Dillard University relaunches National Center for Black-Jewish Relations

On Jan. 17, Dillard University President Rochelle Ford announced plans to relaunch the Dillard University National Center for Black-Jewish Relations.

The reinvigorated center will continue the work of the initial center, which aimed to reduce hostilities that were emerging between members of the African American and Jewish communities, but it also will have action projects that build upon the conversations and relationships formed through the Center’s programs.

“Possibly worse than in the 1980s, when Dillard established the National Center for Black-Jewish Relations, America is polarized, with a growing distrust and hostility toward each other in the Black and Jewish communities. Often the conflict is a result of a lack of knowledge, appreciation and understanding of the alliances of the Black and Jewish communities during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, as well as the shared history of genocide and social experiences,” said Ford. “Instead of letting differences separate our communities, Dillard wants to reestablish bonds through conversations, education and learning that result most importantly in courageous actions to improve our society.”

One factor making the relaunch even more timely has been the attention that Kanye West and Kyrie Irving drew over recent antisemitic comments. White supremacists and other antisemitic groups have celebrated West in particular.

The center, the only one of its kind, was originally founded in 1989 by Samuel DuBois Cook, the fourth president of Dillard. He served from

1974 to 1997.

Under the leadership of Cook, the National Center for Black-Jewish relations hosted annual national conferences and produced the book, “Black-Jewish Relations: Dillard University Conference Papers,” which Cook edited. A classmate and friend of Martin Luther King Jr. at Morehouse College, Cook was greatly influenced in 1949 by his Jewish professor and mentor at Ohio State University while pursuing his doctorate.

Cook was on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council and was presented the Alfred W. and Genevieve Weil Medallion Award by the Jewish Chautauqua Society for his efforts in building more harmonious relationships between the Black and Jewish communities.

During its first eight years, the center’s activities were devoted to revitalizing the black-Jewish alliances that had been so successful during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. In 1998, the center expanded its charter to focus on the new realities of America’s future, asking African Americans and Jewish Americans what insights they can bring from their respective social experiences and intellectual traditions that can contribute to solving problems related to race and ethnicity.

The center has been dormant for the past two decades.

Rev. Herbert A. Brisbon III, Dillard University chaplain, will help lead the center’s planning committee’s efforts.

Joining Dillard in revitalizing the Center are: Aaron Bloch, JCRC/ executive director, Goldring Family Foundation Center for Jewish-Multicultural Affairs; Arnie D. Fielkow, immediate past CEO, Jewish Feder-

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ation of Greater New Orleans; Ron Gubitz, executive director, Tulane Hillel; William “Bill” Hess, trustee, Dillard University; Kahlida Nicole Lloyd, founder, Mission Reconcile; Wendell Shelby-Wallace, special advisor, Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and Shari Rogers, president, Spill the Honey.

As part of its King Legacy Celebration over King Weekend, Dillard partnered with Spill the Honey to host a screening of the documentary “Shared Legacies: The African American-Jewish Civil Rights Alliance,” in addition to a panel discussion with national leaders discussing the film and the status of Black-Jewish Relations.

The night before the screening, Bloch hosted a beloved community dinner where HBCU students, staff, faculty and alumni dined with civil rights leaders, the documentary’s directors, and other leaders in the Jewish community. The objective was for meaningful conversations to occur, creating a ripple effect to make meaningful connections and change.

Registration opens for in-person ISJL educator conference

The Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life’s Education Conference will be back in person at a new venue near Jackson, June 25 to 27.

Registration is now open for the conference, with early bird hotel rates at the Sheraton Flowood through April 1.

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The conference centers on the ISJL standardized religious school curriculum, which aims to give students a foundation of Jewish knowledge whether they are part of a religious school with 100 students and professional teachers, or three students and volunteer laypeople. The curriculum is currently used in 64 congregations in the 13-state region.

Last year, the Institute instituted “partnership levels,” where congregations could just get the curriculum, add access to the Program Bank and have remote consultations from the ISJL Program Associates, or add an in-person visit from a Program Associate.

The conference, which is for educators and congregational leadership, includes speakers and education specialists from across the country. There is no fee for the conference itself, the registration is for the hotel, meals and snacks.

Erik Lawrence weekend in Alexandria

Gemiluth Chassodim in Alexandria is hosting the Erik Lawrence Jazz Trio for the Bindursky Concert: “Songs of Spirit, Comfort and Hope,” March 5 at 3 p.m. The concert is part of a weekend with the Alexandria Museum of Art, with the “healing art of music” as part of their healthy living programming.

The concert is free and open to the community, a reception will follow.

Lawrence has toured the world as a saxophonist, flutist and composer. He has worked with a wide range of artists, and appeared on two Grammy-winning albums. His studies concentrate on the science and practice of sound and vibration and how it affects the body and mind.

