American Israelite, April 12, 2012

AI

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2012 20 NISSAN, 5772

Access’ Schmooze for Twos p.13

CINCINNATI, OH Candle Lighting Times Shabbat begins Fri 7:56p Shabbat ends Sat 8:57p

VOL. 158 • NO. 38

The American Israelite T H E

O L D E S T

04

E N G L I S H

Northern Hills HaZaK program focuses on history of Cincinnati Zoo

LOCAL

p.4

SINGLE ISSUE: $2.00 J E W I S H

06

W E E K L Y

I N

A M E R I C A

BBYO embraces anti-bullying documentary, taking its message...

|

08

E S T .

1 8 5 4

|

U.S. won’t budge on Jerusalem, but attorney calls passport ruling...

“ L E T

T H E R E

10

B E

L I G H T ”

Israeli man chases blood donation world record, plans to continue giving

Israel Up to the Minute will give first-hand insights on security issues

B’nai Tzedek retires Trest Memorial Torah Scroll

DINING OUT

p.14

Wertheim’s enticing and authentic German dishes

TRAVEL

p.20

Crystal Serenity: from three seas to three C’s

AUTOS

p.21

Shrapnel damage to a school in Sderot, Israel, in November 2011.

2012 Audi Q5 — Luxury meets affordable LIKE US ON FACEBOOK! FOLLOW US ON TWITTER!

In the third installment of Israel Up to the Minute, Community Shaliach (Emissary) Yair Cohen, housed at the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati, will offer an interactive presentation on current security issues in Israel, on April 17, at 7 p.m. at the Mayerson JCC. Cohen, an Israeli who is living in Cincinnati temporarily to serve as Cincinnati’s shaliach, will also offer his first-hand perspective—as well as personal responses he’s gathered

during a trip home for Passover—on living in a country that’s almost constantly under threat.

“Non-Israelis have a hard time understanding how we can live our daily lives—going to work, doing the shopping, putting the children to bed—with the knowledge looming over us that we could be attacked at any time,” Cohen says. “It makes us cautious and aware, but it does not make us live in fear.”

Part of Israel Up to the Minute

will address the very real threat posed by Iran’s growing nuclear capabilities and how it affects individual citizens in Israel. Cohen will discuss, among other reactions, the viral Facebook movement “Israel Loves Iran,” which was started by an Israeli who opposes a preemptive attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities and who chose to post a video directed toward Iranian citizens that expresses that viewpoint. Interestingly, this movement is better known in the

U.S. than it is in Israel.

Young adults, ages 21–45, are invited to come early for Power HalfHour: Libation and Conversations, which this month offers “Chickpea Mashup”—a hummus tasting—and the opportunity to network with other young adults interested in Israel.

Power Half-Hour starts at 6:30 p.m. in the Mayerson JCC courtyard and is presented by the Young Adult Division (YAD) of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati.

BAR/BAT MITZVAH 2012 SPECIAL SECTION

If your business or organization wants to REACH the Greater Cincinnati Jewish Community regarding BAR/BAT MITZVAHS, this is the issue to do it!

Publishes on May 3 Deadline is April 23

For more information or to advertise, call Ted Deutsch at (513) 621-3145 or send an email to publisher@ americanisraelite.com

AI

The American Israelite

LOCAL • 3

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2012

Dr. Michael A. Meyer speaks at Adath Israel Hazak event Adath Israel Hazak will present its closing program for the 2011-2012 season on Sunday, April 29, at 4 p.m. in the Marcus Chapel. Dr. Michael A. Meyer, currently Adolph S. Ochs Professor Emeritus of Jewish History at HUC, is an internationally recognized historian and scholar of modern Jewish intellectual history. He will explore “A Liberal Zionism: Is it possible today and how might it look?”

“In recent years,” said Dr. Meyer, “it has become more difficult to reconcile liberal values with contemporary Zionism.”

“Some Jews,” he continues, “have chosen to remain Zionists but at the cost of their liberalism.

Is there a Zionism that can embrace liberalism and still be rooted in Jewish religion? These are the questions that deserve some serious discussion.”

Born in Berlin, Germany, Dr. Meyer grew up in Los Angeles and received his B.A. (with highest honors) from UCLA. His doctorate is from Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati. Dr. Meyer has taught at HUC since 1964 and became a member of its faculty in 1967. He has won three Jewish book awards and is the proud recipient of numerous honors and awards given by fellow Jewish historians from the United States, Israel and Europe.

Adath Israel Congregation initiated its Hazak program for mature

adults in 2001. “Our efforts were rewarded in 2009,” said Miriam Elfenbaum president, “when we won the top Solomon Schechter Gold Award for outstanding programming given by the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism. Our quarterly programs have featured excellent musical presentations, lectures by esteemed speakers, biennial overnight trips to places of Jewish interest, as well as gourmet receptions.”

Everyone is urged to attend Dr. Meyer’s provocative lecture. It will be followed by a delicious light buffet supper. This event is open to the entire Jewish community. Reservations are required and there is a moderate charge.

The Jews of Czestochowa: Coexistence–Holocaust–Memory The groundbreaking exhibition of The Jews of Czestochowa: Coexistence-Holocaust-Memory will open with a reception at the Skirball Museum on the Cincinnati campus of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion on Sunday, April 22, at 5:30 p.m. The exhibition, cosponsored by The Center for Holocaust & Humanity Education, is being presented in honor of Yom Hashoah, Day of (Remembrance of) the Holocaust and the Heroism, commemorating the lives and heroism of Jewish people who died in the Holocaust between 1933 and 1945. The date is close to the anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.

The Jews of Czestochowa commemorates the Jewish contribution to Czestochowa, a once thriving community of 40,000 Jewish inhabitants, before the devastation of Polish Jewish life by the Nazi occupation. It features a variety of photographs, documents and artifacts from both during and after World War II. Sigmund Rolat, a native of Czestochowa and Holocaust survivor, was instrumental in the creation of the exhibition. Rolat has a special connection with Cincinnati. In 1948, he came to the United States and later to Cincinnati where he earned his B.A. from the University of Cincinnati. He is president of the World Society of Czestochowa Jews and Their Descendants. He will be speaking at the exhibition.

The documentary films included in the exhibition are based on his memories and those of other Holocaust survivors.

The Jews of Czestochowa traces the history of Czestochowa’s flourishing Jewish community and

its subsequent tragic destruction by the Nazi occupation. The many photographs and precious objects come from state and private collections, both from Poland and abroad. Numerous photographs are reprints from The Czestochowa Yidn (Czestochowa, Poland) published in New York in 1947. The exhibition was organized to educate future generations about the history of the Polish Jews.

The remains of the synagogue in Czestochowa after its destruction by the Nazis during World War II.

Czestochowa was one of Poland’s largest and most vibrant Jewish communities up until the German invasion and the ensuing Holocaust. It was an important industrial center, with many Jewish merchants and artisans. It was known for its productive and peaceful coexistence with their Christian neighbors.

Czestochowa was the first Polish city taken by the Germans in 1939. In the years following, ghettos were formed and thousands of Jews were deported to eventually die at Treblinka, one of the many death camps instituted

by the Nazi regime. The remaining Jews were confined in a forced labor camp before the Allies liberated the city on January 17, 1945.

Only about 10,000 of Czestochowa’s Jewish inhabitants survived World War II. Less than 100 live there today.

The World Society of Czestochowa Jews and Their Descendants originally opened the exhibition in Czestochowa, Poland, in 2004. It marked the first time a Catholic city initiated a public exhibition to honor its pre-war Jewish community. After much success, it then opened in Warsaw, before traveling abroad to several cities throughout the United States, including now Cincinnati.

During the run of this exhibition, the Skirball Museum will be open to the public, beginning April 23, Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Friday, 10 a.m. to noon; and Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m. The exhibition will also be open at other times by appointment for groups of five or more. The exhibition will run through June 29.

The opening reception on April 22 is free and open to all, but reservations are required.

The Center for Holocaust Humanity & Education will hold a community-wide Holocaust Commemoration for Yom Hashoah earlier the same day of the exhibition opening, April 22. The commemoration will begin at 2 p.m. and will include candle lighting, prayer and a moving program that remembers the lives lost during the Holocaust and honors those who survived. Rolat will also be speaking for the commemoration.

The commemoration will take place at the Mayerson Jewish Community Center.

THE ART OF

PASSOVER

2012 Passover Cover Coloring Contest entries can be seen at Marx Hot Bagels 9701 KENWOOD ROAD • BLUE ASH

4 • LOCAL

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

are for adults 55 and older, and are open to the entire community. In addition to members of Northern Hills, many attendees have come from the Jewish Community Center, Cedar Village, Brookwood Retirement Community, and throughout Greater Cincinnati.

There is no charge for the program and lunch, but donations are greatly appreciated.

B’nai Tzedek retires Trest Memorial Torah Scroll

George Gati (Guttmann), a Holocaust survivor from Hungary, carrying the Trest Memorial Torah Scroll.

Jewish congregations all over the world. Chimen Abramsky, professor of Hebrew at the University of London, was the first person to examine the scrolls and check the information of their provenance. In the interview he gave to the London Jewish Chronicle at the time of the scrolls’ arrival, he reported that in one of the scrolls he had found a note from a scribe who had examined it in 1940. Its message was: “Please God help us in these troubled times.”

The wooden box that Is Bernstein and Alex Cohen retrieved from the Post Office contained a Torah scroll saved from Holocaust destruction and gifted on “permanent loan”’ to B’nai Tzedek by the Memorial Scroll Committee.

The Trest Torah Scroll was dedicated at B’nai Tzedek during Shabbat services for Parashat VaYigash, on Dec. 16, 1972.

Dr. Ben Zion Wacholder, z”l, himself a Holocaust survivor, gave the D’var Torah for the dedication.

He used the theme of the reunion of Joseph and Jacob’s family: “When the town of Trest was no more, this Sefer Torah became an orphan.

What is a book without a reader—a Sefer Torah without a Jew? This morning, our orphaned Torah has found a new home. After years of slavery and change of fortune, there occurred the reunion of Joseph and his brothers. On this Shabbat morning, our orphaned Sefer Torah finds again, a home with its people. We celebrate a reunion with a small community of Trest…”

The Jewish propensity for wandering creates surprising connections across time and space, linking communities like Trest (Triesch in German) of Western Moravia with Cincinnati, Ohio in uncommon but significant ways. In an article published in the 1946 issue of the Hebrew Union College Annual, Jacob Marcus describes a minute book written largely in JudaeoGerman and partly in Hebrew that is

held in the HUC Library Rare Book Room. Gottard Deutsch, who most likely gifted the manuscript to the library, was a professor of Jewish History at HUC. He was married to Hermine Bacher; and she was a descendant of the Bachrachs, starting with Judah Loeb Bachrach of Vienna and his son, David. After the expulsion of the Jews from Vienna in 1670, David crossed to Moravia and settled in Triesch. He joined a Jewish community that had existed there since the 15th century.

The book of Triesch Hevrah Kadisha gives us a glimpse into the life of the Jewish community of Triesch from the end of the 17th until the beginning of the 19th centuries.

The manuscript, according to Marcus, provides us with vital insights into the character of the institutions of Triesch’s Jewish community, of their relative power, and of the development of their functions. It gives us a window into their financial basis, the inventory of their possessions and the roles of the people that filled their ranks. The information gleaned from it allows us to learn a thing or two about the reality of the communal life of the people whose great-grandchildren a century later, in the second half of the 19th century, chanted from the Torah Scroll that rests at this hour in Cincinnati.

The Trest Holocaust Torah Scroll, written around 1860, has been with its people in Cincinnati for about 40 years. It has danced with the congregation on Simchat Torah; it was paraded on many Bar and Bat Mitzvah ceremonies; it was dressed in white for the High Holidays; it has been chanted from often and has been repaired a few times by the local sofrim.

It has aged together with us and become fragile and, in the end, deemed unfit for ritual use. B’nai Tzedek’s Board made a decision to retire and preserve the Trest Holocaust Torah in 2008. Since then, a rolling display case with a plexiglass top has been built to house it.

The Torah scroll from distant Moravia that, indeed, has been reunited with the Jewish people, will stay in our custody to be used for educational purposes. It will forever be a symbol of our connection to the lost Jewish communities in Europe.

The American Israelite “LET THERE BE LIGHT” THE OLDEST ENGLISH-JEWISH WEEKLY IN AMERICA - EST. JULY 15, 1854

VOL. 158 • NO. 38 THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2012 20 NISSAN 5772 SHABBAT BEGINS FRIDAY 7:56 PM SHABBAT ENDS SATURDAY 8:57 PM THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE CO., PUBLISHERS 18 WEST NINTH STREET, SUITE 2 CINCINNATI, OHIO 45202-2037 Phone: (513) 621-3145 Fax: (513) 621-3744 publisher@americanisraelite.com editor@americanisraelite.com production@americanisraelite.com RABBI ISSAC M. WISE Founder, Editor, Publisher, 1854-1900 LEO WISE Editor & Publisher, 1900-1928 RABBI JONAH B. WISE Editor & Publisher, 1928-1930 HENRY C. SEGAL Editor & Publisher, 1930-1985 PHYLLIS R. SINGER Editor & General Manager, 1985-1999 MILLARD H. MACK Publisher Emeritus NETANEL (TED) DEUTSCH Editor & Publisher BARBARA L. MORGENSTERN Senior Writer YEHOSHUA MIZRACHI NICOLE SIMON Assistant Editors ALEXIA KADISH Copy Editor JANET STEINBERG Travel Editor SONDRA KATKIN Dining Editor MARIANNA BETTMAN NATE BLOOM IRIS PASTOR RABBI A. JAMES RUDIN ZELL SCHULMAN RABBI AVI SHAFRAN PHYLLIS R. SINGER Contributing Columnists LEV LOKSHIN JANE KARLSBERG Staff Photographers JOSEPH D. STANGE Production Manager MICHAEL MAZER Sales ERIN WYENANDT Office Manager e Oldest Eng Th

ewish N h-J ew lis

On a mid-August day in 1972, Is Bernstein, then president of B’nai Tzedek Congregation, took a drive with Alex Cohen to the downtown Cincinnati Post Office Building. The synagogue was notified of the arrival of a wooden box from London, England. It had been detained in the U.S. Customs Office and the men went to retrieve it. The customs officer tried to page through his manual to establish the shipment’s value for the duty to be paid.

The men argued that the scroll of the Hebrew text on the parchment is really a book, not an art object appointed with elaborately carved wooden poles. In short, they convinced the officer that the wooden crate contained a book and, further, that it was a used book. Their artful persuasion worked and they left the building without paying any custom duty, carrying the precious cargo of the Trest Memorial Torah Scroll.

The Trest Torah has remained since that day in the custody and care of B’nai Tzedek Congregation in Cincinnati. The Trest Torah, named after the small Jewish community in Moravia (now the Czech Republic), is one of 1,564 sacred scrolls that were gathered at Westminster Synagogue in London in 1964. They came from the vast collection of the Jewish ritual objects stolen by the Nazis during WWII. While systematically destroying the Jewish people, the Nazis carefully sorted and catalogued the objects that belonged to the Jews. A huge amount of Jewish silver, textiles, books and religious objects of all kinds had been assembled under Nazi control in Prague.

This booty is the basis of the collection now housed in the State Jewish Museum in Prague. The Torah scrolls lay in piles for over 20 years in a disused synagogue in Prague and were purchased—after some mediation by a Jewish London art dealer—with funds provided by the businessman and philanthropist, Ralph Yablon. He then entrusted them into the care of his congregation, Westminster Synagogue, the home of the Memorial Trust Committee. The Committee oversaw the work of sorting, conserving and repairing these scrolls as well as to their allocation and distribution to

AI

•

served as zoo volunteers for over 25 years, and have led numerous educational programs on behalf of the zoo. The program will feature a slide presentation on the zoo’s history and significance.

