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David Evanier

David Evanier

Women of the Shoah

Seventy elementary, high school and middle school teachers, principals, counselors and psychologists gathered Jan. 18 at the Museum of the Holocaust for the first of four sessions in the Anti-Defamation League\’s (ADL) 18th Annual Teacher-Training Workshop on the Holocaust, titled \”Women in the Holocaust: Resisters to Perpetrators.\”

Parents Sue Over Canavan Test Patent

The families of children with Canavan disease are suing the researchers who found the gene responsible for the illness, using blood and tissue from two children in Chicago and other children who died of the disease.

A Decrease in Vigilance

A conference on genetic diseases held by the Cultural Foundation of Habib Levy in November led The Journal to examine the Jewish community\’s reduced state of awareness about genetic testing for prospective parents. During the past 30 years, large-scale genetic screening of Ashkenazi Jews in the U.S., Israel and other countries has reduced the number of babies born with Tay-Sachs, the most widely known Jewish genetic disease, by 90 percent. Yet today, younger Jews are less conscious of Tay-Sachs and even less aware of testing made available during the past five years for a newer array of genetic diseases. Geneticists and physicians confirmed that many people are not adequately informed about their genetic testing options. Regardless of their educational background, few individuals know if they fall into a high-risk category for genetically transmitted diseases. Experts interviewed maintain there has been a relaxation in vigilance about carrier screening and a consequential rise in danger signals for American Jews of Ashkenazi descent.

Bedside Manner

Dr. Scott Braunstein sits in a hospital room with Sam Bottleman, 91, on the Sunday of Chanukah. Bottleman has a neck brace and a deep wound on his head after falling down 12 steps in his apartment building the day before. Braunstein, 27, a resident in internal medicine at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, holds Bottleman\’s hand and asks questions that elicit an entire history.

Legacy of a Quiet Giant

\”Julian Dixon was not soft-spoken because he had nothing to say. He had plenty to say, and he had plenty of impact on how things got done.\”

Forgive, But Don’t Forget

Rabbi Alan Lachtman began Shabbat services at Temple Beth David in Temple City on Dec. 8 by having the children\’s choir sing \”Light One Candle,\” a song by Peter, Paul and Mary. The song had symbolic meanings, both positive and destructive, for the congregation. Twenty years ago, on Dec. 6, 1980, the fifth day of Chanukah, two neo-Nazis broke into the synagogue, poured gasoline on the pulpit, and set the synagogue on fire. The sanctuary was gutted, the cabinet containing the Torah scrolls was singed and two Torah scrolls — one of which had been rescued from the Holocaust from a temple that had burned years ago — were damaged.

Teaching Cops Tolerance

There\’s enough work to go around for everyone in teaching tolerance and diversity to law enforcement in California, according to the Anti-Defamation League and the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

Twenty-First-Century Racist

Alexander James Curtis thought he was one of the smartest racists around, smarter than the police and the federal government.

Butterfly Ballot Blues

Politicos and machers who had given heart and soul (and a lot of cash, in some cases) to their respective candidates saw conspiracy, fraud or betrayal in the ballot crisis in Florida this week. Feeling ran strong, but no one was willing to predict whether Bush or Gore would turn out to be president.

Majoring in Courage

These are tense days for the Los Angeles parents of Jewish students studying at Israeli universities and yeshivas. Their sons and daughters are among some 4,000 Americans studying in Israel this year in a wide range of programs. Major universities, yeshivas, kibbutzim, the Israel Defense Force are just a few of the institutions that offer American students programs in Israel. According to the Israel Aliyah Center, there are l00 students from Los Angeles currently studying in Israel.

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