On March 4 at 1 p.m. at the museum, he will lead a sound sanctuary workshop, a musically-guided sound meditation, using flutes from many cultures, bells, gongs, pitched bells and tuning forks.

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He is the son of Arnie Lawrence, a pioneering jazz saxophonist who moved to Israel in 1997. A 2018 Jerusalem Post piece about Erik’s appearance at the Jerusalem Jazz Festival said Arnie’s arrival in Israel pulled jazz in Israel out of inferiority. He founded the International Center for Creative Music and brought Jewish and Arab musicians together.

In 2019, Erik led musical workshops at B’nai Zion in Shreveport, where his sister, Jana De Benedetti, is the rabbi.

Jewish Cinema Mississippi returns

After a four-year hiatus, Jewish Cinema Mississippi returns with four films in mid-March.

The festival is moving to the Capri Theater in Jackson, and will kick off on March 19 at 2 p.m. with “Finding Hannah.”

“Finding Hannah” had its world premiere last month at the Miami Jewish Film Festival. Directed and written by legendary filmmaker Sidney J. Furie, the film is set in Israel and reunites Hollywood stars Barry Newman of “Vanishing Point” and Diane Muldaur of “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” who featured in his Paramount film “The Lawyer” more than five decades ago.

Eighty-year-old Isaac (Barry Newman) and his son Ryan (Jason Blicker) arrive in Israel on a quest to find Hannah Cohen, Isaac’s long lost teenage love from the outbreak of World War II. She was deported to Auschwitz, where many youth were exterminated upon arrival, but he has no idea what happened to her.

Though the name Hannah Cohen is a common Jewish name, Israeli tour guide Zeeva has determined that there are only three possible Hannah Cohens in the state of Israel that match the age and nationality of Isaac’s Hannah Cohen. The trio meet Anat (Muldaur), the headmistress at a multicultural youth village, who welcomes them and offers the services of her passenger van to travel across Israel to fulfill Isaac’s odyssey, but the journey has unexpected turns.

“Farewell, Mr. Haffman” will be March 20 at 7 p.m. Based on a multi Moliere Award-winning play, the French film is set in occupied Paris in 1941. When a decree is issued for Jewish residents to come forward and identify themselves, jeweler Joseph Haffman is concerned and arranges for his family to flee, and lets his employee take over the store for the interim. But when his escape plan falls through, he is forced to seek his assistant’s protection, moving in with his assistant and assistant’s wife, leading to a Faustian bargain, with his presence in the basement proving to be growingly hazardous.

“Matchmaking,” is on March 21 at 7 p.m. An ultra-Orthodox romcom, the film s about two young ultra-Orthodox singles eligible for a match. While they are smitten with each other, they aren’t allowed to date because he is Ashkenazi and she is Mizrahi — of Middle Eastern origin. Considered a great catch, he is set up on a series of dates with other girls, but knows he must pursue his true love. The slapstick film was Israel’s biggest box office hit in 2022.

The festival concludes with “Greener Pastures,” March 22 at 7 p.m. Dov is a 79-year-old widower who is forced into a nursing home by his family. Broke after losing his pension savings, he is obsessed with leaving the home and buying his old house back. Noticing that fellow residents smoke legal medical cannabis, he decides to become their supplier. Love, cops and gangsters enter the picture as he decides whether to risk it all. The film has been at a long list of Jewish film festivals since its 2020 premiere.

Festival passes are $48, $40 for seniors and students. Individual film tickets are $15.

Sponsor levels are available starting at $125 and going up to $2,500.

Temple opens doors for Doe’s remembrance

Hebrew Union Temple stepped in as Greenville remembered a local icon on Dec. 29. Florence Signa died at age 96 on Dec. 25. Pretty much anyone who ever dined at local landmark Doe’s Eat Place had met her.

“Aunt Florence” was married to Frank Signa, brother of Big Doe Signa, in 1948 and worked in the restaurant for over 70 years. Because the parish hall and kitchen at St. Joseph Catholic Church were being renovated, the Temple hosted the celebration of life in its assembly room following the graveside service at Greenville Cemetery.

The National Federation of Temple Youth South will have its Spring Kallah March 31 to April 2 at the Henry S. Jacobs Camp in Utica, for grades 8 to 12 The 1960s-themed weekend will include teens from across the region. Registration is open and early bird tuition is $195 through Feb. 24.

The Mobile Area Jewish Federation will have a golf tournament, the MAJF Jewish Open, on March 12 at Magnolia Grove golf course. Registration starts at 7:15 a.m. There will be a shotgun start in a 4-man scramble format. Registration is $120 per player or $420 per team. Sponsorships start at $300. Lunch will be served following the round.

The Southern Jewish Historical Society will hold its annual conference in Houston on Oct. 20 to 22, and the call for papers has a deadline of March 15.

