A protest against anti-Semitism is going to be held at UCLA’s Faculty Center at 11 a.m. on Tuesday.
The protest, which is being organized by Yad Yamin, will call for UCLA to cancel National Students for Justice in Palestine’s (NSJP) upcoming conference on Nov. 16-18:
SJP Uncovered has said that Alhato was disinvited from the conference over his posts.
A member of Yad Yamin told the Journal in a phone interview that a nonpartisan coalition will be calling on UCLA to actively take a stand against “incitement and anti-Semitism” on campus, as they don’t think the administration is currently doing enough against it.
For instance, the member argued that UCLA’s cease-and-desist letter against NSJP for using the UCLA Bruin Bear in their conference logo failed to acknowledge the inherent anti-Semitism in the logo.
“They concentrated on the licensing and unpermitted use of the bear… but what about the obvious in-your-face anti-Semitism of it?” the member said, pointing out that half of the kite that the bear was playing with is shaped like Israel and covered in red.
The cease-and-desist letter noted that the kite in the logo could be interpreted “as an intention to endorse violence against Israel.”
The Yad Yamin member also pointed out that NSJP’s website specifically called for the destruction of Zionism, which would fall under the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism, but the event is still being allowed to occur on campus.
The coalition will be calling for the UCLA administration to not only cancel the NSJP conference, but also to sanction and investigate SJP, as well as train university staff to better identify anti-Semitism on campus.
“We’re fed up with the administration’s refusal to address the growing anti-Semitism on campus,” the member said.
Are Jews who like President Trump’s policies on Israel making a deal with the devil?
Last Friday on “Real Time With Bill Maher,” New York Times op-ed editor and writer Bari Weiss made this comment in the aftermath of the Pittsburgh tragedy:
“I hope this week that American Jews have woken up to the price of that bargain,” she said. “They have traded policies that they like for the values that have sustained the Jewish people – and frankly, this country – forever: Welcoming the stranger; dignity for all human beings; equality under the law; respect for dissent; love of truth.
“These are the things we are losing under this president – and no policy is worth that price.”
“For Jews who are appalled by Trump’s incendiary rhetoric but who still appreciate his policies on Israel, what should they do? Tell the president not to bother trying to ‘woo’ us with Israel?”
In other words, American Jews are paying too high a price for President Trump’s unbridled support of Israel, which includes moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, scuttling the Iran deal, defending Israel at the UN and enforcing consequences for Palestinian support of terror.
So, for Jews who are appalled by Trump’s incendiary rhetoric but who still appreciate his policies on Israel, what should they do? Tell the president not to bother trying to “woo” us with Israel? That he so violates Jewish values that his favorable actions on Israel just aren’t worth it? That after Pittsburgh, we’re no longer willing to pay the price of that bargain?
And how would that work exactly? Weiss didn’t specify, but Franklin Foer, writing in the Atlantic, did have a suggestion to enhance Jewish security after Pittsburgh:
“Any strategy for enhancing the security of American Jewry should involve shunning Trump’s Jewish enablers. Their money should be refused, their presence in synagogues not welcome. They have placed their community in danger.”
Never mind that after Pittsburgh, the President said: “Anti-Semitism represents one of the ugliest and darkest features of human history. Anti-Semitism must be condemned anywhere and everywhere. There must be no tolerance for it.”
According to Foer, however, any Jew who still supports the president must be ostracized and shunned.
I wonder if Foer would be willing to stand outside a synagogue on Saturday morning with a sign repeating his message: “If you support Trump, your presence is not welcome. You have placed your community in danger.”
“Weiss could have said: ‘We can appreciate the president’s support for Israel AND ALSO speak out against his incendiary and divisive rhetoric. One doesn’t preclude the other.'”
I don’t mean to be snarky or cynical, but I’m just chastened by this Jewish instinct to blame other Jews under any circumstances, even when a Nazi comes to murder us.
Weiss could have said: “We can appreciate the president’s support for Israel AND ALSO speak out against his incendiary and divisive rhetoric. One doesn’t preclude the other.” Foer could have said: “If you have friends or community members who support Trump, make your case vigorously, but there’s no need to go as far as cutting them out.”
Both of those options would have been consistent with the values that have sustained the Jewish people.
Nation of Islam leader and anti-Semite Louis Farrakhan led chants of “Death to America” and “Death to Israel” while in Iran over the weekend.
Farrakhan was critical of the Trump administration’s re-imposition of sanctions against Iran in a speech at Tehran University, calling it a “big mistake.” He also told Iran, “If you don’t work to end the division inside Iran, you will not survive the sanctions,” with “the division” being a likely reference to the anti-regime protests in Iran.
