Does cultural Judaism needs religious advisors?

Particularly interesting in regards to the question of why does one need and advisor for Jewish content. Specifically taking into account the secular world's interaction with Judaism with examples like Fiddler on the Roof. 

What does this need for religious advisors say about our current interaction with Judaism and the structure of Jewish communities today? 

http://nypost.com/2016/03/26/these-are-the-weirdest-jobs-on-broadway/

How Martin Luther King Jr. Inspired a Passover Seder

http://thejewniverse.com/2015/how-martin-luther-king-jr-inspired-a-passover-seder/




I found this article really fascinating, in relating to our discussion of the Americanizing of the Hagaddah on Monday.  Apparently, the very first 'Freedom Seder'  (a term coined specifically in regards to Seders that have tell not only the Exodus story but include a message of Black American liberation ) was created by Arthur Waskow in 1969-inspired by the life and death of Martin Luther King Jr.

Read more for details! Personally, I helped put on a few Freedom Seders for a wide interfaith community through the Jewish Community Relations Council in San Francisco. They can be really powerful!

Tensions in Black-Jewish Relations

Article from The Jewish Women's Archive by  Judith Rosenbaum


Interesting read about the Jews and tensions that existed in the American Civil Rights Movement.


Here is the article.

Anti-Semitism, Liberalism and College Campuses

As our course moves into the most contemporary of American Jewish history/American Judaism, I felt compelled to share this disturbing story out of my very own Alma Mater, and out of the house I formerly called home:

Brown University is investigating anti-gay and anti-Semitic graffiti found in a campus building that houses a Jewish fraternity and a fraternity with many LGBTQ members.
President Christina Paxson in an email Friday to the Brown community said campus police will investigate the incident at Marcy House.
The graffiti was discovered early Friday morning scrawled across the house's walls.
A university spokesman tells the Providence Journal that Beta Rho Pi, a Jewish fraternity, and Zeta Delta Xi, a co-ed fraternity with many LGBTQ members, live in the house.
A speech by a writer and transgender advocate scheduled for March 21 at the Ivy League school had been canceled Wednesday amid controversy. An online petition accused the co-sponsor, Brown RISD Hillel, of defending "Israeli state's policies of occupation and racial apartheid.

For those who may not have heard, Beta Rho Pi is formerly Alpha Epsilon Pi, Beta Rho chapter, and my college fraternity. The undergraduate brothers disaffiliated from the national fraternity earlier this year. (That process and that story, in itself, could be a useful topic for further exploration with respect to the challenges of fraternities as uniquely American Jewish institutions...)

It seems ironic, though, that only months after the local chapter leaves the national fraternity, an incident like this occurs which would ordinarily be an opportunity for the national institution to thrive and support the local chapter.

The ABC news/AP piece quoted above mentions the controversy about a trans advocate who had been slated to speak at Hillel. Here is some more information about that component of the story (passed along to me by none other than my mom :) )

Ultimately, besides making me very sad to hear such troubling stories, all of this makes me wonder in what ways the Jewish community's history of "stifling dissent" around Israel (see Diner, 327) may still be contributing to some of the resurgent left-wing anti-semitism that we see in the BDS movement and on college campuses. How do we move forward?

Judge Garland and Jewish Minority Status

Given our class discussion about Jewish privilege/minority status I found it interesting that many articles about Judge Garland contained phrases like this:
"Some progressive groups have expressed disappointment that President Obama nominated an older white male to the Supreme Court rather than a woman or a minority member, but the White House said that Mr. Obama’s record of diverse judicial appointments was unprecedented."(Emphasis mine)
 http://www.nytimes.com/live/obama-supreme-court-nomination/progressive-groups-lament/ 

Also interesting, Judge Garland in his comments when introduced by President Obama, framed his nomination with a narrative of his family's American-Jewish history. Thoughts?

"My family deserves much of the credit for the path that led me here.  My grandparents left the Pale of Settlement at the border of Western Russian and Eastern Europe in the early 1900s, fleeing anti-Semitism, and hoping to make a better life for their children in America.  They settled in the Midwest, eventually making their way to Chicago.

