In an exhibition featuring women trailblazers in photography, one would expect to see at least one work by celebrated American-Jewish portrait photographer Annie Leibowitz, but she is not listed among the galaxy of female photographers featured in 20&20 – A Lens of her Own, which opens at the ANU Museum of the Jewish People in Tel Aviv this week.
It may be that there were legal or financial hassles in obtaining any of her works, but it’s a shame, because her career actually took off in Israel. While still a student, she came to Israel in the 1970s on assignment from Rolling Stone to photograph Vietnam War protesters. One of those photographs put her on the cover of the famous magazine, where she has had many cover photos since and on other major publications such as Vanity Fair, Vogue and Time magazine.
She photographed John Lennon only hours before he was murdered.
The most familiar name to Israelis in the ANU Museum exhibition is in all probability that of Vardi Kahana, whose portraits generally convey a message. This includes a series on Auschwitz survivors with numbers on their arms – a constant reminder of what was and what could be again if vigilance is relaxed.
Genetic mix-ups, Jewish law and survival
■ THE CASE of baby Sofia born to a couple who are not her genetic parents as a result of a mix-up in the Assuta fertility unit, is reminiscent in some respects of the disappearance more than 70 years ago of Yemenite babies.
Immigrant parents from Yemen and a few other places in the region brought their ill child to a hospital, and when they came to visit the next day, they were told that the child had died. There was no death certificate, nor were they informed of a funeral or a grave site. There was no closure for grief stricken parents and siblings.
Fortunately, Sofia is alive and well, but due to a court ruling, her genetic parents have no claim on her.
Such a ruling might have been acceptable a century ago when ideas about the welfare of the child were somewhat different to those of today. But in an era in which homosexual couples are raising families without any negative psychological or emotional effects, the ruling is considerably passe.
Knesset speaker Amir Ohana and his partner Alon Hadad have 10-year-old twins, a son and daughter, born in the United States to a surrogate mother. As they grow up, these children will have friends who have a mother and a father, two mothers – or, like them, two fathers – and will find nothing strange in any of these relationships. In some families, the parents raising children born to surrogate mothers maintain contact with them, which is usually more to the benefit of the children than to their detriment.
Bearing this in mind, a new precedent could be set for Sofia where she has two mothers and two fathers, and just as children of divorced couples usually spend time in their mother’s home and time in their father’s home, Sofia could be raised in the knowledge that she has two sets of parents who love her, and she could gravitate from one home to the other. Perhaps the only condition would be that both sets of parents live in the same city and in the same neighborhood so that there is no disruption to her schooling.
Perhaps that’s too simple a solution for Israelis who thrive on complexities.
■ CNN COMMENTATOR Dream Machine founder, Emmy award winner, and New York Times best-selling author Van Jones is this year’s recipient of The Auschwitz Jewish Center Foundation’s Fighting Hatred Award. Jones, who was in Israel last month, will be honored for his commitment to promoting tolerance, bridging communities and combating hatred in all its forms.
In January, Jones led the AJCF-Exodus Delegation to Poland, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Extermination Camp. The delegation comprised a diverse group of Black leaders and changemakers, and influential entertainers.
Jones will receive his award in Manhattan at the foundation’s annual gala on June 11.
The gala celebrates AJCF’s 25 years of fighting hatred and antisemitism and marks 20 years of its American Service Academies Program (ASAP).
A 16-day educational initiative in the United States and Poland, ASAP is geared to a select group of military cadets and midshipmen from the US Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard and Space Force academies (women are still called midshipmen, even though there was an initiative in 2016 to replace the name with a gender-neutral one). Focusing on the Holocaust, ethical responsibility in the military, and related contemporary moral and ethical issues, this program provides a profound learning experience for future military officers during which they meet with Holocaust survivors, elected officials, and expert historians and educators in both countries.
“We are deeply honored to recognize Van at this year’s dinner,” said AJCF Chairman Simon Bergson. “As antisemitism and anti-Black hatred continue to rise, we need voices like Van’s – people building bridges and championing unity. The Holocaust teaches us what happens when hate goes unchecked. Van embodies the kind of leadership we need to ensure those lessons are never forgotten.”
“Van’s advocacy in the fight against antisemitism and his passionate efforts on behalf of the hostages and their families are deeply meaningful to us,” said AJCF Director-General Jack Simony. “The Black and Jewish communities share painful histories of persecution – and also a powerful legacy of resilience. It is critical we continue standing together to fight hate and build a better future. We are proud to have Van Jones as an ally in this mission.”