“HaZaK” is an acronym, with the letters standing for the Hebrew words “Hakhma” (wisdom), “Ziknah” (maturity), and “Kadima” (forward). The HaZaK programs

Est. 1854

lunch will be served.

Founded in 1875, the Cincinnati Zoo is the second oldest zoo in the United States.

It is noted for its breeding programs, including those for California sea lions, cheetahs, tigers, gorillas and bonobos. The zoo was the home of the last living passenger pigeon and last living Carolina parakeet.

Charles and Carol Specter have

• ca

The historic Cincinnati Zoo and botanical garden will be the focus when Northern Hills SynagogueCongregation B’nai Avraham holds its monthly HaZaK program for seniors on Wednesday, April 18. Leading the program will be longtime Cincinnati Zoo volunteers Charles and Carole Specter.

The program will take place at the synagogue, beginning at noon, and

r in Am ape er sp i

Northern Hills HaZaK program focuses on history of Cincinnati Zoo

THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE (USPS 019-320) is published weekly for $44 per year and $2.00 per single copy in Cincinnati and $49 per year and $3.00 per single copy elsewhere in U.S. by The American Israelite Co. 18 West Ninth Street, Suite 2, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-2037. Periodicals postage paid at Cincinnati, OH. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE, 18 West Ninth Street, Suite 2, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-2037.

The views and opinions expressed by the columnists of The American Israelite do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the newspaper.

LOCAL • 5

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2012

Holocaust stories to be shared at UC Blue Ash for Remembrance Day While most people are aware of the historical importance of the Holocaust, the true impact is more than statistics and factual data. It’s the personal stories of survivors, liberators and witnesses that tell the deeply moving story, illustrating the effect on individuals, families and communities, both at the time and for generations to come.

UC Blue Ash College is join-

ing with The Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education to present “Stories from the Holocaust,” featuring four personal stories.

The event will be held Thursday, April 19, from 7-8:30 p.m. in the Muntz Hall theater on the UC Blue Ash college campus. A reception will immediately follow in the college library.

Featured speakers include:

Holocaust survivor Werner Coppel; liberator Lt. Saul Marmer; and second generation witnesses Ray Warren and Sandy Kaltman. The event will be moderated by Sarah Weiss, director of The Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education.

The event, which is free and open to the public, is being held in honor of the Holocaust Remembrance Day.

DIRECTOR JCC ECE COLUMBUS, OH FT & FULL BENEFITS • BA/BS & EXP REQ SUPERVISE 50 STAFF Cover Letter & Resume:

pandrews@ColumbusJCC.org EEO, At-Will Emp.

Many volunteers make JFS Passover Delivery a success

Debbie Horewitz and daughter Chana, 3 on their way to delivering a box of Passover food.

“We love volunteering. When we did this last year we found the people to be so welcoming and appreciative to see visitors in their homes,” exclaimed Jewish Family Service volunteer Sarah Gentry, who was on her way to deliver boxes of Passover food to Cincinnati Jewish families in need. Sarah and her husband Charles were two of 115 volunteers who made the 14th annual Dr. Samuel S. Rockwern Passover Delivery of Jewish Family Service project another success.

The high cost of kosher for Passover food compelled families to volunteer their time to those less fortunate to ensure recipients had an adequate meal. Volunteers of all ages—from 3 to 84—delivered boxes filled with matzah, matzah ball soup mix, macaroons, gefilte fish, Passover candy, grape juice, nuts, apples and a chicken dinner, to 270 households, feeding approximately 450 individuals. Additional volunteers came during the week to sort the thousands of cans and boxes of donated food.

Deliveries stretched over 30 zip codes, confirming that Jewish families in need live throughout Greater

Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky.

The Dr. Samuel S. Rockwern Passover Delivery of Jewish Family Service involves more than just delivering food; it personally connects the volunteers with families.

Beth Schwartz, Jewish Family Service executive director, delivered the food with her daughters Eve, 7, and Monica, 15. “We were invited to sit down at the kitchen table in one home where we were served Israeli cookies, Russian bubliks, fruit and tea. We knew it gave our hosts great pleasure to serve us in their home,” said Schwartz. “The highlight was meeting a woman who was a Russian-Spanish translator. She and my daughter Monica, a freshman who has studied Spanish since third grade, conversed together and both were surprised and delighted to discover their shared language.”

This Passover delivery project was started by a group of dedicated volunteers in 1998 and continues to be embraced by the community.

Cincinnati Hebrew Day School donated the storage and set-up facilities. Area congregations, organizations and businesses collected the nonperishable, boxed food. The bal-

ance was purchased with monetary donations from The Rockwern Charitable Foundation, Manuel D. and Rhoda Mayerson Foundation, and individual community donors.

Two area grocery stores made it easy for shoppers to donate.

Remke/biggs at Highland and Ridge displayed signs with tear-off slips for shoppers to donate specifically to this project by adding $5, $10 or $20 to their purchase. Meijer on Marburg Avenue also tied in their Simply Give Food Pantry drive around Passover, matching customer donations to Jewish Family Service Food Pantry.

No cash or food donations went to waste as the need for food continues throughout the year at Jewish Family Service Food Pantry, which feeds an average of 130 people each month. It is the only kosher food pantry in the region and is currently located in space donated by Golf Manor Synagogue.

You are cordially invited!

ON WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18, 2012 AT 7-8:30PM EREV YOM HASHOAH Congregation B’nai Tzedek will retire the Trest Holocaust Torah Scroll passed into our custody in 1972, through the generosity of the Memorial Scrolls Committee.

THE TORAH SCROLL, A LEGACY OF THE JEWISH COMMUNITY TREST IN MORAVIA, IS BEING PRESERVED AND RETAINED FOR EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH. THE CEREMONY WILL HONOR THE TREST TORAH IN STORY AND MUSIC. WE HOPE YOU CAN JOIN US. OF

Refreshments will be served following the ceremony.

CONGREGATION B’NAI TZEDEK 6280 KUGLER MILL ROAD IN KENWOOD Please contact Susan at 984-3393 to RSVP and if you need transportation.

6 • LOCAL / NATIONAL

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

Wise Temple family programs Few things are more rewarding than watching parents and children experience Jewish learning together, and the grade-level family programs at Wise Temple provide this opportunity for families with students in Open Room (Pre-K & Kindergarten) through eighth grade.

The programs take place during Religious School and are always a highlight of the school year for each

grade. Most of the family programs involve multiple rotations, where groups of families travel to different stations doing hands-on activities related to the day’s theme (Shabbat, Mitzvot, Israel, etc).

Many of these activities show the families how to bring Jewish rituals into their homes, such as braiding challah in third grade or making tzedakah boxes in second grade.

These programs also provide

some of the students’ most lasting memories. In fifth grade, two students from each fifth grade class exchange vows under the chuppah, in a mock wedding ceremony “officiated” by Rabbi Lewis Kamrass. The morning ends with a reception (with wedding cake, of course) so that all of the families can celebrate together.

In fourth grade, the teachers really get into the spirit of the pro-

gram by pretending to be famous figures from Israeli history, and in sixth grade, teachers have dressed up as everything from first century rebels against the Romans to 19th century immigrants to America.

In addition, family programs allow parents to interact with teachers, madrichim (teaching assistants) and staff while modeling continued Jewish learning for their children.

Israel Memorial Day, Israel Independence Day The entire community is invited to the observance of Yom HaZikaron (Israel Memorial Day) and celebration of Yom HaAtzmaut (Israel Independence Day), Israel’s 64th anniversary, at the Mayerson JCC on Thursday evening, April 26. The event will feature a performance by the Israel Defense Force (IDF) choir.

Remember those lost in Israel’s wars and the victims of

terror by joining us at the 5:30 p.m. service outdoors in the courtyard of the JCC building. There will be a flag lowering, wreath laying, prayers, poems and songs by the Cincinnati Hebrew Day School boys’ choir. This year there will be a Yom HaAtzmaut ceremony to mark the transition between the memorial and independence days. This ceremony will highlight Cincinnati’s many

connections to Israel with a flag and drum parade with Kulanu and Mercaz students, the Rockwern Academy girls’ and boys’ choirs, and a torch lighting ceremony.

Immediately following is the celebration of Israel Independence Day inside the JCC. “A Taste of Kosher Cincinnati” food court offers delicious Israeli, Indian and international food including sushi, bagels, chocolates,

ice cream and other desserts. Along with the performance by the IDF choir, children can enjoy free inflatables and carnival games, while tweens can show their skills in a Ga-Ga (Israeli-style dodgeball) tournament. There will also be a teen party, shuk (Israeli-style market), a showing of the film “Israel Inside” and more. The IDF choir performance, ceremonies and activities are free and open to all.

BBYO embraces anti-bullying documentary, taking its message to Jewish teens

By Debra Rubin Jewish Telegraphic Agency WASHINGTON (JTA) — Emotional. Raw. Frustrating.

That’s how Oz Fishman describes his reaction to “Bully,” a documentary that follows five students who face bullying daily. The movie also focuses on two victims of bullying who killed themselves.

“I think every single person who wants to be a member of any community should see this film,” Fishman said.

As international co-president of the Jewish youth group BBYO, Fishman has been in a position to help make “Bully” available to Jewish teens and their parents throughout the country.

BBYO has partnered with The Bully Project, which made the documentary, to bring the film to Jewish teens. “Bully” opened in limited release on March 30; two days later, the youth organization held the first two of 15 private screenings that it will host nationwide.

The much-discussed film has fueled the national conversation over how to prevent bullying. The Bully Project aims to have 1 million teens see the movie and sign a pledge promising to take a stand against bullying — “stick up for others who might be in need of my help” — and be role models by not spreading hateful rumors — and not ignoring those who do.

“Bully” filmmaker Lee Hirsch is delighted by BBYO’s participation.

“BBYO has rallied around this film in a way that has absolutely been inspirational to me as a film-

Courtesy of The Bully Project

A still from the documentary “Bully”—BBYO has teamed with The Bully Project to bring the film to Jewish teens.

maker and as a Jew,” Hirsch said.

“It’s been an extraordinary thing to witness.”

The youth organization’s February convention in Atlanta included a preview of the film.

BBYO members also were trained as facilitators for discussions that follow the screenings.

The discussions use a Jewish study guide developed by BBYO. The guide provides a Jewish foundation for the teens to talk about the film and about bullying, according to Rabbi David Kessel, BBYO’s chief program officer. It is used as a supplement to “BULLY: Fostering Empathy and Action in Schools,” the Facing History and Ourselves curriculum created for The Bully Project.

The BBYO curriculum includes distributing cards that contain such Jewish values as “pikuach nefesh,” or saving a life; “hochai’ach tochee’ach,” you shall rebuke; “hal-

banat panim,” avoiding public humiliation; and “ona’at d’varim,” laws aimed at avoiding verbal humiliation.

“When you’ve seen a movie like ‘Bully,’ it’s personal in a way because all of these teenagers have seen bullying in real life, know a friend who’s been bullied,” Kessel said. “The values give them a Jewish way to talk about it.”

Fishman, 18, was particularly struck by remarks in the film from the father of one of the suicide victims.

“The father said, ‘We’re nobody; we’re just some random people. Had this happened to a son of a politician, it would have been on the front pages everywhere,’” Fishman recalled. “It is shocking to me that anybody would ever feel so worthless and meaningless that their child, having been bullied to a point of suicide, wasn’t worthy of the world’s attention.”

As Jews, he said, “It’s part of our values to do our best to stop [bullying]. That’s how we build a better world.”

BBYO officials say the film dovetails with the group’s Stand Up for Each Other Campaign for Respect and Inclusion, a project that began a year and a half ago and is “designed to raise sensitivity, to teach teens to create open communities,” Kessel said.

“The concept behind The Bully Project is that it takes a movement, it takes a village” to change attitudes, “and you can be that change,” said Estee Portnoy, who chairs BBYO’s international board of directors. “That really aligned” with BBYO’s Stand Up campaign.

As part of the Stand Up project, BBYO joined with Keshet, a gay and lesbian Jewish group, to get signatures for Keshet’s “Do Not Stand Idly By: A Jewish Community Pledge to Save Lives,” which commits signers to speak against homophobic bullying and harassment.

The youth group also put together “a resource guide with a number of different model programs that you could run at a convention, Shabbaton, leadership event,” Kessel said.

The rabbi says he already sees a culture shift. People are more aware, for example, of the kind of language they use.

“We looked at terms like, ‘That’s so gay,’” Kessel said, “and tried to make people understand that it’s a pejorative.”

“We haven’t solved the problem,” he said, “but we’ve taken a major step forward.”

National Briefs Pro-Palestinian student group sends Jewish students fake eviction notices (JTA) — More than 200 Jewish students at Florida Atlantic University’s Boca Raton campus received fake eviction notices from a pro-Palestinian group.

The notices were posted March 30 by the campus group Students for Justice in Palestine, the Florida Jewish Journal reported April 5.

The notices were posted to draw attention to the alleged number of Palestinian home demolitions by Israeli troops over the past three decades.

Some of the students who did not read the notice carefully thought that they were actually being evicted, a Jewish student told the newspaper.

“We’re considering it a hate crime,” Rayna Exelbierd, 20, a Jewish student who received a fake eviction notice, told the newspaper. “The flier promotes hate; it doesn’t promote peace. People were scared by it. People felt threatened by it.”

The fliers contained the university housing department’s official stamp.

“The recent mock eviction postings did not comply with the policies of University Housing and Residential Life or the Office of Student Involvement and Leadership concerning the distribution of printed material, and therefore the postings were removed,” Charles Brown, FAU’s senior vice president for student affairs, said in a statement.

Andrew Rosenkranz, director of the Anti-Defamation League’s Florida region, said the university is going to open an investigation into the incident.

Conn. lawmaker set to launch measure on religious symbols (JTA) — Connecticut State Senate Majority Leader Martin Looney is expected to announce legislation to protect citizens’ rights to display religious symbols.

Looney is scheduled to announce the legislation on Tuesday morning, joined by representatives of the Connecticut Regional Office of the AntiDefamation League.

Barbara Cadranel, who recently settled a case with her condominium association in Stratford, Conn. over the ban on displaying a mezuzah on her apartment’s doorpost, will also meet with reporters at the news conference, according to reports.

NATIONAL • 7

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2012

Amid mainstream success, Regina Spektor stays true to Jewish roots

By Ben Harris Jewish Telegraphic Agency NEW YORK (JTA) — Regina Spektor has a cold — or as she calls it, “a nondescript New York disease.”

The singer is onstage at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York headlining a benefit concert for the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, or HIAS, which helped resettle her family in New York more than 20 years ago.

Though the crowd, which includes Spektor’s parents, calls out words of encouragement, Spektor is struggling. She gulps water between songs, suppresses little coughs and refers more than once to the mysterious Russian health tonic she downed in an effort to ready herself for the performance.

“It was one of those things where anyone in their sane mind would have canceled,” Spektor says later. “It was just such an important show for me. Everybody had been working on it for so long, all the HIAS people, and all the tickets were sold out. It was just a cause that was so important to me.”

A talented pianist and composer known for her playful lyrics and dramatic shock of curls, Spektor started out performing in East Village cafes before gradually finding mainstream success, culminating with the release of her critically acclaimed breakthrough record, “Begin to Hope,” in 2006. Rolling Stone magazine named it one of

the 50 best albums of the year.

Her music has been featured in countless commercials and television shows, including “Grey’s Anatomy” and “How I Met Your Mother,” and Peter Gabriel recorded a cover of her song “Apres Moi.” Her next album, “What We Saw From the Cheap Seats,” is due May 29.

Courtesy of Shervin Lainez

Singer/songwriter Regina Spektor has stayed closer to her Jewish roots even as she’s achieved mainstream success.

Spektor says her performance for HIAS set back her recovery a month, but it’s not hard to see she why she forged ahead. As a 9-year-old, Spektor emigrated with her family from the Soviet Union and resettled in New York with help from HIAS, the immigrant relief agency founded in 1881 that has helped millions of refugees fleeing deprivation abroad.

