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| JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT. Give a tax-deductible donation We’re off for the holiday but will be back in your inbox on Monday. Today: 'Lucky Jew' dolls stir debate, a synagogue that's celebrated Thanksgiving since 1789 and a Christmas carol gets a Yiddish makeover. OUR LEAD STORY White nationalists and neo-Nazis clashed with counter-protestors at a Charlottesville rally in 2017. Charlottesville jury: Neo-Nazis, others must pay plaintiffs $25 million Jurors ordered 12 white nationalist and neo-Nazi individuals and five groups to pay more than $25 million in damages to nine plaintiffs affected by the violence that erupted at the 2017 Unite the Right rally. But they deadlocked on two federal conspiracy claims under the so-called Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871.
Our reporter Arno Rosenfeld, who spent some time in the Charlottesville courtroom during the trial, explains the verdict.
Antisemitism was front and center. Jurors heard from Holocaust historian Deborah E. Lipstadt as well as a Jewish student from the University of Virginia who recounted fleeing from her dorm room as neo-Nazis marched yards away from her door.
Jewish advocates helped lead the case, with veterans of Jewish groups running the nonprofit that organized the lawsuit and attorneys Roberta Kaplan and Alan Levine, who is also chair of the Jewish Theological Seminary, representing the plaintiffs.
In summation: “Today’s verdict should be viewed as a reminder to all that facts matter,” Levine said, “and our judicial system was formed to protect all citizens of our country, regardless of race or religion.” But it is unclear whether the damage awards will ever get paid; lawyers for the defendants said they are destitute.
ALSO FROM THE FORWARD 12 states ask Ben & Jerry’s parent company to reverse its Israel decision: Led by Eric Schmitt of Missouri, attorneys general from Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Kansas, Mississippi, Indiana, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah and West Virginia signed a letter to Unilever denouncing the ice-cream maker’s decision to pull out of the occupied West Bank. “If Unilever is so interested in virtue-signaling,” it says, “why not announce a boycott of countries like China, Russia, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, or especially Iran, who has promised the complete destruction of Israel?” Read the story >
Opinion | The kids are not all right — and Jewish educators on college campuses know it:Rabbi Seth Winberg of the Brandeis Hillel says that after a year of social distancing, students came to campus this fall with a deficit of what scholars call “social capital” – feelings of belonging, trusting others, feeling comfortable and asking for help. Some felt anxious about attending large Shabbat gatherings. When kids are home for Thanksgiving break, Winberg writes, “please remember to ask them how they are doing, and really listen. You may be surprised by the answer you get.” Read the OpEd >
But wait, there’s more… The nation’s largest Jewish anti-poverty charity says 21% of the free meals distributed in New York City since the pandemic have been kosher or halal, a total of 27 million meals. Will political pressure cause Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer to retire? Probably not, according to his new book. Take a Christmas carol like “Silver Bells,” change the lyrics to “Little Dreidels,” and sing it all in Yiddish. Behold, the genius holiday stylings of Yossi Dresser.
WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY The controversial 'Lucky Jew' figurines are sometimes used as cake toppers. (Photos: Etsy/DoyeArt) 🇵🇱 For years, tourists visiting the Polish city of Krakow could buy “Lucky Jew” figurines and paintings of Jews counting money. But after discussions with various Jewish groups, the city has deemed them antisemitic and will slowly phase out the souvenir caricatures. Now, there’s a hot online marketplace for them. (Times of Israel)
🇮🇹 An Italian politician has apologized for referring to a Holocaust survivor by her tattoo number. Fabio Meroni made the comment while criticizing Liliana Segre for her support of COVID-19 health measures. (JTA)
💉 The National Faith Advisory Board, created by former Trump administration officials, is urging the U.S. military to grant religious exemptions to vaccine mandates. “Religious freedom is enshrined in our Constitution and must always be protected,” the group said in a letter signed by 1,700 religious leaders. (Religion News Service)
🇲🇦 The bodies of seven Moroccan-Jewish victims of the COVID-19 pandemic were flown to Israel after being interred in a Casablanca Jewish cemetery more than a year ago. They died before Morocco formally recognized Israel as a state and established diplomatic relations in December. (JTA)
✍️ A letter Albert Einstein wrote about antisemitism in academia sold for $55,000 on Tuesday. And that paled in comparison to another auction an hour earlier: Early Einstein scribblings of his theory of general relativity went for more than $11 million, the most-ever paid for a piece of his memorabilia. (Forward)
🦃 A Manhattan synagogue whose leaders fought with George Washington has been celebrating Thanksgiving since 1789. Many early congregants served in the Continental Army and the cantor participated in Washington’s inaugural celebration. “Thanksgiving means something to this congregation and being American means something to this congregation,” said a fifth-generation member. “We don’t give it lip service. We really feel it.” (NY Post)
Mazel tov > Congrats to Marie-Rose Sheinerman, a former Forward intern, who was just named the 146th editor-in-chief of The Daily Princetonian.
FROM OUR KITCHEN We tested five non-dairy milks. Guess which one makes the best pumpkin pie? Maybe you keep kosher and avoid having dairy after a plateful of turkey. Perhaps you are lactose-intolerant, or just prefer an alternative to the Thanksgiving classic. Carly Pildis baked five non-dairy pies and had her friends and family rank them for the ultimate pareve dessert. The results have been the most popular article on our website this week. Read the story >
Video: Carly talks with our food editor, Rob Eshman, about the technique for the winning pie. Watch now >
And relatedly: Jews and pumpkins go back long before Thanksgiving. At least one piece of Yiddish literature suggests we were into pumpkin knishes.
Still noodling with the menu for this holiday weekend? Try our Pumpkin spice challah, bagel stuffing, cinnamon-sugar fried dough churros, or liquid latke Hanukkah cocktail.
ON THE CALENDAR On this day in history: Jack Ruby, born Jacob Leon Rubenstein to Polish-Jewish immigrants, fatally shot Lee Harvey Oswald on Nov. 24, 1963. Ruby ran a Dallas nightclub and attended services at Congregation Shearith Israel. Rabbi Hillel Silverman, who led the synagogue from 1954 to 1964, recalled that Ruby “came to minyan one day with a cast on his arm. ‘I said, ‘Jack, what happened?’ He said, ‘In my club, somebody was very raucous, and I was the bouncer.’” Ruby also gave the rabbi a puppy, and dog-sat when the family went to Israel.
There were news reports that Ruby killed Oswald “to show that Jews had guts.” Rabbi Silverman sighed at the recollection. “I think he said, ‘I did it for the Jewish people,’” the rabbi said. “But I’ve tried to wipe that statement from my mind.” Read more about Ruby’s Jewish background >
Last year on this day, we reported on the death of David Dinkins, the New York City mayor whose administration was derailed in the aftermath of the Crown Heights riots.
In honor of National Sardines Day, meet the Jewish millennials behind Fishwife, a company that’s making tinned fish palatable to a new generation.
VIDEO OF THE DAY Thanksgiving has fallen during Hanukkah at least twice since President Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving a federal holiday in 1863: in 1888 and in 2013. In 1918, Hanukkah began Thursday night, as Thanksgiving ended. This year, they’re three days apart.
We all have our favorite holiday movies, but if you’ve ever wondered what a “Thanksgivukkah” blockbuster would look like, I’m happy to report that your wait is over. Above is a parody trailer for such a film and it’s the brainchild of Yisrael Campbell, M. Daniel Smith and Gary Rudoren (the husband of Jodi, our editor-in-chief). Now if we could only, um, pass over Black Friday...
Thanks to Arno Rosenfeld for contributing to today’s newsletter. You can reach the “Forwarding” team at editorial@forward.com. Support Independent Jewish Journalism The Forward is a non-profit 501(c)3 so our journalism depends on support from readers like you. You can support our work today by donating or subscribing. All donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of US law.
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