Am I? — A poem for Torah Portion Bereshit
It’s Always Been Unicorns — A poem for Torah Portion Vezot Hab’rachah
It’s Always Been Unicorns — A poem for Torah Portion Vezot Hab’rachah
Fewer than 800 miles from our shores, a deeply disturbing crisis is unfolding as tens of thousands of citizens of the Dominican Republic face deportation from their country simply because of their heritage.
Consider this scenario: a wanted international terrorist is fleeing law enforcement and seizes your house. (You are away at the time, fortunately.) The Army surrounds the house but the terrorist is well armed, as terrorists are wont to be: sending in troops would mean severe casualties and many deaths.
The U.S publishers hated the title of A.B. Yehoshua\’s latest book \”The Mission of the Human Resources Manager.\” It was, they argued, better suited to a personnel manual than the work of one of Israel\’s most venerated authors. Ignoring Yehoshua\’s pleas, they christened the novel\’s English translation \”A Woman in Jerusalem,\” and the book became a nominee for this year\’s prestigious Los Angeles Times Book Prize, to be announced at the Times\’ Festival of Books this weekend (see story page 36).
n March, I had the privilege of co-starring in the Jerusalem premiere of Neil LaBute\’s play \”Some Girl(s)\” at the Center Stage Theater at Merkaz Hamagshimim Hadassah. The play follows Guy, an about-to-be-married 33-year-old American writer, as he tracks down his ex-flames to \”right some wrongs\” so he can begin his new life with a clean slate … or so it seems.
When six German teenagers entered the beit midrash at YULA boys high school, there was an indescribable sense of tension in the air. The four girls and two boys seemed hesitant and slightly anxious as they faced 60 Jewish boys eager for discussion. As a natural skeptic, my personal attitude toward conversing with people of possible Nazi ancestry was not very optimistic.