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What’s Happening: Erwin Chemerinsky, Ben Shapiro, BJE Service

[additional-authors]
October 18, 2018
The annual 2K walk 4 Friendship will take place at Shalhevet High School.

FRI OCT 19

 

Pride Shabbat Service
The community is invited to a Pride Shabbat service focusing on unity, equality and inclusion for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. The service is led by Rabbi Jon Hanish, Rabbi Becky Hoffman and Cantor Noa Shaashua. Guest speaker is David Kazdan of JQ International, who will discuss “The Need for LGBTQ Role Models in the Jewish Community.” Coffee and dessert to follow. 6:30–8 p.m. Free. Kol Tikvah, 20400 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills. (818) 348-0670.

National Refugee Shabbat
Kehillat Israel Synagogue is one of many temples throughout Southern California participating in a nationwide Shabbat experience dedicated to refugees. Guest speaker is Rabbi Rachel Grant Meyer, director of education at HIAS. 7–8:30 p.m. Free. Kehillat Israel Synagogue, 16019 Sunset Blvd., Pacific Palisades. (310) 459-2328. Visit ourki.org or hias.org.

Boomer’s Dinner with David Suissa
Jewish Journal Publisher and Editor-in-Chief David Suissa participates in a community evening at modern Orthodox congregation B’nai David-Judea. 7–10 p.m. B’nai David-Judea. 8906 Pico Blvd., Los Angeles. $30 members, $35 nonmembers. (310) 276-9269.

Erwin Chemerinsky

Weekend With Erwin Chemerinsky
Join lawyer and legal scholar Erwin Chemerinsky, the 13th dean of Berkeley Law School and former dean and professor at UC Irvine, Duke University and USC, for the Abner & Roslyn Goldstine Scholar-in-Residence Lecture Series at Sinai Temple. On Friday at 8:30 p.m., Chemerinsky speaks about “Free Speech on Campus.” Free. On Sunday morning, Oct. 21, Chemerinsky and Rabbi David Wolpe engage in a conversation on the topic of “We the People: A Progressive Reading of the Constitution for the 21st Century.” Light breakfast provided, and book sales and signing available for Chemerinsky’s “Free Speech on Campus.”  9:30 a.m. Admission $33 at the door for Sinai Temple members, $40 for nonmembers. Sinai Temple, 10400 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. (310) 474-1518. .

SAT OCT 20

National Refugee Shabbat Havdalah
Join members of IKAR, Temple Emanuel of Beverly Hills, Temple Beth Am and other L.A.-area congregations for a special event at the close of National Refugee Shabbat. Guest speaker, Rabbi Rachel Grant Meyer. Attendees are encouraged to bring diapers or school and art supplies for local refugee families supported by the Tiyya Foundation. 7–9:30 p.m. $15. RSVP required. Temple Beth Am, 1039 S. La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles. (310) 652-7353. Visit tbala.org or hias.org.

SUN OCT 21

BJE Day of Service Learning
Join Builders of Jewish Education, in partnership with Mountain Restoration Trust, for a family-friendly day of community service and learning at Malibu Creek State Park. Participants plant native plants, including purple needle grass and creeping wild rye. Other activities include mulching, weeding and watering new and young plants. Dress appropriately to work in the outdoors: closed-toe shoes, comfortable clothes, hats and sunscreen. Water and snacks provided. Parking is free. RSVP required to Millie Wexler at Mwexler@bjela.org or (323) 761-8631. 10 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Malibu Creek State Park, 1925 Las Virgenes Road, Calabasas.

Ben Shapiro

Ben Shapiro at Politicon
Ben Shapiro is the keynote speaker at Politicon, which bills itself as the “Unconventional Political Convention.” The weekend event will feature panels, debates, town-hall discussions, art, podcasts, comedy, Q-and-A’s, book signings and more. Shapiro is editor-in-chief of DailyWire.com, host of “The Ben Shapiro Show” podcast, a New York Times best-selling author, a frequent speaker on college campuses and a Jewish Journal columnist. Speech, noon. $70. Children 12 and younger free with paid adult. Full convention, $70–$400. Los Angeles Convention Center, 1201 S. Figueroa St., Los Angeles. (213) 741-1151.

The annual 2K walk 4 Friendship will take place at Shalhevet High School.

Walk 4 Friendship L.A.
This annual 2K walk raises vital funds and community awareness for the Friendship Circle of Los Angeles, a nonprofit organization that brings joy and comfort to children with special needs and their families. Inflatables, Lego party, puppy party, games and drinks. Free. Food for sale. Registration and T-shirt pickup, 1:30 p.m. Opening ceremony, 2:45 p.m. Walk begins, 3 p.m. Concert, 4 p.m. Visit website to sponsor individuals or teams, and for parking tips. Shalhevet High School, 910 S. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles. (310) 280-0955.