“I don’t think any of us would be

Peter Beinart meets the Jewish establishment

By Shira Schoenberg Jewish Telegraphic Agency CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (JTA) — Peter Beinart has had some harsh words for the Jewish establishment.

In 2010, he shook up the communal debate over Israel with his essay “The Failure of the American Jewish Establishment.”

On Wednesday night Beinart debated a leader of that very Jewish establishment—and their exchange was decidedly respectful, even if there were points of significant disagreement.

Speaking at Harvard University, Beinart assailed Israel’s policies toward the Palestinians, warned that young American Jews were abandoning Zionism and criticized American Jewish leaders for what he depicted as their unquestioning support of the Israeli government.

Barry Shrage, president of Boston’s Combined Jewish Philanthropies, smiled at Beinart.

“So much of Peter’s speech I could give,” Shrage responded.

Except, that is, Beinart’s call for

a boycott of West Bank settlements, which Shrage called “abhorrent” to many Jews. Or Beinart’s criticism of Birthright Israel, the positive impact of which, Shrage said, is “not arguable.” Or Beinart’s view that the American Jewish community has resisted the peace process, which Shrage called “absolutely untrue.”

Beinart and Shrage were speaking before some 275 people at an event titled “Can Israel survive the next generation of American Jews?”

The Harvard Hillel, the university’s Center for Jewish Studies and the CJP sponsored the evening.

Beinart, a columnist for The Daily Beast and former editor of The New Republic, went over much of the ground that he covered in his new book, “The Crisis of Zionism,” and in his much-discussed recent New York Times Op-Ed calling on American Jews to boycott West Bank Jewish settlements.

The audience ran the gamut of Jewish opinion, and both speakers garnered applause.

BEINART on page 19

in America if it wasn’t for them,” Spektor says. “They did so much. To get to play a benefit show for them was like — it was just such an amazing like full-circle kind of thing.”

Spektor has not been shy about identifying publicly with Jewish causes.

In 2008, she performed on the National Mall as part of celebrations of the 60th anniversary of the establishment of Israel. Two years later she was back in the capital performing at a White House reception before the Obamas to celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month.

She has blown a shofar onstage and performed Hannah Senesh’s “Eli, Eli” in Hebrew. On the cover of the “Begin to Hope” CD, she is wearing a visible Star of David pendant.

In 2009, in the midst of Israel’s Operation Cast Lead, launched in response to Palestinian rocket fire from Gaza, Spektor penned a post on her MySpace page defending the Jewish state and criticizing what she saw as unfair media coverage of its actions.

“Israel has been shelled,” she wrote. “It has been hit with rockets for years…There is no government in the world that would not protect its citizens from attack. That’s unlawful. And it’s not sticks and stones, as many of my friends and relatives who live in Israel know. It’s rockets...Are there different laws and rules for a Jewish government?

If you prick us do we not bleed?”

MARKETING DIRECTOR 30 HOURS/WEEK The Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton, a non-profit social service and cultural agency, seeks a creative, dynamic, visionary marketing director.

Serving as a one-person in-house agency, the marketing director is responsible for conceiving, planning and implementing all branding, messaging, and promotional materials for print and electronic/ social media for the Jewish Federation and its agencies.

REQUIREMENTS: Bachelor’s degree, min. 5 years marketing experience. Solid graphic design background, expertise in CS5, copy writing, social media campaigns. Ability to handle fast-paced multi-task environment with a positive attitude a must.

EOE, drug-free, nonsmoking environment.

No phone calls please.

Qualified candidates will submit cover letter, resume and salary requirements to MWeiss@jfgd.net.

8 • NATIONAL / INTERNATIONAL

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

U.S. won’t budge on Jerusalem, but attorney calls passport ruling ‘full victory’

By Maxine Dovere JointMedia News Service WASHINGTON (JointMedia News Service) — Nathan Lewin didn’t ask the Supreme Court to come out and say directly that Jerusalem is in Israel, or that it is the capital of Israel. He did, however, get the decision he was seeking for 9-year-old Menachem Zivotofsky.

The prominent constitutional law attorney represents Zivotofsky’s parents, who sued the U.S. government after the State Department refused to issue their son a passport listing “Jerusalem, Israel” as his birthplace, rather than only “Jerusalem.” Lewin said in an interview with JointMedia News Service that the Supreme Court’s March 26 decision, stipulating that federal courts of Jerusalem-born Americans can determine the consitutionality of listing “Israel” as their birthplace on U.S. passports, was a “full victory” for the Zivotofsky family.

That “victory” may not seem so obvious at first, given that the Supreme Court did not make a final decision on the constitutionality of a 2002 law the State Department cited when denying the Zivotofsky family’s passport request, instead sending the case back down to lower courts for rehearing on that matter. Thus, the decision “does not and did not decide whether Jerusalem is in Israel or is the capital of Israel,” Lewin said.

Lewin, however, noted that the Supreme Court’s decision was exactly what he was seeking — he

Courtesy of David Shankbone

Constitutional law expert Floyd Abrams, pictured, says the Supreme Court’s March 26 decision regarding the status of listing “Jerusalem, Israel” as the birthplace on Menachem Zivotofsky’s passport “should not lead either side to be overconfident.”

had asked the court only to decide whether or not the lower court’s previous refusal to hear the Zivotofsky case had been correct. The lower court had said it deemed the matter “a political issue.” The Supreme Court, by an 8-1 vote, now ruled that it “would be assisted by opinions of the lower court” and said the question of birthplace designation in U.S. passports “was not political.”

“The court’s decision clarifies the political question doctrine used by courts to avoid cases they don’t want,” Lewin said.

Lewin said the Zivotofsky case demonstrated “that there is a lot to be said” with regard to the issue of Jerusalem being recognized as a city in Israel, despite not reaching a final resolution on the matter.

Similar legal shifts cannot be

found these days in the State Department, where a recent press release said that Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Kathleen Stephens will visit the Middle East, specifically to “Algeria, Qatar, Jordan, Jerusalem, and Israel,” thus identifying Jerusalem and Israel as separate entities. The wording was eventually changed to “Jerusalem and Tel Aviv,” but when pressed for a clarification on Jerusalem’s status, State Department Spokesperson Victoria Nuland said the issue will “be resolved through negotiations” and that the U.S. will not “prejudge the outcome of those negotiations, including the final status of Jerusalem.”

ATTORNEY on page 19

Following basketball controversy, press is on Texas school group to be more inclusive

By Shira Schoenberg Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) — Comments by the head of a Texas school association at the center of a controversy over Sabbath accommodations is fueling a drive by its members to be more open to the needs of Jewish and Muslim schools.

Edd Burleson, the director of the The Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools, revived the controversy over the Robert M. Beren Academy of Houston’s participation in the state boys’ basketball tournament last month when he told the Dallas Morning News in an interview published Sunday that the predominantly Christian association “shouldn’t have accepted [Beren] in the first place.”

The Houston Chronicle reported that the TAPPS board could decide next month whether to penalize the

Beren Academy for a rules violation for failing to withdraw from the tournament last month. Beren had requested a time change for the 2A tournament’s semifinals and finals, which were scheduled for a Friday night and Saturday afternoon, to accommodate Sabbath observance.

TAPPS agreed to do so only after several players and their parents filed a lawsuit.

It wasn’t the first religious controversy for TAPPS. In 2010, its board denied membership to a Muslim school after asking the Iman Academy Southwest to complete an application with questions about Islam, The New York Times reported.

In an interview with JTA, Burleson defended both the comments about Beren Academy and the decision by TAPPS to exclude the Muslim school. Burleson said TAPPS was upholding its rules, not

engaging in religious discrimination.

But now TAPPS member schools are pushing the association to become more accommodating.

Some, including the Texas Catholic Conference, which represents the state’s Catholic schools, are threatening to withdraw if their concerns are not resolved.

“As an organization of private and parochial schools, we should be open to everyone, allow all students to participate and be sensitive to their needs,” said Jeffery Patterson, executive director of the Texas Catholic Conference, which asked TAPPS to let the member schools review TAPPS’ operations. “If this doesn’t get resolved appropriately, certainly it will bring into question whether Catholic schools will continue our affiliation with TAPPS.” SCHOOL on page 22

South Sudan’s Jewish abolitionist

By Masha Rifkin JointMedia News Service (JNS) — Within Sudan’s welldocumented history of intertribal warfare, turbulence and slavery, there is the lesser-known tale of a Jewish abolitionist.

In 1994, Charles Jacobs quit his job and began his fight against one of the last remnants of slavery. Jacobs had read about the unrest and slave trafficking in Sudan, and founded the American Anti-Slavery Group (AASG) with Mohamed Athie of Mauritania and David Chand of Sudan in order to take a stand against it.

“One day this black Muslim, black Christian, and white Jew decided to form the anti-slavery movement,” Jacobs says of his decision. “It was very emotional for us. We said, ‘we’re not going to rest until the world knows this is happening.’”

These days, South Sudan is Israel’s newest ally on the African continent. However, the country’s newfound independence presents a stark contrast to its protracted history of slavery. The Dinkas — South Sudan’s ethnic majority — were for years enslaved by Arab traders to the north, a practice that was outlawed by the British during their occupation. Yet in the early 1980s, Sudan as a whole was thrust back into the clutches of civil war, many think due to a rise in Islamism. The central Sudanese government declared all Sudan an Islamic state in 1983, and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA), which represented the southern, mostly non-Muslim Sudan, was formed in response.

Slave trafficking began in earnest at the onset of the civil war, with women and children as the targets. Hundreds of thousands of Dinkas would eventually be captured, the women used primarily as sex slaves, and the children as labor (according to Jacobs, boys would frequently be killed upon reaching puberty, for fear of revolt).

“Arab slaving has less to do with men, and more to do with women and children,” Jacobs says, “because unlike in the west where you needed musculature, in the Arab world slavery is all about concubines, and creating Muslims.”

By the time Jacobs got involved, the slave trade had been thriving for nearly 10 years.

AASG quickly jumped into action, raising awareness, and then learning to assist efforts to buy freedom for captured slaves — an action which would quickly become controversial. John Eibner, the CEO of Christian Solidarity International-USA

(whom Jacobs refers to as the “real hero, a sort of Indiana Jones”), created an “underground railroad” leveraging an existing indigenous peace treaty between friendly Arabs and their African Dinka neighbors: the Dinka would let Arab herdsmen water their cattle on Dinka wetlands in exchange for retrieving their women and children, enslaved in the north. Eibner and Jacobs collected cash to amplify this arrangement. The price for redeeming a slave, he said, ranged from $50–$80 a person.

Courtesy of Charles Jacobs

Jacobs with South Sudanese president Salva Kiir.

Initially, Jacobs and the AASG faced some opposition from various communities and human rights groups. He believes this was due to the politically incorrect nature of this particular slave trade. It was not Western whites oppressing blacks, but rather— Arab Muslims oppressing blacks.

For his tactic of bringing former Sudanese slaves into American black churches in order to raise awareness, Jacobs received death threats.

“The Muslim Brotherhood targets the black community, and the only time I ever got death threats was when we were bringing [former slaves] into black churches. [The threats] would say, ‘I don’t care what else you do, stay away from the black churches.’”

Jacobs and the AASG were even attacked by Louis Farrakhan, who openly denied the slavery in Sudan, later to his own embarrassment. After Eibner brought Reverend Al Sharpton to Sudan to witness the events for himself, Farrakhan was quieted.

Soon, word began to spread.

Major newspapers ran columns, news networks ran the story, and an unlikely left-right coalition was formed; it included Pat Robertson, and Barney Frank. “We didn’t put them in the same room,” Jacobs smiled. “But that’s the way it should be,” Jacobs said.

“Slavery’s not about right or left, it’s about right or wrong.”

INTERNATIONAL • 9

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2012

Tunisia’s Jews keep wary eye on political developments

By Armin Rosen Jewish Telegraphic Agency TUNIS (JTA) — Tucked on a quiet side street blocks from the Mediterranean Sea, the last kosher restaurant in the Tunisian capital is a thriving center of Jewish tradition in a country of 10 million with nearly an entire Arab and Muslim population. Yet Jacob Lellouche, who has owned and operated Mamie Lily since it opened 16 years ago, says his business is hardly a Jewish bubble.

Most of his customers are Muslim, and on a recent Thursday night, the restaurant’s cozy dining room is dominated by a large party of Tunisians sipping boukha — a fig-based liquor that Tunisian Jews traditionally drink on the Sabbath — while chattering in Arabic and French. Lellouche says the guests are liberal activists who have come to the restaurant to draft a statement on freedom of speech in the aftermath of the revolution that toppled Zine Abdine Ben Ali’s regime in January 2011.

“The civil society in Tunisia sustained the Jewish community of this country,” says Lellouche, explaining that relations between Tunisia’s

International Briefs Montreal city bans parades over tension with Chasidic community TORONTO (JTA) — City officials in a Montreal borough have banned all street parades and processions in response to escalating tensions with the Chasidic community.

The episode is the latest dispute between the expanding Chasidic community and its mostly secular neighbors in Outremont, a central district in Montreal.

Outremont’s mayor and a majority of councilmen voted on April 2 to ban parades and processions in the wake of a noisy confrontation last month between a municipal lawmaker known for her dogged surveillance of the Chasidic community and members of that community.

The clash, which was taped and posted on YouTube, degenerated into shouting, name-calling and police intervention.

In response, Outremont decided that it would not allow a Chasidic sect to hold a street procession later this month to mark the visit of a rabbi from New York. The procession would have taken place after 10 p.m. and involved up to 1,000 followers.

Courtesy of upyernoz via CC

Djerba Jews spending some time at the El-Ghriba Synagogue on Tunisia’s southern island.

educated and politically engaged citizens and the country’s 1,500 Jews have always been mutually beneficial. “As long as there are Jews in the world there will be Jews in Tunisia,” he says.

But more than a year after Tunisia became the first Arab country to overthrow its dictator through a popular, nonviolent uprising, two religion-inspired political movements are challenging Tunisia’s cosmopolitan political and social atti-

tudes, and are threatening to reverse the country’s long-standing moderation toward Israel and the Jews.

Located just 80 miles off the coast of Sicily, Tunisia has been colonized by foreign powers from the Roman Empire to modern France.

But unlike other countries with a long colonial history, Tunisia has historically been a place where Middle Eastern and European values and ideas have converged, reinforcing one another without causing

conflict or social discord.

Educated Muslim Tunisians acknowledge that the Jews are a crucial part of this history.

“The Jews came to Tunis and developed commerce and trade here, and many came after they were expelled from Iberia,” says Abdel-Hamid Larguech, a history professor at Manoura University.

“These were factors in how Tunisia became more cosmopolitan.”

Kedya Ben Saidane, who has researched the country’s Berber community, claims Berbers living in Tunisia first began practicing Judaism nearly 3,000 years ago.

Modern Tunisia has subsequently had a history of moderation on Israel-related issues. In 1965, Habib Bourguiba, the president from 1957 until 1987, caused a brief crisis in relations between Tunisia and several other Arab governments when he outlined a plan for recognizing Israel in exchange for the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Official diplomatic contact between Israel and Tunisia, established in 1996, lasted just four years, yet Tunisia does not take as hard line a position on the Jewish state as other Arab countries.

“Tunisian Israelis come here

with no problem at all,” says Rabbi Haim Bittan, the leader of the small Jewish community in Tunis, adding that travel to Israel is fairly routine for the country’s Jews. Tunisia is also one of the few Arab countries accessible to Israeli passport holders, despite the lack of official recognition.

Yet since Ben Ali’s ouster, there have been hints that Tunisia’s moderation — and its moderate position toward Israel — could be eroding.

In October, the Islamist Ennahda party won 43 percent of the vote in Tunisia’s first post-uprising parliamentary elections, putting an explicitly religious party in charge of a country with a long-standing secular and republican tradition.