Beth Israel in Jackson will have a luncheon and musical performance by George and Sherrie Glass, with Josh Wiener on piano, March 12 at 1 p.m. Donations are appreciated, and proceeds benefit Beth Israel. Reservations are requested.

Dothan’s Temple Emanu-El will have a silent auction fundraiser on March 11, time to be announced.

Anytown Alabama applications are now open. The social justice leadership camp is for students currently in grades 9 to 11, and will be held June 4 to 10 at Camp McDowell. Applications are due on March 10. Applications are at ACEalabama.org/anytownalabama.

The next Shabbat Halicha hike for Birmingham’s Temple Emanu-El will be on March 4 at 10 a.m., meeting at the Frankfurt Drive entrance to Red Mountain Park.

Bobby Gitenstein will speak via Zoom to Temple Beth Or in Montgomery about her book, “Experience is the Angled Road: Memoir of an Academic,” about growing up in Florala. The Zoom will be March 5 at 2 p.m.

Birmingham’s Temple Emanu-El will have a Blood Drive, March 7 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Temple Beth El in Pensacola will hold its annual Poker Tournament, Feb. 25. Doors open at 4:15 p.m., play starts at 5 p.m. The largest fundraiser of the year for the congregation, the tournament is a No Limit Hold’em, with a $100 buy-in in advance or $110 at the door. Rebuys are available until 7 p.m., with a one-time add-on at 7:15 p.m. The top nine players will receive non-monetary prizes.

The theater program at Birmingham’s Levite Jewish Community Center makes its post-Covid return with a youth production of “The Velveteen Rabbit: A Toy Story,” written by Patrick Flynn, based on the book by Margery Williams and commissioned by Adventure Theatre in Glen Echo, Md., in 2019. Performances will be March 16 at 5 p.m. and March 19 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for children.

It’s the time of year when Girl Scout cookies are everywhere — and it is a Southern Jewish thing. The Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life will have an online Virtual Vacation session on Feb. 28 detailing that history. Three of the first four Girl Scout troop leaders were Jewish, and the first Girl Scout cookies were produced in Savannah, at Gottlieb’s kosher bakery. The episode will feature stories from the early days of Girl Scouts in Savannah, and Southern Jewish women who have been involved in Girl Scouts for the past 50 years.

GatesFest announces musical lineup

Marc Broussard, Cowboy Mouth and the Preservation Hall All-Stars have been announced as headliners for the third GatesFest Music and Arts Festival, which will be held on April 2 at Gates of Prayer in Metairie.

Presented by the congregation in cooperation with Wells Fargo and Humana, the festival will feature food from top local restaurants, an Artist Village of over 20 local and regional artists, a Family Fest Area and a full day of music. Gates will open at noon and the festival will continue until 7:30 p.m.

Also featured will be the Lost Bayou Ramblers, Funk Monkey featuring Arsene DeLay, and Cap Carter, an Australian singer and songwriter making his U.S. debut.

In addition to musical performances, GatesFest will feature roaming brass bands and second lines between stage performances, and food and drinks from local favorites Creole Tomateaux, Wolf’s Burgers, and more.

The Family Fest Area, presented by the Jewish Community Day School and J-FLEx, will feature activities for the entire family, including snacks, arts and crafts, children’s music, magicians and storytellers.

This year, the festival introduces Krewe of Gatesfest and Composer VIP packages, providing guests with private 10x10 tents in prime viewing areas that include personal coolers loaded with snacks and beverages, as well as upgraded restrooms, priority parking, and a fully catered VIP Party with an intimate performance from one of the featured GatesFest artists the night before.

General admission tickets are $25. Children under 12 are free. Tickets are available at gatesfest.org.

Proceeds from the event support Congregation Gates of Prayer and the Gates Preschool.

Cha Wa headlines Jazz Fest Shabbat

Cha Wa, which has twice been nominated for a Grammy, will headline this year’s Jazz Fest Shabbat at Touro Synagogue in New Orleans.

Since 1991, the congregation has held a special musical Shabbat, usually on the first weekend of Jazz Fest. This year’s service will be on April 28.

Cha Wa is a slang phrase used by the Mardi Gras Indians, meaning “we’re comin’ for ya.” The group takes the Mardi Gras Indian sound, which captivated bandleader and drummer Joe Gelini when he was in high school. At the Berklee College of Music, he learned from New Orleans drummer Idris Muhammad and realized that so many drum rhythms were based on the Mardi Gras Indians.

He moved to New Orleans to immerse himself in the sound, and started performing with Monk Boudreaux.

In 2021, the group released its third album, “My People,” which was nominated for a Grammy, as was the previous album, 2018’s “Spyboy.” It was Cha Wa’s first album with Single Lock, a label based in New Orleans and Muscle Shoals that concentrates on creative Southern music.

A patron’s event precedes the service, including a festive dinner, exclusive performance by Cha Wa, and premium reserved seating for the service. Patron levels start at $180 and go to $4,000.