Toward the end of his speech, Farrakhan began leading chants of “Death to America” and “Death to Israel” in Farsi:
Iran state TV news presenter: Listen to leader of Nation of Islam chanting "Death to America"
— Sobhan Hassanvand 📰 سبحان حسنوند (@Hassanvand) November 4, 2018
In a meeting with Iranian Expediency Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei, Farrakhan said, “I understand how the enemies have plotted against the Iranian people and I would like to stay alongside you to stop their plots.”
Rabbi Shmuley Boteach tweeted in response:
A new low for arch Jew-hater Farrakhan. Who has heard of an American going to a foreign country and chanting "Death to America?" Where is @BillClinton who appeared with him recently, and @BarackObama, photographed with him, and @corybooker to condemn him? https://t.co/A6yhSmfs5T
Farrakhan also praised the Iranian regime in a 2016 visit to the country, where he said, “I would hope that at this later stage, where you are now coming out from under sanctions—sanctions that were designed by the West to destroy the revolutionary spirit of the Iranian people, and cause the Iranian people to rise up against their government. But thanks to Allah, the people of Iran stood firmly with their leadership. And the sanctions only caused Iran to look deep within itself. And now those sanctions are being lifted, but Iran is stronger, Iran is wiser, Iran is more influential.”
Farrakhan has also praised Iran’s terror proxy, Hezbollah, as “freedom fighters.”
The Nation of Islam leader has connections to various Democrats, most notably Deputy Democratic National Committee (DNC) chairman Rep. Keith Ellison (Minn.), and has been praised by leaders of the Women’s March. The Women’s March had not responded to the Journal’s request for comment at publication time.
UPDATE: The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has published a blog post about Farrakhan’s Iran visit that can be read here.
Simply Delish is a one-of-a-kind product made with carefully selected ingredients that are sourced from all over the world. In turn, the company proudly makes 100 percent plant-based desserts that set without the gelatin from meat products. SimplyDelish started from humble beginnings over 25 years ago in South Africa. Today, SimplyDelish is a household favorite for sugar-free Jel Desserts around the world; its products were recently re-formulated with Stevia, which has made an amazing difference to the taste and texture of our entire range of products.
Each delectable flavor of Simply Delish is gluten-free, vegan, kosher, nut-free, Non-GMO and Halal. As a result Simply Delish’s products ought to suit any holiday gathering or family event. Furthermore, many of its products do not require any refrigeration. As if that were not great enough, the Simply Jels from the brand have zero carbs and only have 5 calories per serving.
I spoke with Martin Pamensky, president of the Stanmar International Group about Simply Delish’s desserts and more.
Jewish Journal: Did you know that Simply Delish would be kosher from the start?
Martin Pamensky: Simply Delish was launched in South Africa over 15 years ago as a kosher sugar-free jelly with zero sugar.
JJ: Where did the idea for the brand Simply Delish brand come from?
MP: Five years ago, I was introduced to the owners of Simply Delish in South Africa and they were interested in exports, but the South
African Simply Delish ingredients were not natural and only had South Africa Beth Din Kosher Supervision. Over the next six months, we reformulated the Simply Delish to meet North American standards by changing all the ingredients to allow us to sell Simply Delish as an all-natural product with no artificial flavors and colors, using natural sweeteners, that’s also vegan and Non-GMO Verified with Star K Kosher Supervision.
JJ: When did you first become conscious of quality-oriented ingredients and nutrition?
MP: This was my vision from the first day we started working on the Simply Delish Brand if we wanted to be a unique Gel and Dessert products in South Africa.
JJ: How did you originally wind up in the food world?
MP: After completing my Marketing Management degree about 40 years ago I spent a year working with the largest supermarket chain in South Africa called Pick n Pay. My love for food and retail led me to visit Argentina, where I was introduced to the leading ice cream and dessert company.
Ten years later I sold my interest in Fredda’s Gelati company and moved to Toronto, Canada where I met my partner, who was the leading importer of South African and European Food products into Canada. Today we are the leading importer of Ceres Fruit Juices and many South African brands into North America and Simply Delish is one of our leading products
JJ: What do the coming months look like for your brand?
MP: We have redesigned the entire Simply Delish artwork as well as upgraded the Simply Delish to be all natural and allergen-free.
JJ: As this is for the Jewish Journal, I feel compelled to ask: What was the theme of your bar mitzvah?
MP: My bar mitzvah was in Johannesburg and we never had a theme as this was a traditional Orthodox synagogue.
JJ: When not busy with Simply Delish, how do you like to spend your free time?
MP: Traveling around the World looking for new and exciting products.