Although Ennahda in late March officially dropped its demand for Islamic law in the country’s new constitution, many Tunisians still fear that the party could take the country in an uncomfortably radical direction.

Party co-founder Rached Ghannouchi has publicly praised the mothers of suicide bombers and spoken about “the extinction of Israel.”

TUNISIA on page 22

Crisis-hit Greek Jews fear for their future

By Gavin Rabinowitz Jewish Telegraphic Agency ATHENS, Greece (JTA) — Patricia Alcalay, 24, has been unemployed since she finished her nursing degree in December 2010. Her father lost his job four months ago, a year shy of retirement.

Her older sister, who was studying abroad, meanwhile, found work in the Netherlands and is not coming back to Greece anytime soon.

Stories like these have become common among the Jewish community in Greece, which like the rest of the Greek population is struggling to stay afloat in a country engulfed in the fifth year of an economic crisis that shows no sign of abating.

Approximately 5,000 Jews live in Greece — about 3,500 in Athens, 1,000 in Thessaloniki and the rest scattered elsewhere — and community leaders say they are laboring to maintain Jewish institutions and deal with the additional heavy demands on welfare programs.

Some of the leaders fear a greater threat to the community’s future: an exodus of young, unemployed Jews leaving a country where they see little hope.

“It is a very difficult situation for us because of the financial crisis in Greece. It affects the Jewish community very heavily,” said Benjamin Albalas, the president of the Jewish Community of Athens, an association that provides funding for the city’s Jewish institu-

Courtesy of Gavin Rabinowitz

A child takes part in the weekly Kabbalat Shabbat ceremony at the Athens Jewish Kindergarten.

tions. "We are supporting two synagogues, the school, the cemetery, a community center and a number of needy people that is growing all the time.”

As the need for community aid has increased, the funding to the communal institution has decreased sharply.

Much of its revenue comes from Jewish community-owned commercial and residential properties dating back before World War II, when some 78,000 Jews lived in Greece — many in the northern port city of Thessaloniki, a community that was almost wiped out entirely in the Holocaust.

But in the past year the Greek government, faced with chronic

income tax evasion, imposed steep property taxes in a bid to raise state income. “And because of the general situation, the people who rent our properties have either left or they have asked us to lower rents,” Albalas said.

In addition, he said, donations from hard-hit community members have dropped 50 percent.

Albalas declined to give specific figures, either for income or for the needs.

As part of the harsh austerity measures imposed on Athens, the Greek government has slashed pensions, lowered public and private sector wages, and reduced tens of thousands of state jobs, all of which have hurt the weaker sectors of the

Jewish community.

“Our two main problems now since the crisis are that pensions have gone down and there is very big unemployment,” said Isaak Mordechai, the deputy head of the Athens welfare committee.

“Pensions have diminished so much, people cannot live.”

The Jewish Community of Athens is providing direct assistance — financial help, supermarket food vouchers, and medical and psychological support — to some 60 people. “But it is clear that a lot more people are going to need help,” he said.

In February, the Jewish Agency for Israel’s Board of Governors voted to grant about $1 million over two years to help Greece’s Jewish communal institutions continue operating. Other Jewish groups have offered aid, too.

However, community leaders in Athens and Thessaloniki say they have not been officially informed of the decision and the money has yet to arrive.

The money, though, will focus on Israel education, and is earmarked to help the Jewish communities of Athens and Thessaloniki cover specific initiatives, according to JAFI spokesman Josh Berkman.

Among those initiatives are shlichim (Israel emissaries to the community), counselors for the Jewish summer camp and financial assistance to the Jewish school in Athens.

GREECE on page 22

10 • ISRAEL

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

Tzipi Livni’s fall followed a meteoric political rise

By Mati Wagner Jewish Telegraphic Agency JERUSALEM (JTA) — Tzipi Livni’s resounding fall in the leadership vote for Kadima, Israel’s largest political party, was as dramatic as her rise to political power.

Ahead of last week’s vote, most polls were predicting that Livni would defeat Shaul Mofaz, a former Israel Defense Forces chief of staff. Most also showed that Kadima headed by Livni would fare at least slightly better in next year’s general elections than it would with Mofaz at the helm.

And just last month Newsweek and The Daily Beast counted Livni as one of the 150 Women Who Shake the World and called her one of the most powerful women in the country.

Yet on March 27, in a low turnout of 40 percent of Kadima’s 95,000 members, Mofaz trounced Livni, taking 61.7 percent of the votes. Now Livni’s political future is unclear.

This week, Livni told a reporter camped outside her Tel Aviv home that “I am on vacation, sweetheart.” And she was conspicuously absent from Kadima’s first faction meeting since the leadership primary.

Courtesy of Gideon Markowicz/Flash90 /JTA

Tzipi Livni, the outgoing leader of Israel’s main opposition Kadima Party, speaking to the media after losing to Shaul Mofaz in the primaries, March 27, 2012.

Livni’s rapid climb to power— comparable to the political careers of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak—was remarkable. Just two years after leaving her commercial law practice to become a Knesset member in the Likud Party, Livni was given a ministerial portfolio. By 2006 as foreign minister, she was second in command of Kadima, Israel’s ruling party, and in the 2009 general election—just a decade after entering

politics—Livni led Kadima to garner 28 Knesset seats, one seat more than the second-largest party, Netanyahu’s Likud.

Livni, who admitted in an interview with Yediot Achronot to being a Mossad agent in Paris in the early 1980s, grew up in an ardently right-wing household.

Her father and mother were members of the prestate Irgun, a paramilitary organization affiliated with Ze’ev Jabotinsky’s Revisionist Zionist movement that

was the ideological precursor to today’s Likud.

With some other leading members of Likud, she came to believe that Israel had to cede control over areas populated by Palestinians in order to remain a Jewish state.

Livni joined Prime Minister Ariel Sharon when he left the Likud to form Kadima in November 2005 in the wake of his Gaza disengagement.

She advanced within the party’s leadership as a result of a series of upheavals that included Sharon’s paralyzing stroke in January 2005, just months before the March 2006 general elections, and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s July 2008 announcement that he would resign in the wake of corruption allegations.

At a time when Olmert’s ordeal was making headlines, along with the rape charges against President Moshe Katsav and a corruption case involving a finance minister, it was the Israeli public’s perception of Livni as honest and clean — a Time profile of her in 2010 was titled “Israel’s Mrs. Clean” — that boosted her status.

“Under the immediate circumstances, Livni’s was an alarming anointment, effectively implemented by a well-known advertising

Israeli man chases blood donation Israel world record, plans to continue giving Briefs A 65-year-old Israeli man has taken tzedakah to a new level, giving of himself, quite literally, by donating more than 272 units of blood to Magen David Adom, Israel’s emergency medical response service, over the course of 41 years.

In 2011, blood donations in Israel were down to a record low with only 4 percent of the population giving blood. But Menachem Steinmetz, a 65-year-old man from Rishon Lezion, countered the trend and broke Israel’s blood donation record and as of this writing, is 42 units shy of the current world record. And he doesn’t plan to stop any time soon.

“I’ll donate until the age of 70, if I’m allowed,” he said. “And I plan to use every moment. As long as I’m still able to be on the side of donating blood and not the other side, I’ll continue to donate blood.

Really, why not?”

Dedicated blood donors like Steinmetz are essential for sustaining Israel’s blood supply. Magen David Adom collects, stores and distributes all the blood for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and 95 percent of blood for the nation’s hospitals.

“Israel’s blood supply is an indicator of the overall health of the Israeli people,” said Arnold Gerson, chief executive officer of AFMDA. “Donating to this cause

Menachem Steinmetz

is a concrete way to impact Israelis and save lives each and every day.”

Professor Eilat Shinar, director of MDA Blood Services, says the low blood supply has “created a real difficulty to meet the needs of hospitals—delivering doses and blood components for patients, new mothers and the injured.”

Even though Steinmetz is the Israeli record holder, he doesn’t donate blood for the fame. He does it to save lives.

“I donate a lot because it’s the best way a person can give,” he said.

Steinmetz first gave blood as a soldier in the IDF, never imagining that one day he would hold the

record for blood donations in Israel. This feat has required dedication and persistence.

“There were even some times they told me they didn’t need me to donate, but I insisted and returned after a few days,” Steinmetz recalled.

Along with the record holder, there are thousands of anonymous blood donors who contribute to this lifesaving supply chain. The average Israeli donor is a 40-yearold man. Men account for 73 percent of all donors and 90 percent of donors are between the ages of 17 and 40. Last year, Israeli soldiers donated 25 percent of all blood units in Israel.

World powers, Iran to talk nukes in Istanbul JERUSALEM (JTA) — Nuclear negotiations between Iran and world powers will be held in Istanbul.

The talks scheduled for April 14 in Turkey’s largest city will include six world powers — the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany — European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton announced Sunday.

Also Sunday, Iran said it will not close its Fordo nuclear power facility, which is built deep into a mountain near the holy city of Oom, and also will not give up higher-level uranium enrichment.

Those are reported to be the key demands that the world powers will present at the meeting.

The demands are “irrational,” the head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, Fereydoon Abbasi Davani, told the ISNA news agency in an interview.

“If they do not threaten us and guarantee that no aggression will occur, then there would be no need for countries to build facilities underground,” he told Iran’s official news agency. “They

and PR firm that had more to do with appearances than with substance,” said Amotz Asa-El, a Hartman Institute fellow and a former executive editor of The Jerusalem Post.

“They played up her Mrs. Clean image, emphasized her femininity, changed her hairdo and dressed her in elegant business suits. But she was a shallow politician who could not seriously debate anything,” he said. “She was no match for Bibi.”

The beginning of Livni’s downfall was her inability after the 2009 general elections to form a coalition, despite winning a plurality of the votes. A bloc of several religious and right-wing parties made it much easier for Netanyahu to form a coalition.

Meanwhile, left-wing parties Labor and Meretz, which had lost votes to Kadima, declined to support Livni because they were concerned she would form a coalition with Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu. Negotiations for a rotation government that included Likud and Kadima fell through in part due to Livni’s opposition to the idea. Ironically, if the deal had been finalized, Livni would have started her stint as prime minister this week. Instead, Kadima remained in the opposition. should change their behavior and language.”

The demands were revealed Saturday in a front-page New York Times article that quoted anonymous U.S. and EU diplomats.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Iran is using the upcoming talks to “delay and deceive.” He called for Iran to dismantle Oom, completely halt uranium enrichment and remove higher level enriched uranium from the country.

Iran says it has arrested ‘Zionist regime-backed terrorist team’ (JTA) — Iranian intelligence has arrested a “Zionist regimebacked terrorist team,” the official Iranian news agency reported.

“The terrorists had planned to carry out terrorist operations inside the country but they were arrested before implementing their plan,” IRNA, the Islamic Republic News Agency, reported Tuesday, citing the intelligence ministry. All of the members of the team were “identified and arrested by Iranian security forces.”

The report said that more details would be released later.

Weaponry and telecommunications equipment belonging to what the IRNA called “mercenaries” also was seized, The Associated Press reported.

The report did not say when the arrests took place.

SOCIAL LIFE • 11

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2012

ANNOUNCEMENTS BIR TH arbara Schwartz of Blue

B

Ash is kvelling from the

birth of her twin grandchildren, Remy Jaye and Meyer Kipp, born on March 28

ANNOUNCEMENTS ARE FREE!

2012. Their very proud parents are Marisa and Joel Phillips of Mason, Ohio.

Remy and Meyer’s grandparents are Rosalind and Harold Phillips of Pinner, England and the late Richard Schwartz.

Lindsey Moore and Spencer Lappin

ENGAGEMENT

Lappin Group in Columbus.

An April wedding is

ynn and Gary Lappin of

L

planned.

announce the engagement of

WEDDING

Pepper Pike, Ohio

Lindsey Marie Moore, daugh-

by Dr. and Mrs. Roy Whitman and Ms. Lana Boldi.

Rebecca is the daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Roy Whitman.

their son, Spencer Logan to

Brothers Michael and Bruce and sisters Joy and Laura

ecause you’ve shared in their lives by your friend-

with their families. Members

ter of Linda and Bob Moore

B

were in attendance along

of Belmont, Ohio.

ship and love, we are very

of Anthony’s family were also

proud to share the happy

in attendance.

Ms. Moore, granddaughter of the late Alice Marie and

news. On a beautiful sunny

Edward C. Metts and Inez

day, Rebecca Elizabeth

Venice, Calif., where they

and Harry Moore, earned her

Whitman and Anthony

both continue to work in the

bachelor’s degree in social

Gordon Boldi were married in

entertainment industry.

and behavioral sciences from

Los Angeles, Calif. on

The Ohio State University.

Saturday, March 18, 2012 at

She is a corporate recruiter

4:30 p.m. on the Dandeana

for the Battelle Memorial

Yacht. The ceremony was

Institute in Columbus.

officiated by Reverend Michel

Mr. Lappin, grandson of Phyllis and Bob Lappin of

Beckweth.

The dinner and reception

Cincinnati, Carole Stark of

followed at the Fantasy Yacht

Indianapolis, and the late

Club. Over 250 people joined

Evelyn and Elliott N. Fuldauer,

in the celebration. T.J. Gibson

earned his bachelor’s degree

and Michael McCreary of

in communications from

Boys to Men gave a special

Cleveland State University. He

song dedication.

is a territory manager for the

The wedding was hosted

Rebecca Whitman and Anthony Boldi

BIRTHS • BAT/BAR MITZVAHS ENGAGEMENTS • WEDDINGS BIRTHDAYS • ANNIVERSARIES

The couple resides in

Place your FREE announcement in The American Israelite newspaper and website by sending an e-mail to articles@americanisraelite.com

AI

The American Israelite

12 • CINCINNATI SOCIAL LIFE

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

PLEASANT HILL & ROCKWERN COLLABORATE For the second year in a row, Rockwern Academy collaborated with another school, to read a book, Of Thee I Sing, and have a pen pal project. On Wednesday, Feb. 22, Rockwern’s sixth grade visited Pleasant Hill Academy to take a tour around their school, and chat with their pen pals. Also, adding to the good time, two former Reds players visited to talk to the students, Chuck Harmon, the first African-American Reds player, and Leo Cardenas. However, a bad thing had also occurred, the third player, Charlie “Whip” Davis, was ill.

The day began with all of the students meeting in the school’s library, and then they began the tour. The Rockwern students were led to the fifth grade classrooms, to the seventh-eighth grade classrooms, to the Kindergarten, and many other places. In one classroom, the teacher in the classroom was talking about a student’s lineage. The school, which is 100% African-American, has many different lineages.

Leo Cardenas, Brenda Terrell (teacher at PHA) and Chuck Harmon

After the tour, the students went back to the library and greeted the ballplayers, who were waiting there. Both Leo Cardenas and Chuck Harmon were willing to talk, and gave signed baseball cards to the kids. Tony Williams, who is treasurer of the organization “Seniors with a Purpose,” or SWAP, who drives the former players around, introduced them as the students went to their seats, and after the players talked for a little while, the students were able to ask questions. The questions were good, and the players were animated in their responses, and talked for quite a while. Also visiting the school were two people working for the Reds’ Community Relations, Lorrie Platt, Director of Community Relations, and Kylee Barnett, Community Relations Coordinator.

After this, the meeting died down, but was not yet over. The students were given snacks, and then performed a dance. The Rockwern students left after the dance, but it was an experience that will never be forgotten by the students involved.

— Asher Weinstein, sixth grade student

Leo Cardenas and Asher Weinstein discussing what Aroldis Chapman’s role should be in the Cincinnati Reds upcoming season.

Students chatting with Leo Cardenas.

Teachers and parents with guests.

Students from Rockwern Academy and Pleasant Hill Academy with Leo Cardenas.

Students with Chuck Harmon.

