Articles written by Marcy Oster
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 135
Critics accuse Gal Gadot of cultural appropriation for accepting Cleopatra role
(JTA) - A social media storm has erupted after the announcement that Israeli actress Gal Gadot will portray the Egyptian Queen Cleopatra in a blockbuster film. Critics complained that Gadot is...
Student government passes pro-Black Lives Matter resolution
(JTA) — The University of Illinois student government included a call for divestment from companies that do business with Israel as part of a resolution in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. The university’s Office of Student Affairs condemn...
FSU president says anti-Semitism has 'no home' on campus
(JTA) — Six weeks after thousands of Florida State University students petitioned for their student body president to be removed over social media posts they described as anti-Semitic, the school’s president has announced several changes aimed at...
Angela Buxton, Jewish tennis star who won Wimbledon doubles title, dies at 85
(JTA) — Angela Buxton won the women’s doubles championship at Wimbledon in 1956, but she was denied admission to the All England Club, which hosts the prestigious tennis tournament, saying it was because of anti-Semitism. The club traditionally giv... Full story
Algorithms promote Holocaust denial
(JTA) — Holocaust denial content is “readily accessible” on social media and Facebook algorithms “actively” promote it, according to a report published Monday. The London-based Institute for Strategic Dialogue found that typing “holocaust” in the Fac...
Philly Fed says no to local NAACP
By Marcy Oster (JTA) — The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia said it will not work with the local chapter of the NAACP over “an alarming amount of bigoted and anti-Jewish sentiments” on his social media channels and the mosque he leads. Rodne...
Thousands join 48-hour #NoSafeSpaceForJewHate Twitter boycott to protest anti-Semitism on the platform
(JTA) — After their vocal calls for Twitter to take down rapper Wiley’s spree of anti-Semitic tweets went unanswered, Jews in the United Kingdom are taking another approach: silence. British Jewish activists and their allies — including high-...
Zach Banner tries challah and (spoiler) he loves it
(JTA) - Zach Banner of the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers now knows what challah tastes like - and he can say the word properly. With "a little phleghm," the offensive lineman said in a tweeted video of...
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Jemele Hill call out anti-Semitism in the Black community
(JTA) — In the wake of a string of high-profile controversies involving the likes of rapper Ice Cube and NFL player DeSean Jackson, two more prominent Black commentators have called out anti-Semitism in the Black community this week: NBA Hall of Fame...
Julian Edelman invites DeSean Jackson to have 'uncomfortable conversations'
(JTA) — New England Patriots receiver Julian Edelman invited fellow NFL star DeSean Jackson to have “uncomfortable conversations” about anti-Semitism and hatred against Blacks. Edelman was responding to recent posts by Jackson attributed to Adolf...
Pittsburgh Steelers' Zach Banner says we must 'put our arms around' Jews
(JTA) — Zach Banner of the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers wants the Black community to know: Jews “deal with the same amount of hate, similar hardships and hard times.” In a tweet accompanied by a video, Banner said he does not want to “harp” on the cont...
PA says it is ready to restart peace negotiations with Israel
JERUSALEM (JTA) — With the date set by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to begin annexing West Bank territory days away, the Palestinians appear ready to restart peace negotiations with Israel. A four-page letter from the Palestinian A...
Schott's name ousted from stadium
(JTA) - The University of Cincinnati will remove Marge Schott's name from its baseball stadium because of the late Cincinnati Reds owner's racism and anti-Semitism. The university's Board of Trustees...
8,000 FSU students call for ouster of their Senate president
(JTA) — More than 8,000 students at Florida State University have signed an online petition to remove the student Senate president over social media posts described as anti-Semitic. The Change.org petition against Ahmad Daraldik was launched two w...
Palestinians could declare state on 1967 borders
JERUSALEM (JTA) — If Israel annexes parts of the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority will declare a state on the 1967 borders with a capital in eastern Jerusalem, the P.A. prime minister said Tuesday. Mohammad Shtayyeh made the remarks in Ramallah t...
Trump authorizes sanctions against ICC and blasts its investigation of Israel
(JTA) — President Donald Trump authorized sanctions against the International Criminal Court should it pursue cases against U.S. citizens and cited what he said was its anti-Israel bias. In an executive order issued Thursday, Trump approved e...
Sharansky is using his 'Jewish Nobel' winnings to help
JERUSALEM (JTA) — When Natan Sharansky learned in December that he would become the eighth Genesis Prize honoree, he decided he would use his $1 million prize money to promote issues to which he has devoted his life: human rights and Zionism. That wa...
Palestinians reject COVID-19 aid from UAE because it was coordinated through Israel
JERUSALEM (JTA) — The Palestinian Authority rejected a humanitarian shipment of medical supplies sent by the United Arab Emirates because it coordinated the shipment with Israel. The Etihad Airways flight that landed Tuesday night in Israel c...
Wait to resume services, then proceed carefully, Orthodox Jews are told
(JTA) — When Rabbi Moshe Hauer last week told Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top health advisor, that synagogues wouldn’t let congregants sit within 8 feet of each other once services resume, he wasn’t just making a joke about Jews’ tendency...
Israel sends 'a big hug' to Diaspora Jewish communities hard hit by COVID-19
JERUSALEM (JTA)-The flags of countries that are home to Jewish communities hard hit by COVID-19 were projected on the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem. The event held Tuesday night by the Diaspora...
Senate legislation would expand COVID-19 projects with Israel to lessen dependence on China
(JTA)—The Senate has introduced legislation to enhance partnerships between American and Israeli companies on COVID-19 projects, thus lessening U.S. dependence on China for life-saving medications and treatments. The bipartisan legislation was i...
US will recognize West Bank annexation with conditions
JERUSALEM (JTA)—The United States is ready to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Jordan Valley and other parts of the West Bank with conditions, the U.S. ambassador to Israel told an Israel newspaper. In an interview with the Israel Hayom d...
'Anti-Semite' was omitted from original Oxford English Dictionary
JERUSALEM (JTA)—The first editor of the Oxford English Dictionary thought the term “anti-Semite” would be short lived and thus did not include it in the original edition of the massive lexicon. A 1900 letter by the editor, James Murray, expla...
Sirens wail throughout Israel at start of Memorial Day
JERUSALEM (JTA)-As they do each year, Israelis stood at attention Monday for one minute as sirens wailed throughout the country to usher in Yom Hazikaron, or Memorial Day. What happened afterward was... Full story
Israeli falafel shop owner cries during TV interview and becomes a symbol of coronavirus' economic toll
JERUSALEM (JTA)—An Israeli falafel shop owner broke down in tears in a television interview on Sunday that resonated across the country as a symbolic encapsulation of the economic toll that the coronavirus is taking on small businesses. “Look at my... Full story