There, my father, who ran the smallest of small businesses from a room in our basement, took me with him as he made the rounds to his customers, always impressing upon me the importance of hard work and fair dealing.  There, my mother headed the local PTA and school board and directed a volunteer services agency, all the while instilling in my sister and me the understanding that service to the community is a responsibility above all others.  Even now, my sisters honor that example by serving the children of their communities."
https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2016/03/16/remarks-president-announcing-judge-merrick-garland-his-nominee-supreme 

Isaac Mizrahi on Fashion

Yesterday, Stephen Colbert interviewed Isaac Mizrahi about his show at the Jewish Museum in NYC, "Isaac Mizrahi: An Unruly History."

Here is Mizrahi speaking with Colbert about his upbringing in a Jewish family: "You know, the Jews kind of run the garment business in New York." With the outsourcing of the garment industry to locations of cheap labor, I would have thought that this paradigm was different. I find interesting his perception of continued Jewish involvement in the garment industry.

Mizrahi initially attended Yeshivah in Flatbush, but the story of his family's immigration may suggest reasons for his ability to forge his own path outside the religious Jewish community. According to a 2011 New York Times interview, Mizrahi's mother was born in New York to immigrant parents from Aleppo, Syria. "She finished college, which was very strange for girls of that background, and married my father very late, around 35 years old." Although we have not yet focused on patterns of non-Ashkenazi immigration in the course yet, I would imagine that the factors in Mizrahi's mother's life as a first-generation American, as a college graduate, and as a "late" married woman might have provided her son the safe environment to pursue secular education and to enter the world of fashion.

American history timeline

As a tool to situate ourselves in time, and really understand where we are in history, this timeline serves as a powerful resource. I suggest looking at it (especially into the 1900s!)

http://americanjewisharchives.org/education/timeline.php

Los Angeles' Jewish Self-Identification (1967)

Here's a look at denominational affiliation in Los Angeles in 1967. All the statistics in these graphs came from research sponsored by the Jewish Federation Council of Greater Los Angeles. You can either find this specific study through the Jewish Databank (link on the right is broken), or here directly:

The survey parsed its statistics into geographic segments (is your apartment in Region V, VI, or VII?)

I:       San Fernando Valley - North                         II:      San Fernando Valley
III:    Palisades, Westwood, Beverly Hills              IV:    Hollywood, West Hollywood
V:     Beverly-Fairfax                                              VI:    Wilshire-Fairfax
VII:   Beverlywood, Cheviot Hills                          VIII:  Santa Monica
IX:     Baldwin Hills, Jefferson, Westchester          X:      Underreported areas


This survey notes the prevalence of the self-reported category, "Just Jewish," in addition to the denominational labels we consider today. Note behind the "Just Jewish" category, the prevalence of Conservative Judaism. The chart shows total percentages on the left, followed regional percentages.

Here is another chart tracking synagogue affiliation and intermarriage rates by region. Again, total percentages are on the left, followed by regional percentages.

Murders of 1964

I was disturbed and interested in finding out more about the murders of the young men in Mississippi in 1964. Here's Andrew Goldman, pictured one year before he was killed:

According to this CBS news piece, none of the KKK assailants were convicted of murder until 2005, when one man (then 89 years old) was convicted for his role as the ringleader.

I guess that makes me glad that there is no statute of limitations for murder, but it's hard to feel like locking up a 90 year old really serves "justice."

I call that "Negative Identity"

Great reflection on Sanders' answer to Anderson Cooper's question about being Jewish by Charles Krauthammer in The Washington Post today.

Jews Need to Give Up Whiteness?!

