At UC Santa Barbara in California: At York University in Toronto: “Jewish students under ‘siege’ at York U” “Jewish students ‘held hostage’ at Toronto Hillel” At UC Irvine in California: “Quiet war on campus: Israel remains under attack despite fewer public protests” “Jewish students urged to avoid UC Irvine” In the UK: “Jewish Students Say… Continue reading Jewish Students Under Siege
I was surprised to open up yesterday’s New York Times and find an article on Iranian Jewry. “There are still Jews in Iran?!” I exclaimed. Apparently, there are and according to Op-Ed columnist Roger Cohen, they are thriving there. It’s hard to believe such positive news when so many of us are still worrying about… Continue reading Holla to Iranian Jews
Here is an interview that should have been part of a larger piece tracking three interfaith couples and their religious choices. Batya keeps kosher but her husband isn’t Jewish. She paints a different picture of the statistics of intermarriage. We’ve heard them all by now: “Intermarriage threatens Jewish survival. Over 70% of the children of… Continue reading Interfaith Couple Chooses Judaism
When I was a kid, I brought my cousin O home to play. I introduced him to my friend Alex. “This is my cousin,” I said. This made Alex angry. “He is not your cousin!” Alex screamed. “Yes, he is!” I screamed back. “No, he’s not,” Alex replied. “He’s black.” I was stumped. When had… Continue reading Double Minority
Here’s a rough draft of a cultural criticism essay assignment for one of my writing classes. No one talks about what Sammy Davis Jr. contributed to Jewish culture. Nor do they talk about what the newly converted Isla Fisher, star of the “Confessions of a Shopaholic” film and baby mama to Sacha Baron Cohen, is… Continue reading Rough Draft: Beyond Sammy
Todays’s Jewish Treats on grandparents got me thinking about mine. Mis abuelos, my grandparents, never had a chance to spoil me. Because of a family schism, I didn’t see my father’s mother before she died. And I have only one faded, threadbare memory of her. I thought it was a recurring dream but my mother… Continue reading The Book of Our Heritage: Mis Abuelos and Abuelas
An article on a Hispanic blog called “Hispanic Trending” written by Juan Tornoe claims that parents are now focusing on making their kids multilingual. In “A bilingual future: More parents are sending their kids to language classes” , Lourdes Rovira claimed, ”The key is the home. It depends on how much respect, how much value… Continue reading In SAP, please.
I’m part of a frum (pious) writers group. This works out great since the women in the group are a good range of the women who might eventually pick up my book (if I ever finish it). At our last meeting, two of the women said they were amazed that I took classes in non-frum… Continue reading Moments from Writing Class
I just got back from getting the medical excuse form for jury duty. The problem is now getting my doctor to fill it out properly. This falls on my general physician. The only doctor I barely trust. When I moved to Riverdale, I stopped visiting my dazzlingly gorgeous rheumatologist in Gramercy Park. After many, many… Continue reading What’s up, Doc?
I can’t stop laughing over these YouTube clips of “Family Guy” that a guy dubbed over in Spanish, specifically Dominican Spanish. My junior high school in Washington Heights even makes an appearance.
Memoirs of a Jewminicana 