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2012

CINCINNATI JEWISH LIFE • 13

ACCESS' SCHMOOZE FOR TWOS: SINFULLY DELICIOUS DATE NIGHT FOR SWEETHEARTS It was a chocolate-covered date night for couples when Access’ Schmooze for Twos presented a pre-Valentine's Day dinner at Red Tree Gallery on February 9. Forty young couples enjoyed dinner and drinks and got to create their own hand-dipped treats. Schmooze for Twos is a new program of Access for couples in committed relationships, in which at least one partner is Jewish and one partner is between the ages of 21-35. Past events have included a Happy Hour at Stir in Montgomery, Couples Boxing class at the Mayerson JCC and an “Art”rageous evening at The Mayerson Foundation’s Private Penthouse Art Gallery in December. Access is an initiative of The Mayerson Foundation. For more information about this program, contact Rachel Plowden whose contact information is listed in the Community Directory in this issue.

14 • DINING OUT

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

Wertheim’s enticing and authentic German dishes

By Sondra Katkin Dining Editor Crispy, sweet veal schnitzel, succulent red cabbage and other tempting, authentic German food have been Wertheim’s specialty for over 22 years. Located in Main Strasse Village on a picturesque boulevard with buildings that reflect turn of the century New Orleans inspired architecture, with graceful iron grillwork, balconies, porches and a park at the end of the block. A perfect place to celebrate “Maifest” (May 18 and 19). Stroll the area while window shopping the quaint stores including a magic shop next to the restaurant. Then sit on Wertheim’s awning covered porch and enjoy a wonderful German dining experience. If you decide to eat indoors, you will have a choice of several warm, inviting dining areas all with large windows brightening the interior.

Recently, the chairs have been updated to give more of a bistro or casual feel. My hips approved of the roomy padded seats.

As a young man, Sal Wertheim (everyone calls him Sal) came up from Argentina to take advantage of the opportunities this country offered. He is the son of German Jews who immigrated to Argentina (one of only three countries accepting Jews at the time) to escape the Holocaust. Not only did he grow up eating the traditional dishes of his parents’ homeland, he worked in the restaurant industry as an area supervisor for Frisch’s restaurants for 21 years before opening his own place. He enjoys the party atmosphere of a restaurant and gets great pleasure from pleasing his customers. I could see his eyes light up when I was served my dinner. I began with the schnitzel a la Holstein which I shared with him.

He liked it and so did I. It was companionable to taste and talk. The flavors of the nicely browned veal covered by a sunny side up egg are a pleasant mixture of the substantial and the soft. The tender meat was easy to cut and between the two of us, disappeared quickly.

Considered a mundane pleasure, the “lowly” sausage/hot dog is deliciously prepared at Wertheim’s.

But perhaps those derogatory adjectives are incorrect. A famous French chef, Yannick Alleno, is

(Clockwise) Spacious awning covered patio; Natural light streams in on engaging host Sal Wertheim; Savory sausages and sauerkraut accompanied by “magic” mustard; Bar area featuring 25-year-old Warsteiner tap; Schnitzel a la Holstein—substantial and sublime.

now serving his “chien chaud,” a hot dog with the ambience of Paris in his upscale French restaurant.

Furthermore, a favorite gustatory escape for Parisian chefs to unwind and talk is a restaurant that specializes in these mini logs of lusciousness. Wertheim’s special recipe for mustard heightens the “gourmet” experience with a formula so bold and savory, I found myself licking my spoon. Sal mentioned that wasn’t unusual since his mustard is such a favorite with his customers.

When I shared the beef sausages with my husband Steve, his mustard intake rivaled mine (marriage can be competitive). The generous amount of sauerkraut that accompanies the “dog” was enough for both of us fast forked, dexterous diners. I may lose my Cincinnati citizenship when I admit that I don’t know a mett from a bratt, but I do know I was knocked out by the knockwurst. I tasted it without the mustard to be sure I wouldn’t be swayed by its exceptional flavor.

This fat, brown, smoky dog of delight was so good that I let Steve

eat the other two, which he said he preferred. What a dear. They also have a special way with their sauerkraut. It’s tender, tangy and has a nice crunch with the right balance of tartness.

Sal referred to one of his cooks as Bubby. Naturally I expected a sweet Jewish grandma to appear.

Wrong — Bubby and his mother have been cooking for Sal for many years. Restaurants have a way of fostering families of unrelated people who are loyal and hardworking.

Bubby brought me a sample of their sauerbraten. Usually this is sweet tasting in spite of its name. Not this time. The thin slices of marinated top round beef were fall-apart tender and quite tart — a more authentic flavor. The intense vinegar and pickling spice marinade will make your tongue pop. The accompanying potato pancakes were thick and crusty with just the right oniony flavor and a mild peppery finish. Sal explained that they are fried at the last minute to retain their fresh crust.

According to Sal, “If you don’t have quality, you have nothing. I’m

passionate about the restaurant business. I’ve been in it for 42 years. Sometimes it’s more like fun than work.” This is the type of devotion most successful restaurant owners espouse. Jewell, his head server/dining room manager added, “He wants people to have a good time. He requires a lot from himself, putting in huge hours that people never see. The art is making it look simple, like magic.” Is it a coincidence that he’s located next to a magic shop? Diners’ reviews corroborate these comments. A visitor from Chicago noted, “The smells coming from this place were like a siren luring forlorn sailors.”

Another guest was “hooked by the Huhner schnitzel, grilled chicken with a thick tomato pepper sauce and a touch of German flavor.”

In addition to the traditional German selections, including seven schnitzels, sauerkraut balls, Reuben rolls and goulash, there is a wide variety of American food.

Strip steak, hamburgers, pastas, baked or blackened white fish, vegetarian selections, salads and

homemade soups will offer the nontraditional diner a plethora of choices. They also have authentic Kentucky desserts which have won “Best of Cincinnati.” Their Silk Pie and Derby Pie are made from the original recipes. They have homemade strudel that I sampled and after eating the wonderful wedge, wanted more. I enjoyed the flaky crust and baked apple, raisin, nut mixture—a big favorite of mine.

The bar features liquors, wines, Warsteiner—the best-selling German beer—on tap, along with light, dark, wheat and India pale ale. Wertheim’s features frequent specials and early bird dinners before 6 p.m. Sal says, “It’s the same dinner, only cheaper.” There is a private party room and carry out is available. The restaurant also caters parties.

Wertheim’s is open seven days a week, from 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.

Wertheim’s 514 West 6th Street Covington, KY 41011 859-261-1233

GET RESULTS. THAI SUSHI PASTA Dine-In | Carry-Out | Delivery 513.351.0123 / 513.351.0913 BlueElephantThaiSushi.com Visit our website + order online 2912 Wasson Road, Cincinnati (2 mins from Hyde Park square)

Place your restaurant ad here!

Sushi • Steaks • Raw Bar Live Music Every Tues thru Sat! (513) 936-8600 9769 MONTGOMERY RD. www.jeffruby.com

9386 Montgomery Rd Cincinnati, OH 45242 (513) 489-1444

Your restaurant will also receive featured articles and a spot in the dining out guide.

Call 621-3145 today.

DINING OUT • 15

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2012

RESTAURANT DIRECTORY • Hyde Park (513) 871-6888 • Ft. Mitchell (859) 331-8822

20 Brix

Incahoots

Padrino

101 Main St

4110 Hunt Rd

111 Main St

Historic Milford

Blue Ash

Milford

831-Brix (2749)

793-2600

965-0100

LUNCH, DINNER, COCKTAILS, CARRY-OUT Elegant Banquets & Catering Available

orientalwok.com Ambar India Restaurant

Izzy’s

Parkers Blue Ash Grill

350 Ludlow Ave

800 Elm St • 721-4241

4200 Cooper Rd

Cincinnati

612 Main St • 241-6246

Blue Ash

281-7000

5098B Glencrossing Way

891-8300

CAFE MEDITERRANEAN FRESH, HEALTHY,

347-9699

PRIVA PRIVATE DINING | CARRY CARRY-OUT LUNCH/DINNER | ITALIAN BAKERY

Andy’s Mediterranean Grille

1198 Smiley Ave • 825-3888

Pomodori’s

Authentic Cuisine

At Gilbert & Nassau

300 Madison Ave

121West McMillan • 861-0080

LOCATED IN THE CROSSINGS OF BLUE ASH

2 blocks North of Eden Park

Covington • 859-292-0065

7880 Remington Rd

9525 KENWOOD ROAD (513) 745-9386

Montgomery • 794-0080

281-9791

cafe-mediterranean.com

Johnny Chan 2 Baba India Restaurant

11296 Montgomery Rd

Slatt’s Pub

3120 Madison Rd

The Shops at Harper’s Point

4858 Cooper Rd

Cincinnati

489-2388 • 489-3616 (fx)

Blue Ash

SUN: KIDS EAT FREE TUE & WED: 1/2 PRICE WINE SUN & MON: $5 MARTINIS 7677 GOFF TERRACE | MADEIRA, OH

272.2220 | ferrarilittleitaly.com

791-2223 • 791-1381 (fax)

321-1600

Cincinnati's first and only true wine, restaurant and wine retail store.

Come in and enjoy an appetizer or entrée paired with one of the 100 wines we pour daily.

K.T.’s Barbecue & Deli Bangkok Terrace

8501 Reading Rd

Stone Creek Dining Co.

4858 Hunt Rd

Reading

9386 Montgomery Rd

Blue Ash

761-0200

Montgomery • 489-1444 6200 Muhlhauser Rd

891-8900 • 834-8012 (fx) Kanak India Restaurant

831-Brix • www.20brix.com

Cafe Mediterranean

10040B Montgomery Rd

9525 Kenwood Rd

Montgomery

Sukhothai Thai Cuisine

Cincinnati

793-6800

8102 Market Place Ln Montgomery

745-9386

101 Main St • Historic Milford

West Chester • 942-2100

AMBAR

BABA

KANAK

350 LUDLOW AVE. CINCINNATI, OH 45220 (513) 281-7000

3120 MADISON RD. CINCINNATI, OH 45209 (513) 321-1600

10040B MONTGOMERY RD. CINCINNATI, OH 45242 (513) 793-6800

794-0057

Marx Hot Bagels Carlo & Johnny

9701 Kenwood Rd

9769 Montgomery Rd

Blue Ash

Tandoor

Cincinnati

891-5542

8702 Market Place Ln Montgomery

936-8600 Mecklenburg Gardens

793-7484

CINCINNATI’S BEST INDIAN RESTAURANTS

Ferrari’s Little Italy & Bakery

302 E. University Ave

7677 Goff Terrace

Clifton

Tony’s

Madeira

221-5353

12110 Montgomery Rd

GET YOUR PASSOVER ORDERS IN EARLY

Montgomery

272-2220

for the brisket dinners and chopped liver!

677-1993

Oriental Wok

ROAST BRISKET

Gabby’s Cafe

2444 Madison Rd

515 Wyoming Ave

Hyde Park

Wertheim’s Restaurant

Wyoming

871-6888

514 W 6th St

DINNER WITH CARROTS,

Covington, KY

POTATOES, ONIONS & GRAVY FOR $12.99

(859) 261-1233

ORDER OUR HOMEMADE CHOPPED LIVER

821-6040

A LSO

(MADE WITH REAL SHMALTZ) All orders are to be made 2 days in advance of pickup

AI

The American Israelite

AVAILABLE AT THESE FINE LOCATIONS:

bigg’s

Kroger

Ridge & Highland

Hunt Rd. – Blue Ash

Izzy’s

Rascals’ Deli

612 Main St. 800 Elm St.

9525 Kenwood Rd. Blue Ash

Marx Hot Bagels

Mayerson JCC

9701 Kenwood Rd. Blue Ash

J Café 8485 Ridge Rd.

CALL 761-0200 & ORDER TODAY MON 11-2, TUE-FRI 11-8, SAT 3-8, CLOSED SUN KENNY TESSEL’S

KT’S BARBECUE & DELI 8501 READING ROAD • 513-761-0200 View our menu @ ktsbbqanddeli.com L ET KT'S D O YOUR H OLIDAY COOKING !

16 • OPINION

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

Pride goeth before a sail

Rabbi Rudin is the American Jewish Committee’s senior interreligious adviser.

Do you have something to say? E-mail your letter to editor@americanisraelite.com

Dear Editor, This is in reply to Mr. Alan Eichner, who has a problem with the Jewish Center closing on a Jewish holiday. Incidentally, this Jewish holiday also falls on Shabbat, which to an observant Jew would be enough to close a Jewish Center. I personally use the Blue Ash Y. It is more convenient to me. They use Y so as to draw in a more diverse membership; however, it is still The Young Men’s Christian Association, even though most of its members are neither young, men, nor Christian in many cases. The Y is closing on Easter and is closed on all other major Christian holidays as well. I have no problem with that. I knew when I joined that they observe Christian holidays. I am sure non-Jews at the J are similarly inclined. They knew when they joined that the J was a Jewish organization. It’s a shame the J does not observe all Jewish holidays. Non-Jews will respect us more when we stand up for our beliefs, than when we roll over just to get along.

Sincerley, Jerome Liner Cincinnati, OH

T EST Y OUR T ORAH KNOWLEDGE THIS WEEK: PASSOVER The following questions are about the miracle of the Splitting of the Red Sea. 1. Whose remains did Moses bring along when the Jews left Egypt? (Why?) a.) Jacob b.) Joseph c.) His father's 2. Did the Israelites want to return to Egypt when Pharaoh threatened to attack? a.) Yes b.) No 3. Which direction did the wind blow when the Red Sea split?

3. C—14:21. This tricked the Egyptians into thinking that the wind split the Red Sea, and not G-d. (Ramban) 4. B—14:20, 24 5. A—14:22. “The water formed a wall to their right and left.”

Word to the wise: don’t get on a cruise ship in a year ending in the number 12. Especially if the captain feels a little too sure of himself.

Earlier this year the world was captivated by images of the Costa Concordia capsized off the Italian coast. The captain allegedly ignored the navigation maps, ran aground and at least 30 people died as a result.

April 12 marks the 100th anniversary of the disaster of the Titanic, which sank about 360 miles from Newfoundland when the famously “unsinkable” ship hit an iceberg. Three hours later, it was an underwater grave two miles below the frigid surface of the North Atlantic.

The deaths on the Concordia represent less than 1 percent of the 4,252 passengers aboard, while the Titanic lost about 70 percent of its estimated 2,228 souls on her maiden voyage.

As the world awaits results from an official inquiry into the Concordia disaster, the Titanic — even 100 years later — continues to raise profound ethical, moral and theological questions.

The massive Titanic was equipped with the most advanced technology of its day, and its sheer luxury and hubris represented the apex of pre-war glamour, glitter and gold. “God himself could not sink this ship,” one crew member boasted.

A single first-class, one-way ticket cost more than $30,000 in today’s dollars. The pampered first-class passengers were treated to superior cabins, superb dining facilities, libraries, smoking rooms, an exercise gym, swimming pool and squash courts. In the end, they also were awarded a much higher survival rate than the poor immigrants who traveled in the lower decks.

Some sobering statistics tell a ghastly story and confront us with disturbing evidence that class and money mattered on the Titanic —

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

a.) It was calm b.) South to north c.) East to west 4. At what time of the day did the Red Sea split? a.) Day b.) Night 5. How did the water look when the sea parted? a.) Like a wall b.) It disappeared c.) Like fire

50:25) Also, because Joseph ran away from the wife of Potifar , the Red Sea split and fled before Hashem.

2. A—14:11-12. Actually, only some of the people wanted to return to Egypt. (Ramban, based on Midrash)

by Rabbi A. James Rudin

in both life and death.

The differences between those who lived and those who died are shocking: because the crew followed the chivalrous code of “women and children first,” 97 percent of women in first class survived, along with 86 percent of women in second class. Fewer than half of the female passengers in third class survived. Overall, only 20 percent of the men lived, compared to 75 percent of all women onboard.