Jews in America struggled for decades to become white. Now we must give up whiteness to fight racism. (Rabbi Gil Steinlauf)

As per our discussion today of Jewish involvement in fighting for civil rights for African Americans in the post-War era, I thought this article, written by Rabbi Gil Steinlauf, might add some food for thought to the conversation. His general premise is that 21st century Jews can't operate under the same paradigm our parents and grandparents did. We need to question our whiteness in order to start being true allies for the #BlackLivesMatter movement and other racial justice advocacy groups today.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/09/22/jews-in-america-struggled-for-generations-to-become-white-now-we-must-give-up-that-privilege-to-fight-racism/


 

One of the most provocative lines he writes is in his opening argument:

" Finding our true Jewish identity can begin by questioning our whiteness. In a flawed and racist society, we Jewish Americans are prospering, reaching the top echelons of privilege and power. With racism and injustice entrenched year after year, generation after generation, we must now ask ourselves: What role do we play in that injustice now that most of us live as white people in America? We must cease to consider ourselves to be part of the social construct of whiteness, despite all the white privilege that America affords us, privilege that eluded many of our parents and grandparents."

What do you make of his argument? Would this article affect the way you teach about race and Jewishness in religious school?

Kansas City: Decling population

Being from Kansas City, I was curious how the Kansas City Jewish community changed throughout the 1900's. Deborah Moore's article in AJE wrote about the static population of KC since the 1950's (p. 319).

Here is a nice article from 2007 about the current Kansas City Community (Yes, American Judaism is alive and well in Kansas City, with a multiplicity of options of arts, culture, and Jewish life!)

The huge in-migration to the Kansas City suburbs by professionals matched the flood of Jews out of the city in the rest of the country. They fled into Johnson County where the majority of Jews still live. However, a huge barrier to entry was covenants that limited the number of Jews (and African Americans who could come into. (http://www.jocogov.org/blog/3891).

The Emergency Committee in Aid of Displaced Foreign Scholars

From Wikipedia, the incredible story of the Committee that helped academics escape Nazism. The best part? It was run by Edward R. Murrow. It's a forerunner to the Institute of International Education. Check out its history page.

Bernie Sanders "Comes Out" as Jewish

Here's an article written by the daughter of a congregant about Bernie Sanders' most explicitly Jewish admission during last night's Democratic Candidate debate. I do not agree with all of her assertions/opinions, but I believe the article presents an important perspective and reminder that Sanders is an example and representative of many millions of Jews in America.

This paragraph in particular reminds me of the sentiment in the "Why We Went" letter we read for Dr. Adler's class:
We must acknowledge and check our own white privilege, but not assimilate to the point where we forget that our identity has historically been anything but an advantage. Nor should our history give us a sense of entitlement — it must be our mandate to fight for those who are currently persecuted. Jews need to stand with movements like #BlackLivesMatter and remember that within our grandparents' lifetime, certain signs on swimming pools in America read "no Blacks, no Jews, no Dogs." There but for the grace of history go us, and we are needed as allies now more than ever.

When 'Gentleman's Agreement' Made Jewish Oscars History

The Forward Ran a Fascinating Analysis of the Gentleman's Agreement as a Shining Moment in Jewish Cinema History. Read on for more analysis of what this movie, and Gregory' Peck's portrayal meant for the Jews!
http://forward.com/culture/171133/when-gentlemans-agreement-made-jewish-oscars-histo/





https://youtu.be/E2eAXa7rNXw

Gangsters!

A wanted poster for Jewish gangster Louis "Lepke" Buchalter

If you read the book Confronting Scandal as a part of Rabbi Fox's class last semester, you'll remember the conversation about the phenomenon of Jewish gangsters as an expression of Jewish power (in the vein of the "New Jew") and the tacit approval of their illicit actions given the protection they provided the whole New York Jewish community from anti-Semitism.

I'm attaching a link to a clip from "Boardwalk Empire" that depicts the Jewish gangster Meyer Lansky and "Nucky" Thompson (played by Steve Buscemi). Note the connections between Lansky and prohibition-era bootlegging, the heroin business, and a belief in God.
NSFW for violence and language.

Brandeis' and the Supreme Court

I hope you haven't been too busy with the presidential race to take notice of the vacancy at the Supreme Court and the reluctance of the Senate Judiciary Republicans to do their job. It's a really big deal.

However, you may not know that the very first confirmation hearings for a Supreme Court justice were apparently held after President Woodrow Wilson nominated Louis Brandeis in 1916. Apparently, "until that point, the Senate simply voted yay or nay" and Brandeis himself didn't even show up to the hearings.

