24
AUGUST 5, 2021 | The Jewish Home
evening at the local Chabad center before taking off for Turkey the next morning. “They wanted to try us with treason and missionary work,” Rochman said. “They were clearly trying to silence this project and send a message that no one should be documenting the Igbos.” He observed, “We came out there to tell a story, and unfortunately we became the story. This is just a fraction and a taste of what Igbos go through daily.”
Holocaust Expert Appointed U.S. Anti-Semitism Envoy The White House on Friday announced its appointment of Holocaust historian Deborah Lipstadt as U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism.
Lipstadt, 74, has authored several books, including, Beyond Belief: The American Press and the Coming of the Holocaust 1933-1945; History on Trial: My Day in Court with a Holocaust Denier; The Eichmann Trial; Holocaust: An American Understanding and Antisemitism: Here and Now.
Lipstadt is the Dorot Professor of Modern Jewish History and Holocaust Studies at Emory University in Atlanta, where she was the founding director of the Institute for Jewish Studies. Lipstadt is fluent in Hebrew. She received her BA from New York’s City College, and a MA and PhD from Brandeis University. She also fought a libel suit brought by Holocaust denier David Irving. Previously, she served in several roles at the United States Holocaust
Memorial Museum and represented the U.S. at the 60th anniversary of Auschwitz’s liberation, the White House added. Lipstadt is the fifth to be appointed to the post as envoy, but the first who requires confirmation by the U.S. Senate after Congress moved the position to ambassador level last year. Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Gilad Erdan praised the nomination, saying that “Lipstadt has dedicated her life to fighting anti-Semitism and preserving the memory of the Holocaust.” The Zionist Organization of America was displeased with the appointment, noting that Lipstadt shows “partisan left-wing bias” and that “Lipstadt obscenely and falsely likened President Trump to Nazi murderers and propagandists; helped promote a video that wrongly did the same.”
Vaccination Proof in NYC
De Blasio has been pushing vaccinations on New Yorkers. City workers are required to be vaccinated or face weekly testing. About 66 percent of adults in the city are fully vaccinated, according to city data, although pockets of the city have lower rates. For now, New York City is not requiring masks indoors, although de Blasio is encouraging New Yorkers to do so. As part of the new program, New York City will create a health pass called the “Key to NYC Pass” to provide proof of vaccination required for workers and customers at indoor dining, gyms, entertainment and performances. New Yorkers will be able to continue to dine outdoors without showing proof of vaccination. To enter indoor venues, they must use the city’s new digital app, the state’s Excelsior app, or a paper card to show proof of vaccination. “If you want to participate in our society fully, you’ve got to get vaccinated,” de Blasio said. “It’s time.”
Suni Lee Nabs the Gold
If you’re going to be dining or heading to the gym in New York City, make sure you have your vaccination card handy. New York City will become the first U.S. city to require proof of vaccination for a variety of activities for workers and customers – indoor dining, gyms and performances — to put pressure on people to get vaccinated, said Mayor Bill de Blasio on Tuesday. The program, similar to mandates issued in France and Italy last month, will start later this month, and after a transition period, enforcement will begin in mid-September. “It’s time for people to see vaccination as literally necessary to living a good and full and healthy life,” de Blasio said at a news conference. “Not everyone is going to agree with this, I understand that,” he said. “But for so many people, this is going to be a lifesaving act, that we are putting a mandate in place that is going to guarantee a much higher level of vaccination in this city. And that is the key to protecting people, and the key to our recovery.”
U.S. Olympic gymnast Suni Lee, 18, won the gold medal in gymnastics last week, earning the title of the women’s gymnastics all-around champion. She is the first Hmong American to compete in the U.S. games. In a statement after receiving her medal, Lee said, “This is such a surreal moment. I just feel like I could have never been here ever. It doesn’t even feel like real life. “There was a point in time where I wanted to quit, and I just didn’t think I would ever get here. So there’s definitely a lot of emotions. But I’m super proud of myself for sticking with it and believing in myself because this medal would not be possible without my coaches, the medical team, my parents. It’s just so surreal, and I haven’t even let it sink in yet.” Lee has overcome an impressive amount: She lost an aunt and uncle to COVID-19, suffered multiple inju-