JJ: Finally, Martin, any last words for the kids?
MP: Eat smartly and eat healthy products with low sugars.
Mark Harris, a Republican congressional candidate in North Carolina, reportedly said in 2011 that there would never be peace in the Middle East unless Jews and Muslims converted to Christianity.
Harris, who was a pastor until his congressional run, reportedly said in a 2011 sermon after he visited Israel, “There will never be peace in Jerusalem until the day comes that every knee shall bow, every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.”
Harris added, “Jesus, when he went into Jerusalem, said, ‘I am the vine. I am the true vine,’ and until those that are called in Islam realize that and until those that are called in Judaism realize that, for that matter, until those that are caught in the religion of Christianity and are missing the personal relationship with Jesus Christ, realize that, there’ll never be peace in their soul or peace in their city.”
Harris’ campaign did not respond to the Journal’s request for comment at publication time.
Harris is running in North Carolina’s 9th congressional district, which includes Charlotte, where President Trump is popular and the current representative for that area is Republican Robert Pittenger. However, myriad election forecasts have projected the race as a toss-up between Harris and his Democratic opponent, Dan McCready.
Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of Britain’s Labour Party, visits the Alexander Dennis Bus Factory in Falkirk, Scotland, Britain August 20, 2018. REUTERS/Russell Cheyne
The Pittsburgh tragedy made real the worst nightmare of American Jewry. Our community is now examining how we got to this frightening place, with anti-Semitism more pronounced on both the right and the left than it has been in decades. We now dread: Is this just the beginning? Are things only going to get worse? We only have to look across the pond see the writing on the wall.
Since Jeremy Corbyn’s election as UK Labour Party leader in 2015, the party has become a hotbed of the kind of anti-Semitic worldview previously confined to the political fringe. Corbyn’s links to Holocaust deniers, friendship with terror groups Hezbollah and Hamas, and paid role for the Iranian regime broadcaster, Press TV, were long-established. This summer, the allegations continued to pile up: Corbyn was pictured holding a wreath by the gravesides of the 1972 Munich Olympic Massacre masterminds. Then a video from 2013 emerged in which he questioned whether British “Zionists” understood English irony.
The UK’s internationally renowned former Chief Rabbi, Lord Jonathan Sacks, condemned Corbyn’s rhetoric as “the language of classic pre-war European anti-Semitism,” only to be denounced by Corbyn’s online fanbase. Like those of President Trump, Corbyn’s supporters respond to every piece of evidence exposing the bigotry of their man—no matter how damning—with cries of “fake news.”
The impact on Britain’s Jewish community has been pronounced. As the party of civil rights, equality and liberal values, Labour was once the natural home for British Jews. But recent polls have revealed not just that Jews are abandoning the party—now, 40 percent of Britain’s Jews say they will seriously consider leaving the UK if Corbyn becomes prime minister.
Labour’s march to the radical left is not only worrying for the Jews: the phenomenon has decimated the credibility of Britain’s most important progressive force. For American progressives, this should be a cautionary tale. If our own extreme left and its abettors go unchallenged, then what is happening in the UK could happen here. The American right has shown how aggressive populism can hijack the mainstream. Corbyn provides a warning for those of us on the left.
In Britain, those who warned of the far-left threat to progressive movements were, for a decade, ignored or dismissed—until it was too late. Now, Labour has a leader with a lifetime of support for radically anti-Israel movements, inevitably aligning himself with virulent anti-Semites. His communications director is a terror apologist who believes East Germany was preferable to West Germany. His advisers include a recent Communist Party member who previously expressed support for North Korea,and has been unable to gain security clearance to work in Parliament. A few years ago, such people were dismissed as cranks. Now they aspire to govern, and are rising through the ranks alongside Corbyn. No wonder British Jews are uneasy.
On our side of the pond, some warning signs have already been here for a while. Last year, two Jewish lesbians who had been attending the Chicago Dyke March for a decade were thrown out of the major LBGTQ+ event for bringing a rainbow flag with a Jewish star on it. “Zio tears replenish us,” they were told. Later that year, the Chicago SlutWalk trod the same anti-Semitic path, banning “Zionist symbols.”
American Jews and their allies were horrified to learn that the co-founders of one of the most groundbreaking and ostensibly empowering movements in American political history share Corbyn’s brand of contemptible, inexcusable bigotry. Women’s March Co-Founder Tamika Mallory attends rallies of the notorious anti-Semite Louis Farrakhan. Earlier this year Mallory tweeted a conspiratorial slur against the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), one of the oldest civil rights organizations in the United States. In a modern-day blood libel, Mallory said the ADL caused U.S. police brutality because it had sponsored joint counter-terrorism training between US and Israeli law enforcement. That’s absurd and anti-Semitic—and, equally important from a progressive lens, it undermines and exploits the fight against police brutality in the United States, injecting the flimsy thinking of anti-Semitic conspiracy theory into a vital campaign for justice and human dignity.
