(JTA) — WASHINGTON — In her first statement on Israel as a presidential candidate, Kamala Harris struck a markedly different tone than President Joe Biden, saying after a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that she “will not be silent” in the face of what she called the “devastation” in Gaza. The vice president […] The post Kamala Harris says she ‘will not be silent’ about plight of Palestinians after meeting Benjamin Netanyahu appeared first on Jewish Journal ..read more

(JTA) — WASHINGTON — The joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, at times, felt like Benjamin Netanyahu’s happy place: The Israeli prime minister got more than 40 standing ovations for an hourlong speech extolling the necessity of the U.S.-Israel alliance. But the world outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday was unforgiving, and it padded silently […] The post In Netanyahu’s triumphal moment, the heartbreak and disdain of the outside world creeps in appeared first on Jewish Journal ..read more

On the one (right) hand, there was thunderous applause for calls of support of Israel. On the other (far-right) hand, there was the appearance of a number of speakers who have dabbled in antisemitism. The Republican National Convention nominated Donald J. Trump for a third time, putting the man who moved the American embassy in […] The post Republicans say ‘We will stand with Israel,’ but most Jews will stay with Democrats appeared first on Jewish Journal ..read more

For many American Jews, Oct. 7 brought with it the painful understanding: “It could have been me.” For Laurie Kamenetsky, a daughter of immigrants from the former Soviet Union, that knowledge has been with her since 2007, when she first met a child from Sderot, the Gaza border community where Hamas terrorists massacred at least […] The post ‘It is not an easy life in Sderot,’ so Israeli teens find peace at summer camp in New Hampshire appeared first on Jewish Journal ..read more

Joe Biden will be remembered as a landmark U.S. president when it comes to America’s relationship with Israel – and maybe the last of his kind. As a member of the generation that came of age in the years immediately after World War II and the establishment of Israel, Biden has throughout his political career […] The post Joe Biden was a remarkable president for Israel – and very likely the last of his kind appeared first on Jewish Journal ..read more

Is the American Dream an impossible goal for most Americans? Is class as much of a factor as the widening gap between the haves and the have-nots? Clearly, F. Scott Fitzgerald was exploring these disturbing questions with a kind of prophetic vision in his 1925 masterwork novel, “The Great Gatsby.” Now “Gatsby” – an American […] The post ‘Gatsby’ remains great after nearly 100 years appeared first on Jewish Journal ..read more

Last week was a whirlwind stretch for Shabbos Kestenbaum. In Milwaukee, the Jewish-American Harvard alumnus met fellow guests at the Republican National Convention – former house speaker Newt Gingrich, former United Kingdom prime minister Liz Truss, and North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum. And on July 17, he gave a convention speech about a topic of […] The post Harvard Divinity School grad talks about campus antisemitism at Republican National Convention appeared first on Jewish Journal ..read more

The second annual Borscht Belt Fest, featuring comedy, food, music and storytelling, will take place July 26-28 in the Catskills. Organized by the Borscht Belt Museum in Ellenville, New York, this year’s festival will be “bigger and better” than last year, according to Andrew Jacobs, one of the festival’s organizers and the president of the museum’s board […] The post The Borscht Belt Festival is bigger and broader this year appeared first on Jewish Journal ..read more

Adam Nimoy’s new memoir “The Most Human: Reconciling with My Father, Leonard Nimoy” (Chicago Review Press, June 4, 2024) includes explicitly candid highs and lows. “We were missing a deep emotional connection,” Nimoy told an audience at Boston’s West End Museum on a recent summer night. “He sometimes told me he loved me, but it […] The post A challenging trek: Adam Nimoy on his illogically iconic dad appeared first on Jewish Journal ..read more

(JTA) — This afternoon, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will speak before a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress in Washington, D.C., more than nine months into the Israel-Hamas war and at a time of political uncertainty in both the United States and Israel. The speech is also taking place as intense talks continue over a deal that would pause the fighting for at least six weeks in exchange for the release of some of the hostages held by Hamas. Netanyahu will deliver the address at 2 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, and it will be streamed on C-SPAN as well as major networks and news sites ..read more