Klezmer Sounds
Homegrown chamber klezmer band Tribe makes its debut at Hollywood Temple Beth El. Formed by jazz stalwarts Dan Spector and Mike Werner, the sextet presents a mix of traditional klezmer and new klezmer sounds. Refreshments available. Two sets between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. $15. Hollywood Temple Beth El, 1317 N. Crescent Heights Blvd., West Hollywood. (323) 656-3150.

MON OCT 22

Jenna Fields

“What is Jewish about Breast and Ovarian Cancer?”
Jenna Fields, California regional director of Sharsheret, a nonprofit supporting Jewish women and their families facing breast cancer, gives a detailed presentation that provides tools for recognizing the disease and how to respond. 12:20–1:10 p.m. Free. Academy for Jewish Religion, California, UCLA Hillel building, 574 Hilgard Ave., Third Floor, Los Angeles. (213) 884-4133.

TUE OCT 23

Understanding the Nov. 6 Ballot
The Beach Cities League of Women Voters helps explain 11 statewide propositions in advance of the Nov. 6 election. 10:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Free. $5 for lunch following the program. Congregation Tikvat Jacob, 1829 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Manhattan Beach. (310) 546-3667.

“The Presence of Their Absence”
Fred Zaidman, a son of Holocaust survivors, tells his family’s wartime story in this 2018 documentary produced by Donna Kanter. Zaidman’s mother, Renate, spoke often of her lasting pain while his father, Wolf, was silent. In researching his family’s story, Zaidman received help he could not have anticipated, including when a Baptist minister from Atlanta led him to a cemetery in Poland. A post-screening Q-and-A features Zaidman, Kanter and minister Steven Reece. 8 p.m. $12 general admission. $8 students. Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles. (310) 440-4500.

WED OCT 24

Symposium on Mortality 
“What Mortality Can Teach Us About Living” is the subject of an all-day symposium organized by Neshama: Association of Jewish Chaplains. Presenters include Dr. Ira Byock, a palliative care physician and Rabbanit Alissa Thomas-Newborn of B’nai David-Judea. Group discussion leaders are Rabbi Jason Weiner, director of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center’s Spiritual Care Department; Rabbi Rochelle Robins, vice president and dean of the chaplaincy school at the Academy of Jewish Religion, California; Joel Kushner, director of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion Kalsman Institute on Judaism and Health; and Rabbi H. Rafael Goldstein, executive director of Neshama. 9 a.m.­–5 p.m. $36, includes kosher lunch. RSVP mandatory. Academy for Jewish Religion, California, 574 Hilgard Ave., Los Angeles. (213) 884-4133.

THU OCT 25

Saskia Keeley

“Love Thy Neighbor”
Four art exhibitions seek to raise awareness and inspire hope in “Love Thy Neighbor, the Refugee Experience.” Photojournalist Saskia Keeley brings together Orthodox Israeli women and Palestinian women for photo workshops in “Roots Non-Violence,” Jean Edelstein blends the sacred with crisis scenes in “Disaster Series,” IsraAID shows on-the-ground photographs of Syria’s civil war in “Stories of Courage and Resilience,” and artist Betty Green’s “Earth Rhythms” examines patterns in nature and the energy connecting all living forms. Exhibition opening 7–9 p.m. Through Dec. 20. Gallery hours 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Monday–Friday. Opening is free. Hillel at UCLA, 574 Hilgard Ave., Los Angeles. (310) 208-3081.

Jews of China 
At a lunch-and-learn program, professor Xu Xin traces Jewish history in China from the 9th century to today’s Chinese Jews. Xin is the Diane and Guilford Glazer chair professor a Nanjing University, director of the Glazer Institute for Jewish and Israel Studies at Nanjing University, and president of the Chinese National Institute of Jewish Studies. American Jewish University President Jeffrey Herbst provides introductory remarks. Noon. $10. American Jewish University Familian Campus, Berg Dining Hall, 15600 Mulholland Drive, Bel Air. (310) 440-1572.  

A Night for Singles
Seeking fresh paths for meeting your bashert? Try your luck at “Game Night & Mixer for Young Jewish Professionals.” Mingle with singles in their 30s and 40s, the evening promises an opportunity to meet new people in a relaxed environment. Tickets sold in advance only. Space is limited. 7:30–9:30 p.m. $20 plus a one-drink minimum. The Phoenix, 8480 W. Third St. (844) 454-7354.

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