach the “Forwarding” team at editorial@forward.com. |
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