Mallory’s March co-founder, Linda Sarsour, has publicly shamed fellow Muslims for “humanizing Israelis,”, supported a terrorist convicted of a bomb plot that murdered two university students in Jerusalem and also praises Farrakhan. The types of positions and associations these women hold went unchallenged on the British left for years. Even those who wrote off the alarm bells now see clearly where these ideologies lead.
As a Jew, a Zionist and, not least, a progressive, I am determined to challenge assaults on the values that should define our movements for social, racial, economic and gender justice. Progressive movements in which Jews are isolated, defamed or forced to pass anti-Israel litmus tests are not worthy of the name. That’s why we established Zioness – a movement to give proud, progressive Jewish women a platform to fight for the causes of our time, without having to sell out their Jewish identities for credibility or acceptance.
When anti-Israel obsession and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories take hold on the political left, most Jews are made politically homeless. The result is disastrous, not just for the Jews but for the movements themselves. This is what we’re witnessing in the UK. Zioness, and our thousands of activists and allies, will not stand by and watch it happen here.
UK Labour has become a safer space for anti-Semites than for Jews. A female Jewish Member of Parliament needed police protection at the Labour Party conference. A third of the British public thinks Corbyn is an anti-Semite. With a Conservative government bitterly divided over Brexit negotiations, a credible progressive party would be soaring in the polls—resulting in the advancement of the issues we stand proudly to fight for. Instead, Labour is struggling to build a lead.
In the United States, now more than ever, progressives should be on the front foot. Trump’s 38 percent approval rating is a record low. We face massive challenges—for women’s equality, universal healthcare, LGBTQ+ rights and for our PoC communities to live free from fear. Those struggles will be more effectively fought by movements that welcome rather than alienate Jews and Zionists, who have always been on the forefront of social justice activism of every kind.
The 19th century German socialist, August Bebel, called anti-Semitism “the socialism of fools.” The British left might have been seduced by it. But at this pivotal moment for our country, we can’t afford to be—or it will make fools of us all.
Amanda Berman is the co-Founder and President of Zioness.
If we let the Tree of Life synagogue massacre divide us, those murdered in Pittsburgh will have died in vain.
Our Sages teach that when two brothers’ blood is spilled as one, it eclipses the sun (Sukkah 29b). The Tree of Life Synagogue massacre in Pittsburgh is a total eclipse of our sun. The enormous tragedy of eleven Jews murdered in synagogue on Shabbat cannot be explained away, compartmentalized or forgotten. Our synagogues are meant to be places of life, not places where lives are cut down. Our synagogues — and our churches and mosques — are meant to be places graced by holiness, not places defiled by violence and hate.
We read in the Torah in Parsha Chayei Sarah that after our Matriarch Sarah was eulogized, everyone began crying bitterly again. Each person experienced Sarah’s loss on such a deep level, they could not stop crying. After the Kedoshim, 11 Holy Ones, of Pittsburgh are buried, we do not have to stop crying. We lost not only eleven holy Jews, we lost eleven worlds. We lost what more of our innocence and our sense of invulnerability in America.
In spite of our anger, sorrow and fear, we must never let Pittsburgh divide us. No matter how offensive someone’s statements, each one is dealing with their own intense pain and anger. If we let Pittsburgh divide one Jew from another, one American from another, the Kedoshim of Pittsburgh will have died in vain, and the antisemites will have won a victory.
We also cannot turn out backs on God. The same God that took the Kedoshim of Pittsburgh, also inspired the earthly angels, policeman, that swiftly averted an even greater massacre. The same God also inspired the angles of lovingkindness that have surrounded Pittsburgh since Shabbat, showered her with love, compassion and support.
We will never understand why God allows such unspeakable tragedies. All our lives are but a fleeting moment in the universe. However, we can devote our lives to walking in God’s ways by practicing lovingkindness, living graciously and inspiring others to change their negativity and embrace actions that affirm life, heal our world and comfort one another.
On November 9, 1938, Rabbi Max and Ruth Nussbaum and their five year-old daughter Hannah stayed behind locked apartment doors in their upper-middle class Berlin neighborhood while Nazi-backed rioters wreaked havoc on the Jewish communities of Germany, Austria and the Sudentenland. The Nussbaums could not have known that anti-Semitic rioters were setting fire to more than 1400 synagogues that destroyed totally 267.
