“In each and every generation,” we read in the Passover Haggadah, “it is one’s duty to regard themselves as though they had personally gone out of Egypt.” During the first night’s seder this year, I found myself further reflecting on…
Toys Were Us: The Decline of Youth
—- “Youth is dead” is a doozy of a claim, but it’s a valid claim. Maybe youth itself isn’t what’s dying, but youthhood. When I talk to my parents, my Jewish Papa, or my hometown Rabbi, they reminisce about the…
Addition by Subtraction
In high school, I remember my algebra teacher used to tell our class: “to subtract a number, add its opposite.” At the time, I appreciated the advice only for its cliched simplicity. As I got older, this statement stuck with…
A Rainbow Filter Can’t Fix This…
“Never forget” is a phrase that is easier said than done. As much as we would like to believe that society has advanced far enough to accept history as fact, and teach it as such, book bans are now commonplace…
New Year, Still The Same Old
Not again. As we gear up for the start of winter quarter amid a nationwide spike in Omicron cases, most UCLA students may also be experiencing symptoms of déjà vu. Memories of the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic gather…
Jews in the Civil Rights Movement
On March 21, 1965, Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. marched from Selma to Mongtomery, Alabama in order to support voting rights for African Americans. Next to him stood Rabbi Abraham Joshua Herschel, a Jewish theologian who faced Nazi perseuction…
2021: A Promised Land for American Jews?
With 2020 in the rearview mirror, it is a good opportunity to look at what 2021 holds politically for American Jews. 2020 saw the (current) best chance for a Jewish president fizzle out in March, when Bernie Sanders suffered primary…
Has Social Media Helped Anti-Semitism?
Anti-semitism has been alive and well not just for decades, but for centuries, and has expanded its grasp to reach every corner of the world. As society has progressed with technology, specifically towards social media, the expression of hate has…
#JewishAndProud?
I’m sick of responding to antisemitism. I’m burnt-out on the hashtags and the Facebook profile picture frames. And I’ve just about had it with the way that every Jewish thing I do feels calculated and performative. Our institutions instruct us,…
Your Feelings are Valid. Your Trauma is Valid.
Spanning from ancient history to modern times, the Jewish people have endured an abundance of trauma. Every day there is a new anti-Semitic attack making the news. Additionally, many individuals continue to be affected by the Holocaust even 80 years…