As we start a fresh academic term on campus, it is only appropriate that we get to know the new family running the Jewish Awareness Movement (JAM) at UCLA, the Hanflings. For those of you unfamiliar with JAM, it is…
Taste of Torah: And Then We Begin
By Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan Rabbi Kaplan is one of the JLIC educators at UCLA. This past Monday and Tuesday, many congregations throughout the United States and around world finished the annual cycle of reading the Torah in its entirety. The…
Sigma Alpha Mu Engages With Jewish Community
On October 19th, UCLA’s Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity, commonly known as “Sammy,” co-sponsored a Sukkot dinner in their Sukkah with the Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus (JLIC). With an attendance of over 30, members of both communities joined together to celebrate…
Taste of Torah: The Ethical Side of Sukkot
It is fascinating that we can read the weekly Torah portion and find some point that resonates most with us. This week’s Torah reading, that of Sukkot, poses no exception. In the portion we read on Sukkot, found in Leviticus…
Attending class during the holiday
There is perhaps no decision more representative of the difficulties of being a practicing Jewish college student than the quintessential question of whether or not to attend class during Chag. To me, this is not a question of grades or…
Posters targeting BDS supporters, Jerry Kang appear on campus
UCLA students, faculty, and staff passing the Janss Steps or behind Powell Library Oct. 5 may have noticed the red, black and green posters portraying Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) as Hamas supporters and calling law professor Jerry Kang…
Taste of Torah: Hope in the future
This week’s Torah portion is Bechokotai, a parshah that is full of both promises of rewards for obeying the commandments, and the punishments for not obeying them. One such punishment mentioned is exile. Looking at history, one can see that when the Torah…
Ha’Am 2015-2016 Staff Video, “So Many Jews”
“So Many Jews,” a parody of “Too Many Cooks.” Sung by Soof Hacohen and Jackson Mercer with impressions by AJ Goldsman. Edited, filmed and directed by Joey Levin. http://bit.ly/haamsmj
On today’s tragedy
This morning, June 1, a terrible shooting took place at UCLA in the Engineering complex. Two people died and the entire campus was put under lockdown for more than two hours. Ha’Am extends condolences to the families of the dead. We…
Resolving the problem of the Jewish Left
In my previous article I outlined the several reasons why the Jewish left is in an existential crisis, my goal in this piece will be to provide a potential solution to this problem, a solution which preserves the role of…