The role of gender, age, wealth and class in such dire situations is part of what is called “lifeboat ethics.” There’s also the fact the Titanic’s lifeboat capacity was only half the number required for all passengers and crew. It was, it must be said, a case of criminal neglect.

Following the disaster, vessels were dispatched to rescue any survivors and recover bodies.

Incredibly, the primary emphasis was to identify the wealthy victims by name while the less affluent dead were merely assigned numbers for burial. The reason, officials said, was to prevent bitter estate battles among the families of the deceased rich. Talk about class warfare!

Among the wealthy souls who perished 100 years ago were the real estate magnate John Jacob Astor IV; the mining tycoon Benjamin Guggenheim; and Isidor Strauss, the co-owner of Macy’s, and his wife, Ida. The arrogant Guggenheim refused a life vest and returned to his cabin where he donned a tuxedo, as did his valet. He told a crew member; “We’ve dressed up in our best and are prepared to go down like gentlemen.”And they did.

Although most people think the Titanic was a British ship, the real owner of the liner was another prideful “Master of the Universe,” the American financial giant J.P. Morgan.

Before we get swept up in sentimental romanticized versions of the tragedy and the re-release of James Cameron’s big-screen blockbuster “Titanic,” we need to remember what really happened.

Or, to be more precise, what caused it to happen.

“Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall,” Proverbs warns us. F. Scott Fitzgerald put it another way: “The rich, they are different.”

Written by Rabbi Dov Aaron Wise

ANSWERS 1. B—Exodus 13:19. Joseph knew that the Egyptians would not allow his children to bury him in Israel after his death. Therefore he made his children swear to take his remains to Israel when they left Egypt. (Rashi; see also Genesis

Point of View

JEWISH LIFE • 17

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2012

Sedra of the Week

by Rabbi Shlomo Riskin Efrat, Israel — You shall observe the month of the springtime and perform the Passover offering for the Lord your God, for in the month of springtime the Lord your God took you out of Egypt at night (Deuteronomy 16:1).

On the eighth day of Passover we read a passage from the Book of Deuteronomy which lists the festival of the Jewish calendar.

What does it tell us about how we spend our time and our relationship to the people around us?

Every ancient people held certain places and objects sacred. The Jewish people, however, attached the most importance to sanctifying time. The Torah reserves sanctification not for the physical objects of creation but for the Sabbath: “And God blessed the Sabbath day and sanctified it” (Genesis 2:3) — it became an oasis of holy time.

Two Hassidic rabbis, the Kotzker Rebbe and the Vorker Rebbe once discussed the relative holiness of certain commandments. The Vorker observed that on Sukkot one chooses the four species after painstaking care to ensure their perfection and beauty.

They are admired and waved, but finally they are laid aside, the commandment concerning them having been fulfilled. This is the way it is with most mitzvot: as long as we hold them we encompass the holy; the moment we release them their holiness departs.

But when the Jew sits in the sukkah, he is surrounded by the commandment. The holy literally encompasses the Jew. Thus, sitting in the sukkah is the greatest mitzvah. The Kotzker replied that the commandment concerning the Sabbath is even greater. The Jew can walk out of the sukkah, but he cannot walk out of the Sabbath. In other words, the sanctification of time is the ultimate sanctity, and since life is measured in time, holiness of time means holiness of life.

It is thus characteristic that the first commandment God gave the people of Israel as a nation — while yet in Egypt — was a mitzvah dealing with an aspect of time: “This month shall be to you the first of the months” (Exodus 12:1).

SHABBAT SHALOM: 8TH DAY PESACH

Slaves have no clear notion of time since it is not theirs to dispose of.

Only free men, who have at least limited control over their time, can fill it with significant matters — and sanctify it. Thus, the concept of freedom and the sanctification of time are bound up with each other.

The Torah clearly emphasizes our role in transforming and ennobling the time we are granted by the Almighty. As Jews, we must view time not merely as objective, disparate units, such as minutes, days, etc., but rather as subjective, interconnected moments which we are empowered to fill with content and to sanctify with meaning. This idea is halakhically manifested in the institution of sanctifying the new moon (kiddush ha-hodesh), which is the process whereby we declare a certain day to be the beginning of the month. Originally, after hearing testimony from witnesses concerning the new moon, the Great Sanhedrin would proclaim the onset of a new month by the formula “the month is holy, the month is holy.” The court’s decision determined on what day the festivals would occur. In contrast to the Sabbath, which occurs every seven days regardless of the calendar, the festivals depend on the determination of the month, which in turn is fixed by the Jewish people. As Rabbi Ovadiah Sforno (ca. 1475-1550) observes in his Bible commentary, it is no coincidence that this commandment to sanctify time was given at the moment of freedom from Egypt. Slaves have no clear notion of time since it is not theirs to dispose of. Only free men, who have at least limited control over their time, can fill it with significant matters — and sanctify it. Thus, the concept of freedom and the sanctification of time are bound up with each other.

The first month in the Jewish calendar is the month of Nissan, the time of the emergence of the Jewish people. The seventh month is the month of Tishrei, the anniversary of the creation of man.

The major Jewish holidays occur

in or near these two major periods: Passover and Shavuot in the former; Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot in the latter. The first group of holidays is characterized by its emphasis on the particular — on historical events of relevance only to the Jewish people, namely emancipation from Egyptian bondage and the revelation at Mount Sinai. The holidays of the second group, however, contain universal themes and occur appropriately in the month when man was created. Despite the fact that there is tension between particularism and universalism, between chauvinism and cosmopolitanism, both are part of the Jew’s lifecycle. That they can be reconciled is an important motif of the Kiddush. By making reference in this blessing to both the creation of the world and the Exodus from Egypt, we affirm that there is no conflict between the two. The Bible opens with the Lord of the universe creating a world designed for all humanity and with instructions applicable to every individual. After the major Divine disappointments, first in Adam, then in Noah, the Almighty decides, as it were, to create a family out of which would be forged a “holy nation and kingdom of priests.” This nation would by its example inspire the world to accept God’s teachings. Hence at the very moment of his election, Abraham is promised by God that “all the families of the earth shall be blessed” through him. From the elevation of a particular people will follow the elevation of an entire peoplehood.

Shabbat Shalom and Hag Sameach Rabbi Shlomo Riskin Chancellor Ohr Torah Stone Chief Rabbi – Efrat Israel

WHAT’S HAPPENING @ YOUR

SYNAGOGUE? S TAY U P -T O -D ATE W ITH A S UBSCRIPTION T O T HE A MERICAN I SRAELITE NAME ADDRESS CITY

STATE

CHECK TYPE OF SUBSCRIPTION

1 YEAR, IN-TOWN

CHECK TYPE OF PAYMENT

CHECK

ZIP 1 YEAR, OUT-OF-TOWN

VISA

MASTERCARD

LIFETIME

DISCOVER

1-Year Subscription: $44 In-town, $49 Out-of-town Send completed form with payment to: The American Israelite

18 W. 9th St. Ste. 2 • Cincinnati, OH 45202-2037

CHANGE OF ADDRESS? SEND AN EMAIL TO PUBLISHER@AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

www.americanisraelite.com

AI

The American Israelite

18 • JEWZ IN THE NEWZ

JEWZ

IN THE

By Nate Bloom Contributing Columnist THE THREE STOOGES MOVIE Okay, don’t expect it to make sense “ethnic wise.” It doesn’t. I speak of “The Three Stooges,” a slapstick comedy from the Farrelly Brothers (“There’s Something About Mary,” et al.) that opens in theaters on April 13. The “real” Stooges were almost all Jewish (MOE HOWARD and his brothers SHEMP and CURLY HOWARD; LARRY FINE; and “replacement” JOE BESSER. Last replacement Joe DeRita wasn’t Jewish.)

But the plot of the movie has the Stooges — Curly, Moe and Larry (all played by non-Jewish actors) left off as infants at a Catholic orphanage. Fast forward quickly to the present, and the wacky guys return to the orphanage to help save it. They accidentally stumble on a murder plot and windup starring in a reality show.

Meanwhile, “balance” is provided by LARRY DAVID, 64. He plays the nun who runs the orphanage, “Sister Mary Mengele.” (I suspect this last name gives us a clue as to the nun’s character — a reference to infamous Nazi doctor Joseph Mengele.) Playing an orphanage nurse is one of the Farrellys’ favorite character actresses: LIN SHAYE, 67. She’s best known for playing the extremely tan neighbor of Mary (Cameron Diaz), whose small dog manically attacks BEN STILLER in “Something About Mary.”

KOSHER MESHUGENER The April 1 episode of the hit AMC cable show “Mad Men” saw a first for the ad agency that is the focus of the series—the agency hired their first Jewish copywriter, Michael Ginsburg. He’s a quickwitted hustling guy who is an obvious contrast to the “buttoneddown” WASPs who really dominated ad agencies until the mid‘60s (when this episode takes place). Playing Ginsburg is BEN FELDMAN, 31. His credits include playing the DUSTIN HOFFMAN-role in a Broadway version of “The Graduate” opposite ALICIA SILVERSTONE. But he’s best known for playing Fred, an angel, on the Lifetime series, “Drop Dead Diva.”

ROOKIE COPS Starting on Sunday, April 15, at 10PM, is the new CBS series, “NYC 22.”

It follows six diverse NYPD rookies as they patrol the gritty streets of upper Manhattan (mostly Harlem). This show may be quality stuff, despite the familiar premise.

It is produced by Robert DeNiro and top screenwriter/novelist

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

NEWZ

RICHARD PRICE, 62 (“Clockers,” “The Wire”).

The rookies’ supervisor is played by ADAM GOLDBERG, 41 (“The Hebrew Hammer”). One of the rookies is played by Leelee Sobieski, 28 (“Glass House,” “Warsaw Ghetto Uprising”).

Sobieski’s maternal grandfather, a Navy officer, was Jewish and in 2010 she wed ADAM KIMMEL, 33, a very successful menswear designer. The couple have a young daughter.

Kimmel’s late father, MARTIN S. KIMMEL, was a billionaire real estate developer and a “huge giver” to medical charities in the States. He also gave millions to Israel’s Weizmann Institute.

Adam’s mother’s father, the late DONALD ARONOW, became a millionaire before he was 30 developing New Jersey properties. He moved to Florida in 1964, where he designed the famous speedy “cigarette” boats that were later prominently featured on “Miami Vice.”

He used this boat to twice win the world powerboat championship.

Sobieski, who wasn’t raised in an organized religion, has expressed great affinity for her “Jewish roots” in past interviews and I think it’s just possible that she has quietly converted to Judaism. Convert or not, when Sobieski is done “fighting crime” in upper Manhattan (“NYC 22” is filmed in New York) she only has to travel about 30 blocks south to her “to die for” Upper East Side “double apartment” with 13 foot ceilings. Leelee and her hubbie bought it last year from actress Renee Zellweger for $9 million.

TWITTER FEED LEADS TO WHITE HOUSE PASSOVER FOOD So, just before the first seder, I searched Twitter for Pesach/celebrity tweets. Slim pickings, except for links to the official White House website—where I’m told a raft of famous Jewish chefs posted Passover recipes in 2011. I find those recipes easily—but really all I had to do was go to the White House site and search for Passover and all sorts of references, including recipes, come up.

This year, some members of the Administration posted their favorite Passover recipes. The most prominent is CAMERON KERRY, 61, the Dept. of Commerce’s General Counsel. He posted a brisket recipe. Kerry, who converted to Judaism in 1983, is the brother of Sen. John Kerry. He was his brother’s liaison to the Jewish community when John ran for president in 2004. During that campaign, the Boston Globe surprised both brothers by uncovering the fact that their paternal grandparents were born Jewish, but had converted “out.”

FROM THE PAGES 100 Y EARS A GO The thirtieth anniversary of the death of Dr. Max Lilienthal, one of the foremost American Jewish leaders and for twenty-seven years rabbi of the Bene Israel Congregation of this city, was appropriately commemorated by that congregation at the Rockdale Avenue Temple last Saturday morning. Dr. David Philpson was a pupil of Dr. Lilienthal at the Hebrew Union College and spoke on the life and work of his teacher and predecessor in the pulpit. He dwelt on Dr. Lilienthal’s services in the causes of education, Reform Judaism and all liberal movements. He dwelt at some length on the prominent part which Dr. Lilienthal took in the famous Bible in the public schools case which agitated the people of this city so profoundly in the year 1870. The Board of Education had decided to discontinue the reading of the Bible and the singing of religious hymns in the public schools because these exercises were sectarian. The matter was taken to the courts and the case interested the whole country. The Supreme Court to which tribunal the case was carried on an appeal, decided in favor of the Board of Education and since then these sectarian exercises have been barred from the Cincinnati public schools.

Mrs. Henry Geigerman leaves today for Atlanta, Ga., where she will visit her mother, Mrs. H.C. Sommer. — April 11, 1912

75 Y EARS A GO Dr. Sheldon H. Blank, professor of Bible at the Hebrew Union College, has been elected president of the Midwest Branch of the American Oriental Society He succeeds professor Ovid R. Sellers of the Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Chicago.

Dr. Blank, a member of the H.U.C. faculty since 1926, is known for his work in Bible and Bible criticism. The society honoring him is made up of leading scholars in Semitics and other fields concerning the culture of the East.

Cincinnati Wise Temple trustees have elected Charles Shohl, honorary president; James M. Levy, president; Jeffrey L. Lazarus, vice president; Samuel R. Meyer, treasurer; Philip L. Hershman, secretary. This is Mr. Levy’s second term as president.

Mr. Hershman began in 1922 as secretary of Reading Road Temple and upon its merger in 1931 with Plum Street Temple in the forma-

tion of Wise Temple he was elected secretary. He has held the office 15 consecutive years.

Dr. Miriam Warm will lead the discussion on “Studies on Dramatic Poetry” and other members assisting with reports are Mesdames Jacobs, Barnet R. Sakler, Irvin Felson, Maxwell Lott and Coralie B. Rosenthal. Mrs. Sigmund M. Cohen will summarize the previous program. — April 15, 1937

50 Y EARS A GO Mose Marcus was elected president; Robert L. Siegel, first vice-president; Harry Goldstein, second vice-president, and Saul Bloom, assistant warden of Adath Israel Congregation at its 116th annual meeting Wednesday, April 4.

Re-elected are Dr. Joseph Katz, third vice-president; Saul Kirschner, recording Secretary; Robert Greenfield, financial secretary; Leon L. Pastor, treasurer; William V. Misrach, warden; Louis I. Neman, assistant warden.

Max Kreindler, 7159 Reading Road, passed away Monday, April 2.

He is survived by his wife, Mrs. Esther Kreindler; his sons, Irving, Alfred and Jeffrey, all of Cincinnati; his daughter, Mrs. Jacob (Saundra) Baron of Milwaukee; five grandchildren; and his brothers, Dr. Louis Kreindler of Cincinnati, and Harry Kreindler, of Newport.

Sylvan Heines, 7623 Shawnee Run Road, Columbia Township, passed away Thursday, April 5.

He is survived by his wife, Mrs. Ruth Heines; a daughter, Holly Marlene; a son, Jeffrey Alan; his father and mother, Mr. and Mrs. Hyman Heines; and a brother, Robert Heines, all of Cincinnati. — April 12, 1962

25 Y EARS A GO Barbara C. Rabkin was recently named as the vice chairman of the Federation’s evaluation committee. The purpose of this committee is to review the services and programs of each of the Federation’s beneficiary agencies over a five-year period.

Aaron Levine, a prominent resident of Cincinnati, has been named a member of the Cincinnati Board of Overseers of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. The announcement was made by Dr. Alfred Gottschalk, president of the College-Institute, who will induct Mr. Levine at a service during the spring Overseers meetings.

Levine acted as senior financial officer at the College-Institute from 1982 until 1985.

Ida Hirschman of 5404 Reading Road passed away April 8. She was 95.

Mrs. Hirschman was the first female optometrist in Cincinnati.

