Articles written by Ben Sales
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Vaccine passports are being compared to yellow Stars of David from the Holocaust
(JTA) — Political activists, including Rep. Madison Cawthorn and the ambassador to Germany under Donald Trump, are comparing the idea of “vaccine passports” to Nazi Germany, with many invoking the yellow Stars of David that Nazis forced Jews...
California approves ethnic studies curriculum that sparked debate among Jewish groups
(JTA) — After years of contention and revisions, California’s State Board of Education approved a curriculum meant to guide the state’s schools in teaching ethnic studies, an effort that sparked waves of criticism from Jewish groups. The...
Israeli Supreme Court rules state must grant citizenship to non-Orthodox Jewish converts in Israel
(JTA) — Israel must grant citizenship to Jews who converted to Judaism in Israel under non-Orthodox auspices, its Supreme Court ruled Monday, possibly igniting another round in the long-running government battle over who the state should recognize...
School board member in Massachusetts used anti-Semitic slur on live TV
(JTA) — A school board member in Lowell, Massachusetts, called a former school district leader a “kike” on live television, spurring calls for his resignation. Bob Hoey should step down from the Lowell School Committee, the mayor of the Boston...
'Your voice was silenced': Jewish parents of Parkland victims remember their kids three years later
(JTA) — On the third anniversary of the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, parents of the shooting’s Jewish victims shared their memories and hopes for the future. Several of the 17 students and faculty who were killed in the 2018 shooting at...
Netanyahu, on trial for corruption, pleads not guilty
(JTA) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pleaded not guilty in his ongoing trial for corruption charges, then left the courtroom while the hearing was still underway. Later on Monday he dismissed the charges, as he has in the past, as...
Israel is an apartheid state, Israeli human rights group says
(JTA) — Btselem, a leading Israeli human rights group, says that the entirety of Israel should be considered an apartheid state. Left-wing Israeli groups for years have deemed Israel’s West Bank occupation, or aspects of it, to be an apartheid...
Israel is having yet another election - could Netanyahu lose? Here are the basics.
(JTA) - In about two months, Israelis will vote in a national election. Seem familiar? It is. Israel will be holding its fourth election in just two years - the latest sign that in a country...
Six weeks ago, Facebook announced a ban on Holocaust denial - it's still easy to find
(JTA) - As of Wednesday afternoon, one of the first results in a Facebook search for "Holohoax" - a term popular with Holocaust deniers - was a post decrying "Zionist White Jewish Supremacist Child...
Israel signs COVID vaccine deal
(JTA) — Israel’s government has signed an agreement with the Pfizer pharmaceutical company to acquire 8 million doses of its vaccine. “This is a great day for the State of Israel and a great day on the way to our victory over the...
Two weeks after Twitter bans Holocaust denial, CEO Jack Dorsey says it's still allowed
(JTA) — Two weeks ago, Twitter banned Holocaust denial. Or did it? The company announced earlier this month that it would ban posts that “deny or diminish” violent events, including the Holocaust. But in a Senate hearing Wednesday, CEO Jack...
State Department to label 3 human rights groups anti-Semitic
By Ron Kampeas, Ben Sales WASHINGTON (JTA) — In an unusual move, the State Department is planning to formally identify three large international human rights organizations as anti-Semitic, citing disputed aspects of the groups’ agendas. Elan...
Northwestern University president spars over anti-Semitism with activist group and professors
The president, Morton Schapiro, said it could be. The activist group said it was not. The ensuing debate has divided Northwestern’s campus just north of Chicago this week, with the school’s Hillel offering students the opportunity to reflect on...
Facebook bans Holocaust denial
(JTA) — Facebook announced that it will now ban any posts that deny or distort the Holocaust, a landmark change from its previous policy. For years, Facebook and its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, had defended Holocaust denial as a misguided but legitimate...
Michael Oren published a book of short stories - he's more worried about the future of literature than democracy
(JTA) - You may know Michael Oren as a cable news commentator on Israel and the Middle East. You may know him as the Israeli ambassador to the United States during Barack Obama's first term, when he...
Report: white supremacists the 'most persistent and lethal' threat in the US
(JTA) — A new report from the Department of Homeland Security names white supremacists as the biggest domestic terror threat in the United States. The Homeland Threat Assessment, released on Tuesday, details an array of violent domestic threats in...
Fox show called out Gingrich for his George Soros rhetoric
(JTA) — An exchange Wednesday on a Fox News show struck many as remarkable: Newt Gingrich, the former Republican House speaker, blamed “George Soros’ money” for violence in American cities before being shut down by two other panelists on “O...
Study: More than one in 10 Americans under 40 thinks Jews caused the Holocaust
(JTA) — More than one in 10 American adults under 40 believes that Jews caused the Holocaust. That’s one finding from a survey published Wednesday trying to gauge Holocaust knowledge among millennials and Generation Z, a cohort ranging in age...
This map shows the 20 congressional districts with the most Jews
(JTA) - About one-third of American Jews live in just 20 of the country's congressional districts. Nearly half of those districts are in New York, and all but one of them is represented by a...
The pandemic's first High Holiday season has synagogues wondering: Will people pay dues?
(JTA) - Like many synagogues, Temple B'nai Hayim used to rely on the High Holiday season to survive financially. The small Conservative synagogue in Southern California would receive the lion's share...
Kenosha's rabbi on graffiti at her synagogue: 'What's happened these last few days is not about us'
(JTA) — In early June, as anti-racism protests swept the country in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd, Beth Hillel Temple in Kenosha, Wisconsin, signed onto an interfaith letter supporting peaceful protest and condemning “a broken...
Rosenblum says she won't stand for authoritarianism in Portland
(JTA) — When reports emerged two weeks ago about federal agents seizing protesters from the streets of Portland and putting them in unmarked vans, Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum sued to get federal officers off the street. A judge rejected...
For the few Jewish camps that are opening despite risks, finding willing families hasn't been hard
(JTA) - This week, as he prepares to open Camp Modin and administer coronavirus tests to its hundreds of campers and staff, Howard Salzberg is still fielding 50 calls a day from parents who want to...
ADL and NAACP call on companies to stop running Facebook ads in July
(JTA) — The Anti-Defamation League, along with the NAACP and other civil rights groups, is calling on corporations not to advertise on Facebook in July because of the social media platform’s unwillingness to police hate speech. The campaign,...
800 rabbis and cantors support peaceful protest against racism
(JTA) — More than 800 rabbis and cantors, including the leaders of three major denominations, signed a statement in support of peaceful protest against racism and in memory of George Floyd. The statement invoked Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, an...
