Antisemitism

Mina Fridman Ruetter

Mina Fridman Ruetter (1922-2003), an Argentinean-born Jew, was the most prominent leader of the Yiddisher Kultur Farband (YKUF) beginning in the 1970s. She studied and worked as a writer, teacher, and translator in organizations linked to the Communist Party and the Soviet Union. She was a highly visible leader and the disciple of YKUF intellectuals such as Pinie Katz and Samuel Gordon.

May 5, 2020

Caroline Calloway and Antisemitic Caricature

Emily-Rose Baker

We never thought we'd be talking about influencer Caroline Calloway at JWA, but she tweeted something antisemitic, so here we are!

Topics: Antisemitism

The Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Hanukkiah in front.

April 22, 2020

Courage in the Face of Rising Antisemitism in Europe

Lila Goldstein

The religious pride I saw among Jewish groups in Paris and Berlin inspires me to show courage through community.

Topics: Antisemitism

March 26, 2020

Lessons from the Black Plague: Rejecting Hatred in the Face of Pandemic

Savoy Curry

Historically, pandemics have inflamed underlying societal biases against immigrants and minorities. We must not let Coronavirus do the same.

Topics: Antisemitism

January 24, 2020

Each Time I Enter the Synagogue: A Teen on Antisemitic Gun Violence

Madeline Canfield

My reaction to antisemitic gun violence is not one of fear, but of alertness to a threat far more normalized for me than for my elders.

Topics: Jewish Education, Antisemitism, Synagogues/Temples

January 14, 2020

Is TikTok "Bad for the Jews"?

Julia Métraux

It should not be up to Jews to censor our own content to shield ourselves from antisemitic threats, but it is up to all of us to think carefully about the content we post.

Topics: Antisemitism, Media

January 7, 2020

Reflections on the 2019 UK Election: Antisemitism in Europe

Emily-Rose Baker

In the aftermath of the 2019 UK election, let's talk about antisemitism in Europe.

Topics: Antisemitism, Politics and Government

Ilana Drake standing in a passageway on the Bell Tower of St. Paul's Church, Munich cityscape below.

November 15, 2019

Raising My Hand High

Ilana Drake

The teacher told us to raise our hands if we were Jewish. I didn’t know what to do.

Topics: Family, Antisemitism, Holocaust

October 25, 2019

How to Heal: The One-Year Anniversary of Pittsburgh

Ilana Diamant

This essay is for anyone who froze—whose mind went inward instead of outward, who didn’t leave their home for a bit, or who didn’t want to go home at all.

Topics: Antisemitism

Episode 32: Silence Helps Others Forget

Listen Now

Host Nahanni Rous talks to Holocaust survivor and author, Irene Butter. Like Anne Frank's family, Butter’s fled Nazi Germany, settled in Amsterdam, and was eventually deported to concentration camps. Irene knew Anne Frank, and saw her at Bergen-Belsen just before Anne died. She tells us why she began sharing her story after more than four decades of silence, and how she sees her experience reflected in the current era of xenophobia and rising antisemitism.

Episode 25: A Trip to Pittsburgh (Transcript)

November 19, 2018

May the Faith Be With You

Emma Nathanson

Because I didn’t have support, because I felt alone, I didn’t confront my teacher about his words that day or about the lack of Holocaust education. I didn’t take a stand, either, when I found the words “JEW HUNTER” scrawled on the leg of a desk. Nor did I speak up when I found the same horrifying phrase on a different desk a few weeks later.

Topics: Schools, Teachers, Antisemitism, Holocaust

Judith and daughter at the 2017 Women’s March in Cambridge

November 14, 2018

Ten Thoughts About Antisemitism and the Women’s March

Judith Rosenbaum

Judith Rosenbaum, Executive Director of JWA, shares her thoughts on the Women's March leaders and their associations with Louis Farrakhan. She writes, "I don’t have any easy or solid answers, but here are 10 brief thoughts to add to the conversation."

Topics: Feminism, Women's Rights, Antisemitism

November 13, 2018

Baking Babka, Taking in Tragedy

Justine Orlovsky-Schnitzler

My pocket buzzes again. “Did you not see the news?” I feel my entire body tense, my fingers shaking as I struggle to open Twitter. In a moment, I am inundated—11 dead, maybe more.

When I wake up, I decide to make a babka.

Topics: Food Writing, Recipes, Antisemitism

A couple hugs outside Tree of Life Synagogue

Episode 25: A Visit to Pittsburgh

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On October 27, 2018, a gunman killed eleven Jews during Shabbat services at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. While taking lives, the gunman shouted that “all Jews must die.” That morning, he had posted on social media that Jews were responsible for bringing immigrants into our country. Can We Talk? Producer Nahanni Rous went to Pittsburgh with a group from her synagogue, and attended a funeral for two victims of the attack. She shares this reflection.

October 30, 2018

A Rabbi Revisits Terror: Reflections on Pittsburgh

Rabbi Claudia Kreiman

Despite the despair that comes easily these days, we must continue to believe that change is possible and that we have the responsibility to bring it about. Thankfully, we find ourselves at a moment when there is one obvious way to exercise this responsibility—in these final days of the election season, we must dedicate ourselves to getting out the vote.

Topics: Antisemitism

Alla Aberson

Alla Aberson is a Soviet Jew who grew up in a family that was critical of Communist Party rule. When she and her family were denied exit visas to emigrate, they became known as refuseniks.

Anna Charny

Anna Charny and her family were a prominent part of the refusenik community in Moscow, working with various Jewish organizations that advocated for and provided economic support to refuseniks.

Nadia Fradkova

Growing up in a small town near Moscow, Nadia Fradkova didn’t learn of her Judaism until faced with taunting by her peers. After the Soviet Union collapsed and restrictions on emigration ended, she settled in Israel for a few years before making her way to Boston.