Is it Purim Already? On Judaism and Drinking

Alcohol and religion do have somewhat of a love-hate relationship, not unlike alcohol’s relationship with college. It’s true, alcohol (wine especially) does tend to play a role in a lot of religious practices and rituals. For the most part however,…

Prepare for Purim: A UCLA schedule of events

In 2017 The Forward named UCLA “America’s third best college for Jews” and the best on the West Coast. UCLA’s numerous Jewish organizations, the availability of kosher food and the school’s Jewish studies program all factored into the decision. As Purim approaches, the…

Taste of Torah: Humility and the Menorah

The third Aliyah of this week’s Torah portion, Terumah, goes into great detail while describing the elaborate instructions for the construction of the Menorah. However, Rashi comments that Moshe just threw a block of gold into the fire, and the…

Rahm Emanuel Speech Interrupted by Protesters

During a speech on campus this week, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel outlined his vision for urban renewal and argued that Chicago ought to serve as a model for the rest of the nation, continuing to speak despite repeated and loud…

Student workers’ divestment demands may be bad news, despite no mention of Israel

UAW 2865, which represents UC campus TAs, included a “financial practices” demand in a new list of goals ahead of contract bargaining with system administrators in June.

Israel should do more for non-Jewish refugees

Three years ago, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to accept any Syrian refugees, citing Israel’s “lack of demographic and geographic depth.” Netanyahu characterized such a policy as a threat to the majority Jewish character of Israel, even though pro-refugee…

Announcing: Kol Ha’Am

Ha’Am Newsmagazine is proud to announce our latest initiative, Kol Ha’Am, UCLA’s brand new Arts and Literary Magazine. Kol Ha’Am, literally meaning “voice of the people” in Hebrew, is dedicated to showcasing Jewish creators and to exploring the Jewish experience…

Taste of Torah: A Unified Nation

Reform. Conservative. Reconstructionist. Orthodox. Unaffiliated. Just Jewish. Not that Jewish. We all have been asked the question before, “What kind of Jew are you?” And we’ve all responded, sometimes enthusiastically and sometimes hesitantly, with how we label ourselves. Imagine if…