Here's a picture of him from Wikipedia:



Interestingly, the Wikipedia article reports that Brandeis' legal work helped develop the right to privacy. Pretty cool stuff!

American Machzorim

In looking for the 1948 Reconstructionist Machzor I came across this interesting article detail time-lining the creation of machzorim for the different movements in America. It is interesting to see when each movement created their own, or revised it, and what material needed to be left in/taken out. The reticence of each movement to create change is visible in the time span between machzor releases, as is the awareness of the times.

I looked on Amazon and Ebay, but cannot seem to find copies of this Machzor. I'd be curious if anyone can. It was published by the Jewish Reconstructionist Foundation, under the English title: High Holiday Prayer Book.

Jews and Noses

The number of rhinoplasty (nose job) procedures, once considered a "rite of passage" for teenager Jewish women (primarily), has dropped dramatically in the past few decades. As the desire to look less 'ethnic' or 'unique' decreases, there is less need to see a "surgical procedure [as] a small price to pay for easing the anguish of appearing too Jewish" (Diner 224). If you can look past some of the frustrating rhetoric of the plastic surgery world in the comments from the surgeons, this article provides an interesting insight into the changing nature of beauty both within and outside of the Jewish community.

Though it seems Shia LaBeouf still went under the knife... as did many other Jewish celebrities. Hollywood beauty standards are still more standard, though beginning to diversify (slowly).

Jewish Women At the Forefront of Encouraging the Vote-1935

This photo depicts women in 1935 teaching other, newly arrived women how to vote, and make their voices heard in the national arena. A cool reminder that Jewish women have always fought to have an impact on the American political arena, and made sure no female voice was frozen from the conversation for lack of know-how!

Political anti-Semitism in the Year of Our Ford 108

http://www.politico.com/blogs/2016-gop-primary-live-updates-and-results/2016/03/louis-farrakhan-donald-trump-220021?lo=ap_c1

On Bernie Sanders' Jewish Identity

Here is a fascinating article from the Forward concerning Bernie Sanders' Jewish identity. The article's thesis:

The Sanders campaign is providing the backdrop for a mass Jewish psychodrama of wrenching, deeply depressing proportions. Sanders is serving as a passive canvas onto which we are projecting a startling array of our saddest insecurities, neuroses and self-delusions.

Intersections with several of the conversations we've been having about American Jewish identity and appropriate for our conversations around Super Tuesday:

a.) Jewish identity does not necessarily correlate to religious identification.

It might not be a Judaism that’s particularly gratifying to those of us who take our Judaism — Jewish learning, Jewish practice, Jewish fidelity — very earnestly. But it is the Judaism of the great majority of American Jews, millions of them.

b.) He represents the enduring tensions between the anxieties of standing out vs. political passivity.

The article talks about a 2008 open letter from Jewish senators, of which Sanders was a signatory, condemning negative emails about Barack Obama that were specifically sent to the Jewish community:

The letter is historic for a single reason: It is the first time in history that any Jewish senators signed a public statement that included the words “As Jewish United States Senators.” Customarily... Jewish senators avoid such statements because they see themselves as representing all the people of their state, not the small Jewish minorities.... This was the first time a group of Jewish senators felt compelled to speak out “as Jewish United States Senators” to their fellow Jews while the rest of the world looked on.

c.) What is at stake for the American Jewish community when it confronts a public persona that represents "assimilation"? I.e: Is the community more comfortable with a Joe Lieberman or a Bernie Sanders?

Those of us who do live fully in our Jewish skins tend to judge those who don’t as wanting. We think they’ve failed in their duties, or walked away... This is what gets projected onto public figures who are outstanding in their chosen fields but ordinary Jews in their private lives.... Think of the abuse Bob Dylan has taken over the years because his Jewish self didn’t meet our needs. Now look again at Bernie Sanders.

Sanders’ Judaism — looking to the Holocaust as a paradigmatic Jewish experience and learning from it that people need to be kind to each other — is utterly typical of the Judaism experienced by the majority of American Jews. It’s a Judaism that’s not fluent in Talmud and doesn’t touch the Jew’s every waking hour. It’s humble, imperfect, not worn on the sleeve.