Nor could they have imagined that the Germans threw hundreds of Torah scrolls into bonfires and murdered hundreds of Jews while Nazi authorities stood passively by. That night Nazi authorities arrested 30,000 Jewish men and incarcerated them in concentration camps. Jewish homes, hospitals, schools, and 7000 Jewish businesses were destroyed or damaged.
That day came to be known as “Kristallnacht” (“The Night of Broken Glass”) and is considered the beginning of the “Final Solution,” the planned murder of 6 million Jews between 1938 and 1945.
Rabbi Max and Ruth Nussbaum learned in the middle of the night on November 9, 1938 that their own synagogue, The Free Synagogue of Berlin, was on fire. Max walked the short distance from his apartment to the building, entered through a back door, went to the Sanctuary Ark, and took into his arms the smallest of the congregation’s Torah scrolls. He and Ruth kept it safe in their apartment until they escaped Berlin in the middle of the night in 1940 just ahead of the Gestapo coming to arrest them.
Rabbi Stephen S. Wise, a leader of American Jewry and a Reform Rabbi, had sought and secured positions in synagogues throughout the United States for a group of young German liberal rabbinic students and rabbis (including Max), but Max and Ruth felt they had to remain in Berlin as long as possible to offer comfort to their congregants and to assist them if they could in attaining visas. They already had visas for themselves but were unable to attain visas for little Hannah and Ruth’s parents.
Once they learned that the Gestapo was coming to arrest them, Ruth and Max took the scroll, left hurriedly in the middle of the night and escaped to Amsterdam. From there they made passage to New York, were interviewed by the New York Times about what was happening to the Jews of Germany, and traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with President Roosevelt’s Secretary of the Treasury, Henry (Hans) Morgenthau, who arranged visas for Hannah and Ruth’s parents.
Max and Ruth traveled from Washington, D.C. to Muskogee, Oklahoma where Rabbi Wise had secured a position for the young German Rabbi who had yet to learn English. Hannah and Ruth’s parents joined them in Oklahoma six months later.
In 1942, Temple Israel of Hollywood sought a new rabbi and Max, now a fluent English speaker, was encouraged to apply. He traveled to Hollywood, fell in love with Los Angeles and our community that was founded in 1927 by early heads of Hollywood film studios. He was offered the position and served with distinction until his death in 1974.
Max sent for Ruth, Hannah and Ruth’s parents and they brought with them the small Torah that Max had snatched from his burning Berlin synagogue ark on Kristallnacht. That Torah scroll ever since has occupied a special place in our ark at Temple Israel.
The small Torah’s calligraphy is exquisitely beautiful graced with tiny crowns on many of its letters. It is about 150 years old.
The scroll suffered some damage from the fire in the synagogue on Kristallnacht. A sofer (scribe) told me years ago when I asked him to restore it that any effort to do so would likely ruin the parchment. So, he advised that we leave the scroll as it is. In its current state, though much of it is in tact and readable, tradition considers it to be lo kasher (not permitted for use during services) as every Torah scroll must be in perfect condition during worship.
Like the broken tablets that Moses shattered at the incident of the Golden Calf but which rested in the Tabernacle beside the whole second tablets that Moses brought down from Sinai, so too does our iconic small “broken” German scroll occupy an honored place in our synagogue’s sanctuary ark along side our other scrolls.
Our community affectionately refers to this small Torah as “The Nussbaum Scroll.” We use it every Shabbat in a Torah passing ceremony from grandparent to parent to child (l’dor va-dor – generation to generation) before the young bar/bat mitzvah carries the Torah through the congregation.
There is a mystical tradition that teaches that every Jew that touches a scroll, a part of his/her soul attaches to it and the scroll becomes a part of that Jew’s soul. I imagine as the young bar/bat mitzvah carries the scroll through the congregation that thousands of Jewish souls accompany the child on his/her Jewish journey and links that bar/bat mitzvah not only to Torah but to all of Jewish history and the Jewish people.
The breastplate on the Nussbaum scroll is made of silver and gold and was forged by the Possin Silversmith foundary of mid-19th century Germany. The finials are late 19th century German. Both are part of the Briskin Family Fine Judaica Collection of Temple Israel of Hollywood.
On this 80th anniversary of Kristallnacht, we at Temple Israel celebrate the memory of Rabbi Max and Ruth Nussbaum (z’l) who led our community from 1942 to 1974. We mourn the losses of Kristallnacht and the six million. And we mourn this yer the deaths of the eleven Jews who died al kiddush ha-Shem (Sanctifying God’s name) at The Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh two weeks ago.
Zichronam livracha – May the memory of the righteous be for us and the entire Jewish people a blessing.