She received her degree of optics from Southbend College in Southbend, Ind. in 1909.

She is survived by two daughters, Minnable Hirschman and Mrs. Ethel Bernfeld; a son, Mace Hirschman; a sister Anabel Faden; five grandchildren, Hannah Ruth Jarson, Dr. Jonathon A. and Dr. Diane Bernfeld, Rosalyn Faust and Luanne Hirschman; four great-grandchildren, Aaron and Jennifer Jarson and Alisa and Jason Faust; and numerous nieces and nephews.

She was the wife of the late Aaron Hirschman. — April 16, 1987

10 Y EARS A GO Marlene Ruth Kraus, 68, passed away March 23. She was the beloved wife of Herbert Kraus; devoted mother of Debbie and Ed Stewart, Larry Kraus, and Karen and Jeff Greenberger; dear sister to Barbara and Irving Holbrook of Lakeland, Fla.; and loving and devoted grandmother of Ethan and Emily Stewart and David, Bradley and Andrew Greenberger. She was the daughter of the late Evelyn and Howard Kessel.

Mrs. Kraus was a graduate of Walnut Hills High School and the University of Cincinnati where she earned her bachelor’s degree in education. She was a longtime member of Adath Israel Synagogue, Hadassah and NCJW. She was a wonderful wife, mother, friend and exceptional grandmother who will be deeply missed by many people whose lives she touched.

More than 2,000 people, according to Blue Ash police estimates, gathered on short notice April 7 at the Blue Ash Veterans’ Memorial for a “Stand with Israel” rally sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati.

Among those speaking in support of Israel were Kim Heiman, Federation president, Rabbi George Barnard of Northern Hills Synagogue, Rabbi Hanan Balk of Golf Manor Synagogue and Rep. Steve Chabot (R-OH).

Jews from all over Cincinnati were in attendance, holding Israeli flags and pro-Israel signs. A proPalestinian contingent of 70-100 people, according to police estimates, also attended. – April 11, 2002

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2012

CLASSIFIEDS • 19

COMMUNITY DIRECTORY COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS Access (513) 373-0300 • jypaccess.org Big Brothers/Big Sisters Assoc.

(513) 761-3200 • bigbrobigsis.org Camp Ashreinu (513) 702-1513 Camp at the J (513) 722-7258 • mayersonjcc.org Camp Livingston (513) 793-5554 • camplivingston.com Cedar Village (513) 754-3100 • cedarvillage.org Chevra Kadisha (513) 396-6426 Cincinnati Community Mikveh 513-351-0609 • cincinnatimikveh.org Fusion Family (513) 703-3343 • fusionnati.org Halom House (513) 791-2912 • halomhouse.com Hillel Jewish Student Center (513) 221-6728 • hillelcincinnati.org Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati 513-961-0178 • jcemcin.org Jewish Community Center (513) 761-7500 • mayersonjcc.org Jewish Community Relations Council (513) 985-1501 Jewish Family Service (513) 469-1188 • jfscinti.org Jewish Federation of Cincinnati (513) 985-1500 • shalomcincy.org Jewish Foundation (513) 514-1200 Jewish Information Network (513) 985-1514 Jewish Vocational Service (513) 985-0515 • jvscinti.org Kesher (513) 766-3348 Plum Street Temple Historic Preservation Fund (513) 793-2556 Shalom Family (513) 703-3343 • myshalomfamily.org The Center for Holocaust & Humanity Education (513) 487-3055 • holocaustandhumanity.org Vaad Hoier (513) 731-4671 Workum Fund (513) 899-1836 • workum.org YPs at the JCC (513) 761-7500 • mayersonjcc.org

CONGREGATIONS Adath Israel Congregation (513) 793-1800 • adath-israel.org Beit Chaverim (513) 984-3393 Beth Israel Congregation (513) 868-2049 • bethisraelcongregation.net Congregation Beth Adam (513) 985-0400 • bethadam.org Congregation B’nai Tikvah (513) 759-5356 • bnai-tikvah.org Congregation B’nai Tzedek (513) 984-3393 • bnaitzedek.us Congregation Ohav Shalom (513) 489-3399 • ohavshalom.org

Congregation Ohr Chadash (513) 252-7267 • ohrchadashcincinnati.com Congregation Sha’arei Torah shaareitorahcincy.org Congregation Zichron Eliezer 513-631-4900 • czecincinnati.org Golf Manor Synagogue (513) 531-6654 • golfmanorsynagogue.org Isaac M. Wise Temple (513) 793-2556 • wisetemple.org Kehilas B’nai Israel (513) 761-0769 Northern Hills Synagogue (513) 931-6038 • nhs-cba.org Rockdale Temple (513) 891-9900 • rockdaletemple.org Temple Beth Shalom (513) 422-8313 • tbsohio.org Temple Sholom (513) 791-1330 • templesholom.net The Valley Temple (513) 761-3555 • valleytemple.com

EDUCATION Chai Tots Early Childhood Center (513) 234.0600 • chaitots.com Chabad Blue Ash (513) 793-5200 • chabadba.com Cincinnati Hebrew Day School (513) 351-7777 • chds.shul.net HUC-JIR (513) 221-1875 • huc.edu JCC Early Childhood School (513) 793-2122 • mayersonjcc.org Kehilla - School for Creative Jewish Education (513) 489-3399 • kehilla-cincy.com Mercaz High School (513) 792-5082 x104 • mercazhs.org Kulanu (Reform Jewish High School) 513-262-8849 • kulanucincy.org Regional Institute Torah & Secular Studies (513) 631-0083 Rockwern Academy (513) 984-3770 • rockwernacademy.org

ORGANIZATIONS American Jewish Committee (513) 621-4020 • ajc.org American Friends of Magen David Adom (513) 521-1197 • afmda.org B’nai B’rith (513) 984-1999 BBYO (513) 722-7244 Hadassah (513) 821-6157 • cincinnati.hadassah.org Jewish Discovery Center (513) 234.0777 • jdiscovery.com Jewish National Fund (513) 794-1300 • jnf.org Jewish War Veterans (513) 204-5594 • jwv.org NA’AMAT (513) 984-3805 • naamat.org National Council of Jewish Women (513) 891-9583 • ncjw.org State of Israel Bonds (513) 793-4440 • israelbonds.com Women’s American ORT (513) 985-1512 • ortamerica.org.org

DO YOU WANT TO PLACE A CLASSIFIED? Send an e-mail including what you would like in your classified & your contact information to

production@ americanisraelite.com BEINART from page 7 Mitchell Silver, a philosophy lecturer at the University of Massachusetts Boston, called Beinart “a great Jewish patriot” for speaking up about Palestinian needs.

“People who are concerned with the welfare of the Jewish people, with the future of Israel as the homeland of the Jewish people, need to take seriously the needs of the Palestinian people, the need to end the occupation of the West Bank that denies Palestinians rights,” Silver said.

Others, like Dale Okonow, a member of the board of Jewish Family and Children’s Services and the chair of CJP’s 2012 annual campaign, disagreed “vehemently” with Beinart’s ideas — particularly his ATTORNEY from page 8 In a statement addressed to JointMedia News Service, a State Department spokesperson said regarding Zivotofsky’s passport that “we do not comment on ongoing legal proceedings,” then did comment on the U.S. government’s Jerusalem policy, saying: “U.S. citizens born in Jerusalem may not have ‘Israel’ listed in their passports as their place of birth, [a policy] consistent with our longstanding, clear policy on Jerusalem, which is the same approach taken by prior U.S. Administrations.”

“We believe that through goodfaith, direct negotiations, the parties should agree on an outcome that realizes the aspirations of both parties for Jerusalem and safeguards its status for people around the world,” the spokesperson said.

Lewin — a Polish-born, Harvard-educated lawyer who has worked for the State Department and was deputy assistant attorney general in the Department of Justice — has been in practice over 45 years and has argued before the Supreme Court approximately 30 times. Several of his cases have focused on issues of freedom of religion or religious practice affecting the Jewish community.

In its decision on Zivotofsky, explained Lewin, the Supreme Court “raised a second question, asking whether it was constitutional for the ‘stateless person’ to have the option of listing ‘Israel’ in his passport.” Doing so, he said, “went back to precedent and power of recogni-

SENIOR SERVICES

• • • • •

Up to 24 hour care Meal Preparation Errands/Shopping Hygiene Assistance Light Housekeeping

(513) 531-9600 contention that young Jews are shunning Zionism.

“I think the younger generation of American Jews embraced Israel in a big way,” Okonow said. “His message is flawed and not factually correct.”

Beinart criticized Israeli settlements and an American Jewish establishment that he said has “told young American Jews not to ask hard questions, to avoid Palestinians, to start with the assumption everything the Israeli government does is right, and we’ll help them reason backwards to figure out why.”

Shrage praised the American Jewish community for supporting Israel’s security, as Israelis themselves are conflicted about the best route toward peace. tion.” As a result of the decision, the matter has now been returned to the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit for argument.

The initial question concerning the Zivotofsky case was whether the Supreme Court would consider it important enough for consideration. Once the court took the case, Lewin said he “felt confident on the political issues.” With regard to the constitutional question, “there is more to be said,” according to Lewin. “I cannot be as sure of the outcome,” he said.

It is Congress that has the power to tell the Secretary of State what the law is regarding Jerusalem’s status, said Lewin. The action of the court, he said, “will not cause conflagrations or upset foreign policy.”

“Menachem is very proud of being born in ‘Jerusalem, Israel’ — not in ‘Jerusalem,’ which according to the State Department is not part of any country,” Lewin said.

Recording “Jerusalem, Israel” in his passport is “a declaration of what they believe to be true,” the attorney said of Menachem’s family.

Lewin explained that, “the State Department says, while we allow a citizen to self-designate, we don’t agree and say Jerusalem is not a part of Israel.” He understands the need to “give the State Department enough leeway,” noting that there have been “sympathetic voices” agreeing that “Jerusalem, Israel” should be the designated birthplace listing.

“I am confident that by the time of his bar mitzvah, Menachem will have a passport that says Israel,” Lewin said.

20 • TRAVEL

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

Crystal Serenity: from three seas to three C’s Wandering Jew

by Janet Steinberg Aegean…Mediterranean…

Adriatic…

Three majestic, magnificent seas brought me triple delights on my Crystal Serenity cruise from Istanbul, Turkey to Venice, Italy.

In addition to sailing me to faraway places with strange sounding names (like Kusadasi, Kotor and Thira), these three seas afforded me a chance to enjoy three of my favorite things.

The Three C’s Crystal…Let me make it crystal clear that there is little wonder why the readers of Condé Nast Traveler magazine rated Crystal Cruises the “Best Cruise Line” (mid-sized) for 2011. The ultra-luxe cruise line’s score marks the 18th time the company has won its category — more than any other cruise line, hotel or resort in the magazine’s history.

My recent Crystal Serenity cruise affirmed the belief of Conde Nast Traveler’s readers, and I couldn’t state it any better than Crystal’s president, Gregg Michel, who said that the readers “continue to appreciate and recognize Crystal’s unwavering focus on delivering what sophisticated travelers want: new, life-changing itineraries and onboard experiences, plus a chic sense of design and space that also makes them feel at home.”

Crystal Cruises has also shown a passion for creating unique shore-side experiences for its Crystal Adventures program. For 2012, there’s special news from Crystal Cruises for Jewish travel-

ers who are interested in the exploration of Jewish culture.

Crystal Cruises is expanding its related programming in Jewish heritage tours. Their Crystal Adventures will explore Jewish life, past and present, around the world in places such as Shanghai, Mumbai, Miami, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Berlin, Hamburg, St. Petersburg, Rome, Dublin, Jerusalem/Ashdod, and Odessa. Çiragan…The Çiragan Palace Kempinski Hotel is an historic Ottoman palace dramatically situated on the European shores of the Bosphorus. This incomparable view reflects the grandeur and glamour of the hotel itself, which is the only palace in Istanbul to have become a five-star hotel.

In a previous life, this grandiose property was a residence for sultans. The palace, built by Sultan Abdülâziz, was designed between 1863 and 1867. This was a period in which all Ottoman sultans used to build their own palaces rather than using those of their ancestors. Çıragan Palace is the last example of this period. The inner walls and the roof were made of wood, the outer walls of colorful marble. The construction and the interior decoration of the palace continued until 1872.

On January 19, 1910, a great fire destroyed the palace, leaving only the outer walls intact. After that, the place served for many years as a football stadium.

In 1989, the ruined palace was bought by a Japanese corporation, which restored the palace and added a modern hotel complex next to it in its garden. The Palace, combining Ottoman-era sophistication, with state-of-the-art technological amenities, was renovated again during the first quarter of 2007. Fully restored to its former glory, it now resembles the authentic palace with its baroque style and soft colors.

The Palace Suites, with their vaulted ceilings, treasured antiques and rich textiles, evoke the opulence of the Ottoman Era. Guest rooms overlook either the Bosphorus or

Çiragan Palace Hotel and gardens are still fit for a Sultan.

Crystal Serenity delivers what sophisticated travelers want.

historic Yıldız Park, formerly a hunting forest for the sultans.

With curtains drawn apart and balcony doors open, I breathed in the beauty of the Bosphorus as East met West. From the comfort of my room in Europe, I could watch the sun glow over Asia as the morning mist crept over the European hotel’s garden.

Tugra, the hotel’s renowned restaurant that features a classic Turkish menu, is considered one of the finest restaurants in Istanbul.

The feast begins with the ambience … rich Ottoman décor, live classical Turkish music and the ever-stirring backdrop of the Bosphorus. Weather permitting, dining on Tugra’s terrace lit by the moon, a candle, and the Bosphorus Bridge, might well be one of the most romantic meals you will ever have. The only thing missing is a handsome Ottoman sultan.

Cipriani…The day before my Crystal Serenity cruise began in Istanbul was a Cipriani day. The day after my Crystal Serenity Cruise ended in Venice, Italy was also a Cipriani day…a Harry Cipriani day to be exact.

That’s because I’m just wild about Harry!

Harry (Arrigo in Italian) Cipriani, the majority owner of a string of establishments including Harry’s Bar in Venice and Cipriani Istanbul in the city of the same name, is the son of Giuseppe Cipriani, who founded Harry’s Bar in Venice in 1931.

When Arrigo’s father Giuseppe was working at the Hotel Europa in Venice just before the 1929 Crash, he lent a down-and-out customer named Harry Pickering about $5,000 USD. Years later, Pickering returned to Venice and paid him back five-fold. Cipriani used that money to start the bar which he named Harry’s Bar after Harry Pickering.

Harry’s Bar became a hot spot for celebrities like Ernest Hemingway and Humphrey Bogart.

The bubbly Bellini, a magical blend of white peach juice, sugar and sparkling Italian wine, (often mistakenly dubbed champagne) is reputed to have originated there.

When I met the world-renowned Harry some two decades ago, he told me, “I’m the only man in the world named after a bar. I was born on April 23, 1932, less than a year after Harry’s Bar opened.”

Meeting Harry for the first time

Cipriani Istanbul or Cipriani’s Harry’s Bar in Venice, is the place to sip the renowned Bellini.

many years ago, I expected a stereotypical backslapping bartender who would be garbed in a slightly soiled apron tied behind his back. Instead, what I got was an elegant graduate lawyer, immaculately dressed in a hand-tailored suit, who graciously greeted his patrons as if they were guests in his home.

It was destiny, it was fate, it was bashert, that the Cipriani Istanbul should open mere months before my arrival in Istanbul. Of course, I had to dine there.

Located in the heart of the lively Levent business district, the restaurant features classic dishes from the original Harry’s Bar in Venice. The interior reflects the warm, timeless, inviting decor of Cipriani locations worldwide.

It was destiny, it was fate, it was bashert. It was also divine!

When the last night of my Aegean Odyssey arrived, I headed straight to Harry’s Bar in Venice.

