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Good to Know
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Saudi TV Drama Sparks Debate About Arabs, Jews
NPR / 3-minute listen
Israel and the Jewish people are sensitive subjects across the Middle East. But a new drama called Um Haroun - "Aaron's Mother, " a Ramadan special that has been broadcast across the region by a Saudi TV channel, has fueled a conversation about whether Arab countries are ready to reconcile with Israel. Earlier this year, AJC launched ‘An al-Yahud, or “About the Jews,” a groundbreaking Arabic-language online video series aimed at increasing understanding of the Jewish people in the Arab world. The series includes an introduction to the Jewish people, a history of Muslim-Jewish relations, and an explainer about the Holocaust. Listen now |
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BDS Activist Tapped to Lead University’s International Affairs School
Jewish Insider / 2-minute read
This week, at the urging of Jewish organizations including AJC, George Washington University issued a letter affirming academic freedom after BDS activist Ilana Feldman was appointed interim dean of the university’s Elliott School of International Affairs. At issue is not her misguided ideology, but her past leadership of a campaign in the American Anthropological Association to discriminate against Israeli scholars. In an interview, AJC Director of Campus Affairs Zev Hurwitz told JI that Feldman is not simply “somebody who signed a petition a few years ago. This is someone who was active in leading an academic boycott movement, who has also signaled through an official hiring announcement that that activism continues in this role." AJC tweeted: “The right of students to academic freedom must never depend on the beliefs of individual administrators. Thank you, @GWTweets, for making clear your opposition to the bigoted BDS movement and your expectation that all GWU employees will uphold that policy.” Read more |
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Should Shul Remain Shut?
The Forward / 3-minute read
As coronavirus cases plateau in Los Angeles County and restrictions loosen, Orthodox rabbis from more than a dozen institutions are sticking to a timeline suggested by the Orthodox Union and Rabbinical Council of America that postpones reopening for at least two more weeks. Meanwhile, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that no more than a minyan – 10 people – can congregate in religious facilities. But worshipers must wear masks and stay six feet apart. He also announced the formation of an interfaith advisory council to help settle how to safely bring back religious services. Earlier this week, Los Angeles Rabbi David Wolpe and Rev. Dr. Serene Jones, president of Union Theological Seminary in New York, discussed how the pandemic will transform houses of worship and faith communities on Advocacy Anywhere, AJC’s digital platform. Read more |
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