■ FEW PEOPLE are aware of the fact that preparing bodies of deceased Jews for burial is a task undertaken by devout groups of Jewish women. While the fate of the hostages has underscored the importance of burial in Israel for those who are deceased, there are certain rules about the cleansing of the body before the burial can take place.
In what is believed to be a first conference of its kind, one was recently held that brought together 110 women from across the US who volunteer for or are otherwise involved with a Jewish burial society (chevra kadisha – literally “sacred society”).
The event in New Jersey attracted women from New York, Chicago, Florida, Washington, and beyond to share Jewish law guidance, emotional resilience strategies, and outreach tools in response to rising preferences in the US and around the globe for cremation, which is taboo in Halacha (Jewish Law).
Organized by the Orthodox Union in partnership with NASCK (National Association of Chevra Kadisha), the Women’s Chevra Kadisha Leadership Conference brought together participants from across the mainly Orthodox spectrum for an immersive day of learning, support, and meaningful collaboration.
The event also highlighted a growing conversation around women’s leadership in Orthodox communal life – such as in the deeply private, spiritual realm of end-of-life care.
“Chevra Kadisha members are a quiet society,” said OU Director of Torah and Halacha Initiatives Rabbi Ezra Sarna. “This very special group of devoted people leave their homes at all hours, regardless of the time of day. Theirs is a genuine kindness that’s never going to be repaid.”
One of the conference’s key objectives, Sarna said, was to bring together these women leaders who often work in isolation.
“Just looking into the eyes of another woman who shares a deep understanding of this work is the greatest empowerment. The bonds formed were truly remarkable,” he said. “Our goal was to uplift and inspire, and to give participants a sense of renewed energy and purpose as they continue their holy work.”
The keynote speaker was Rabbi Elchanan Zohn, a world-renowned halachic expert in afterlife care, director of the Chevra Kadisha, Vaad Harabonim (Board of Rabbis) of Queens, New York, and the founder and president of NASCK, which he launched about 25 years ago as a resource for chevrot kadisha. His association offers education and practical guidance on a broad range of end-of-life issues, with a special focus on tahara (purification) and communal work.
“The conference provided an opportunity for chevra kadisha women, in leadership roles, to share experiences, express feelings, and gain strength, knowledge, and general information on an issue they are passionate about,” said Rabbi Zohn.
Nearly all the women who attended are engaged in other voluntary activities in their communities, and in some cases work for social welfare or cultural organizations they themselves founded.
■ BECAUSE SO many immigrants from France to Israel are of North African background, it is often assumed that Yiddish is not spoken in France. In fact, it is quite widely spoken, and a film on the subject was made by Tel Aviv-born French filmmaker Nurith Aviv who has lived in Paris for approximately half a century.
For several years now, summer schools in Yiddish have been held in various parts of the world including Vilnius, Tel Aviv, New York, Weimar, Warsaw, London, and Paris, to name a few. The programs are not all identical, but collectively include language, literature, films and songs, plus in some cases photo exhibitions of pre-Holocaust Yiddish events.
The Paris summer school, organized by the Paris Yiddish Center, runs from July 7-25 and includes a number of cultural activities. There are also a number of Jewish festivals in June, July, and August in Poland, the US, Canada, the UK and elsewhere, including several Latin American countries. Yiddish may not be what it used to be but it’s far from dead.
■ THE KRAKOW Jewish Festival, held annually in Kazimierz, the pre-Holocaust Jewish Quarter where an elegant hotel now stands on the site of the apartment house where international cosmetics queen Helena Rubinstein once lived, was founded in 1988 by Janusz Makuch, a non-Jew who in some ways is more Jewish than many Jews.
The festival, which attracts thousands of non-Jews from all over Poland, as well as many Jews from countries around the globe, has been instrumental in defusing antisemitism in Poland. Programs include Jewish songs and dance – liturgical, klezmer, hasidic and folk – lectures on the Jewish history of Krakow, Jewish cuisine, workshops on Jewish customs and traditions, Jewish cinema, Jewish theater, exhibitions of works by Jewish artists murdered during the Holocaust, readings from works by Polish Jewish authors and rabbis, Jewish cabaret, and more. Makuch likes to read in public from the rabbinic works.
Several of the events are held in the old synagogues that have become part of the Kazimierz museum network. The 34th annual Krakow Festival will be held from June 25-29.
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