It has been said that, in the legendary city of Venice, more tourists ask directions to Harry’s Bar than to the Piazza San Marco.

Giuseppe Cipriani, Harry’s son, made an interesting observation.

“Istanbul and Venice shared a strong relationship over the centuries and have many similarities,” he said “It’s a curious fact that even the painter Bellini who inspired my grandfather to name the signature drink he invented in 1948, went to work for the Ottoman sultan at the end of the XV century.

Let’s just say that we are bringing Bellini back to Istanbul, an incredibly beautiful and vibrant city, one of the few capitals of the world.”

Arrigo (Harry) Cipriani beware!

You can’t escape me. From Cipriani to Cipriani, I have dined in Cipriani restaurants around the world and will continue to do so. I will follow you anywhere!

Janet Steinberg is an award-winning travel writer and international travel consultant.

FOOD / AUTOS • 21

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2012

Zell’s Passover bites Zell’s Bites

by Zell Schulman The seders are over and most of the leftovers have been consumed. Passover cooking will be ending in a day or two. Tired of the meat meals you’ve had to cook? Create a dairy meal.

Every year, I get calls for these quick and easy Passover recipes.

These are great for lunch or a quick dinner. Here are several of my favorites. Kids as well as adults really love the rocky road candy. Enjoy!

CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP Makes 4 Servings Nothing goes better with a cup of good cream of tomato soup than a grilled cheese sandwich.

It’s my favorite meal. During Passover I substitute matzah or matzah rolls I have baked for the bread. It’s still a perfect combination. Make sure the products you cook with have a kosher for Passover seal on them.

I lay slices of sharp cheddar cheese with a thin tomato slice or two on top of the cheese, in between two pieces of matzah.

You can microwave the whole matzah sandwich for about 10-12 seconds on high. Another way is to melt a little butter in a frying pan over a medium heat flame, then add the matzah sandwich and fry it 1-1/2 to 2 minutes on one side, turn and fry it 1 minute on the other side. DE-LISH! Ingredients: One 10-3/4 ounce can of tomato soup 1 Tablespoon dried oregano, crushed well 1 teaspoon dried basil, crushed well or several fresh basil leaves, finely chopped 1/2 teaspoon steak sauce Dash of hot sauce.

One cup of half and half or milk Method: 1. Empty the contents of the

can into your blender or bowl of your food processor. Add the remaining ingredients except for the half and half. Blend or process 30 seconds. Pour into a 1-quart bowl.

2. Slowly pour in the half and half or milk. Empty into a 1-quart sauce pan and allow to simmer about 10 minutes. Garnish with a dollop of sour cream or Creme Fraiche.

Zell’s Tips: Don’t go too heavy on the dash of hot sauce or you’ll lose that “Like mother used to make” taste.

ROCKY ROAD CANDY Makes about 1-1/4 pound This is an easy confection your children or grandchildren will love to help you make.

Ingredients: 1 cup finely chopped toasted pecans, walnuts, almonds or hazelnuts 2 cups miniature marshmallows 1 cup dark raisins 1/2 cup dried cherries or apricots Two 12-ounce packages semisweet chocolate chips Method: 1. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil. In a large bowl, mix the nuts, marshmallows, raisins, and dried cherries or apricots together.

2. Place the chocolate chips in a 4-cup microwave-safe container. Microwave on high for 2 minutes, remove and stir the chocolate chips until completely melted. Or you can melt the chocolate chips in a double boiler over very low heat, stirring constantly.

3. Spread half of the melted chocolate evenly on top of the foil in the pan. Distribute the marshmallow mixture over the melted chocolate. Spread the remaining melted chocolate on top. Place in the refrigerator to harden.

Remove and break into bite-size pieces.

Variation: CHOCOLATE CLUSTERS Stir the marshmallow mixture into the melted chocolate. Drop by teaspoons onto a foil-lined jelly roll pan and refrigerate for several hours until hard.

2012 Audi Q5—Luxury meets affordable The 2012 Audi Q5 leaves nothing to be desired, at a price that is both affordable and competitive. Audi has really taken its time to give its customers options to customize the Q5 to one’s own liking. This SUV is both stylish and family friendly, while sporting a lot of class and muscle.

According to US News poll rankings, the 2012 Q5 is the No. 1 luxury SUV in the market. The car is modeled after the Audi A4 but in an SUV format. This gives the look and performance of an SUV, but handles like an A4. There are four option packages on the Q5. All wheel drive is standard on every package.

The base package, known as Premium trim, has a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine, which combines the Audi valvelift system, variable valve timing, Audi FSI® direct injection and turbocharging for more power and greater efficiency. Standard features include leather seats, wood inlays, three-zone automatic, 12-way power front seats with four-way power lumbar adjustment, and poweradjustable, heated exterior mirrors with integrated LED turn signals.

The next package up is the Premium Plus. This package adds more upscale features, such as heated front seats, Panorama sunroof, Driver memory, Blue-tooth and much more.

The next two upper packages are very similar to one another.

There is the 3.2 Premium Plus, and the 3.2 Prestige. They both have a 3.2-liter V6 engine, which with its four valves-per-cylinder, offers silky-smooth and responsive per-

www.audiusa.com

2012 Audi Q5

formance, thanks to the combination of FSI® and Audi valvelift system. The use of aluminum for the block and cylinder head makes the 3.2-liter V6 lightweight, resulting in improved handling. The only real difference between the two packages is the Prestige comes standard with a rearview camera, thermo cup holder, blind spot monitoring system and 14-speaker Bang & Olufsen audio system.

Even after these packages, there’s still the hybrid Audi Q5.

This is Audi’s first production vehicle to incorporate both gas and electric drive, the former a 2.0-liter TFSI four-cylinder, the latter a 44hp electric motor sandwiched between the engine and eight-speed automatic transmission. Combined output is 241 hp and 354 lb-ft of torque, directed to all four wheels.

A 72-cell, 1.3-kWh lithium-ion battery pack is positioned under the load floor, and it takes a minimal toll on the rear cargo area.

If maximizing fuel economy and minimizing a carbon footprint are your goals—the Q5 hybrid’s driver interfaces make them easier to attain.

Audi’s usual Multi Media Interface (MMI) appears here with special functions to monitor the flow of energy among the engine, motor,and battery, as well as to display rates of energy consumption and recuperation as easy-to-read bar graphs. The tachometer has been replaced by a power meter that displays real-time levels of electric boost, gas power, and battery charge. The needle is quite precise and lets you know exactly how close you are to coming off full-electric drive, making it easy to maintain silent operation.

The Audi Q5 is redefining the term luxury and at its unbeatable price, it leaves competition in the dust. MSRP is $35,000 – $43,000 depending on your package (the estimated MSRP for the hybrid is $48,000) and no matter which package you choose, you’ll be satisfied.

Audi Connection earns top Magna Society honors from Audi for top performance in record-breaking 2011 As a 2011 Magna Society award winner, Audi Connection has been recognized as one of the 106 top Audi dealerships in the United States and a leader in a year that saw the premium car brand achieve record nationwide sales of 117,561 vehicles.

The Magna Society acknowledges Audi dealers that deliver exceptional customer service, maintain strong sales and demonstrate excellence in all areas of business.

This honor is bestowed upon dealerships that exemplify the attention to detail and progressive attributes that distinguish the Audi brand.

“Premium performance car buyers expect the Audi brand experience to match their high expectations elsewhere,” said Johan de Nysschen, President, Audi of America.

“With the Magna Society award, we celebrate the success of our best dealers to exceed those expectations and delight these discriminating customers.”

22 • OBITUARIES D EATH N OTICES EVANS, Samuel, age 91, died on April 3, 2012; 11 Nissan, 5772.

MANN, Robert E., age 72, died on April 7, 2012; 15 Nissan, 5772.

ELKUS, Nancy J., age 58, died on April 9, 2012; 17 Nissan, 5772.

SCHOOL from page 8 Rabbi Harry Sinoff, head of school at Beren Academy, declined to comment on Burleson's remarks but said the school would like to remain in TAPPS. “They’re at a crossroads now, reflecting on what their mission should be,” Sinoff said. “A broad mission of inclusiveness, bringing together lots of different schools and making accommodations that would be reasonable, or do they want to be a more homogeneous, narrowly focused organization? …We hope they go for inclusiveness so we can be part of it.”

Sinoff said he did not know the details of the cases involving the Muslim school but that he would

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

like to see all the schools included in TAPPS — Jewish, Muslim, Christian or others. “There should be objective criteria for admission, and all schools who meet that criteria should be admitted without reference to religion or race,” he said.

TAPPS, which was created in 1978, has approximately 220 member schools, nearly all Christian, that compete in athletic and arts competitions.

Burleson maintains that he does not object to a Jewish school, but said that when Beren Academy joined the league three years ago, school officials said they understood that it would not be able to participate in the playoffs.

“Three years later there was a lot of controversy, a lot of hard feelings, a lot of changes that had to be made to accommodate the school that told us up front they would not request these accommodations,” Burleson said.

Nathan Lewin, a prominent Washington attorney who represented the Beren parents and players, said Burleson’s comments confirmed that “he has a very jaundiced, and I can only say bigoted, view about people other than his

own kind.”

Lewin compared Beren’s agreeing not to dispute the schedule to a civil rights case regarding an unconstitutional property deed barring a sale to a black person.

“You can’t be barred from exercising your constitutional right because somebody has had a biased and illegal provision in their bylaws and contract when you've come in,” Lewin said. (While the school asked TAPPS for an accommodation, it was parents and the players, not the school, who filed suit.)

The denial of membership to Iman Academy Southwest, The New York Times reported, came after the school was asked to submit an application that asked such questions as, “Does the Koran actually state that the Bible is polluted?”

The Times reported that at least two other Islamic schools were given similar questionnaires but declined to complete them.

Cindy Steffens, principal of the Iman Academy, said she did not believe TAPPS had any intention of accepting the school. Steffens cited the offensive questionnaire, with questions like “What do you think about the spread of Islam in

America?”

She said that when Iman Academy officials appeared before the TAPPS board, the board brought up the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks as the “elephant in the room.” TAPPS never officially notified the academy that it had been rejected for membership.

“It was very hard for me to swallow,” Steffens said.

Steffens said she did not speak to anyone about the incident until recently, when The New York Times contacted her, because the school did not want negative attention.

“Our intention was to lie low and hope for the changing of the guard of TAPPS, so at some point maybe they’d be more inclusive so Iman Academy could come in,” she said.

Steffens said she was upset when she heard about Beren’s experience. “To have this happen to a Jewish school, that hurt me.

They’re doing it again,” she said.

Burleson said the board denied Iman Academy’s application because the school had no experience in athletic competition.

But he said that TAPPS has never made an effort to determine

whether its members want the organization to include schools of all faiths. It is now doing so, holding two member meetings and distributing a survey asking schools if they want the association to be all inclusive and whether they are willing to make accommodations.

The New York Times reported that TAPPS surveyed members in 2010 about whether to include Muslim schools. Of the 83 schools that responded, 63 percent said it was not in TAPPS’ best interest, the paper reported.

“Over the 20 years I’ve been associated with TAPPS, there’s been no direction from our membership to be all inclusive,” Burleson told JTA. Bill McGee, the headmaster of Hill Country Christian School in Austin, which faced Beren in the playoffs and moved its game time to accommodate the Beren community’s Shabbat observance, spoke at a March 27 TAPPS meeting in favor of inclusivity.

He said the United States was built on religious tolerance and that his school had no problem accommodating the religious beliefs of Beren students.

TUNSIA from page 9

malization ban.

Walid Bennani, vice president of Ennahda's parliamentary contingent, says his party believes that peaceful relations with the Jewish state would be possible as soon as Israel makes peace with the Palestinians.

“The constitution is not the place to legislate relations between countries,” he says.

However, Ghannouchi said Sunday that there could be no normalization with Israel, according to the official TAP news agency.

“Tunisians’ problem is with Zionism, not with Judaism,” he reportedly said.

Tunisia also has a growing and increasingly vocal Salafist move-

ment. Tunisia’s Salafists are Islamic fundamentalists inspired

by Saudi Arabia’s restrictive version of political Islam who felt oppressed by the secular, republican character of the Bourguiba and Ben Ali regimes. On March 23, Salafist protesters chanted antiSemitic slogans in downtown Tunis, provoking a tense standoff with a group of artists gathered in front of Tunisia's national theater.

Every major political party, including Ennahda, condemned the Salafists, whose chants included “death to the Jews.” A week later, Salafists called for a ban on normalization with Israel in a protest in front of the National Assembly building in Tunis.

profession.

“I’m looking for a job in any field now because I need the money. I don’t have anything else apart from my parents, and both of them are also unemployed,” she said.

Alcalay is not alone.

“There are many of my friends who have just finished university this year or last and can’t find jobs,” said Evie Leon, 24, a former head of the Jewish Youth of Athens.

The community tries to help.

Jewish businessmen network to find jobs for the young unemployed.

Two young men receive stipends for taking part in daily minyan.

“We are talking about simple jobs, we are not head hunting,” Mordechai said.

But ultimately it is not enough.

“The unemployment is so bad that unfortunately they are leaving for abroad, either to study or find work,” said David Saltiel, who heads Thessaloniki’s Jewish com-

munity, where the situation is equally grim, and is president of the Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece.

Leon says her friends in Greece are “depressed and stressed.” The rest have left and “are not planning on coming back until the situation gets much, much better.” Even though she has a job, she also is “looking into opportunities to leave the country.”

Alcalay’s 25-year-old sister is among those who left to study and did not return after she found a job with an IT company in the Netherlands.

“She wants to come back in a few years, but I don’t recommend it,” Alcalay said. “Even though I love her, I say don’t come back because you will be unemployed.”

Those who leave are doing what they can for themselves and their families. But leaders know and fear the toll this will have on the community.

“Ennahda’s election favored the emergence of a new fundamentalist section of the society, the extremists,” Larguech says. “And the two enemies of the democratic revolution are populism and extremism."

Ennahda confirmed moderates’ fears by proposing a constitutional ban on normalization of ties with Israel during a mock parliament held just after Ben Ali’s ouster. A year later there is almost no mainstream support for such a provision. Ennahda, which has proven responsive to the criticism from the country's large secular-liberal wing, also now opposes the norGREECE from page 9 “I can assure you we are in touch with the Jewish leadership in these communities,” Berkman said.

As of late February, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee had donated $330,000 for welfare and school scholarship to the Athens Jewish Community, according to a news release.

Such funding, however, will not keep the institutions alive and support the needy.

National unemployment is more than 21 percent and tops 50 percent among those under 25.

Albalas says the levels are about the same in the Jewish community.

For the young, the future looks like a wasteland.

“I have occasionally had some part-time jobs, but nothing permanent. It’s very disappointing,” said Alcalay, who has been searching for work as a nurse for 16 months and is considering abandoning her

ONE YEAR SUBSCRIPTION FOR ONLY

00 $1.

SPECIAL PASSOVER PROMOTION In anticipation of Passover this year and in our quest to do Tzedeka for the community we are having a special sign up.

Sign up as many people as you know and then send in the form below with payment for them to receive The American Israelite for 1 year for only $1. Restrictions do apply: Must be in-town; must be a new subscriber; can not be a renewal, and can not be somebody currently receiving. $1.00

NAME

ADDRESS

CITY

STATE

x1 x2 x3 x4 x5 x6 x7 x8 x9 x10 x11 x12 x13 x14 x15

AI

The American Israelite

Mail form along with payment to: THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE 18 W 9TH STREET, SUITE 2 CINCINNATI, OH 45202-4037 *Offer ends April 30, 2012

ZIP CODE

WHERE ARE YOU

GOING? 2 0 1 2 T R AV E L I S S U E DEADLINE: APRIL 19 | PUBLISHES: APRIL 26 To advertise, contact Ted Deutsch at 513.621.3145 / publisher@americanisraelite.com

AI

The American Israelite