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…
Masked
As I strolled down Pico Boulevard on my second day back in America, I was struck by the friendliness of all the security guards I passed while en route to my destination. It took me a while to realize that…
My Maternal Grandmother is a Jewish Convert. So What am I?
Until she was a junior in high school, my maternal grandmother was unaware of the existence of Judaism. It was not her fault– she had been raised in what she calls a “bubble:” a religious community in rural Michigan, where…
Disloyal: Anti-AntiSemitism
In October of last year, President Donald Trump, a non-Jew, accused Rep. Ilhan Omar of ‘virulent antisemitism’ for characterizing the State of Israel as ‘hypnotizing’ the world to hide its evils, implying that Zionists are motivated by ‘the Benjamins,’ and…
The Power of Prayer
I believe that our generation is craving a spiritual connection. We can sense the depth of our existence even though an epicurean mist has made our vision hazy. Last year while working for the UCLA Journal of Religion I read…