Journalism by Jewish college students, for Jewish college students.
“What could any of us have done to deserve conquest, genocide or war? How could you possibly try to draw lines on land? Why can’t we be everything that we are?” Mirushe Zylali reflects on a year with New Voices and the Jewish Women’s Archive.
For Amna Farooqi, the newly elected president of the J Street U student board, what was once the elephant in the room has now become her job. Farooqi, a first-generation Pakistani-American, has been making headlines across the Jewish world as the board’s first Muslim president. She was elected to the position at the Aug. 17 J Street…
Witnessing the first day of the Presbyterian General Assembly has been both empowering and dismaying. I am glad to have been part of an effective coalition of Jews, Presbyterians, and Palestinians, and Muslims coming together to support the Presbyterian Church’s effort to divest from Caterpillar, Hewlett-Packard, and Motorola. But I’m dismayed by the opposition’s claim…
My grandmother tells this story about how a relative of hers who lived in Israel asked her, quite intensely, whether she was an American or a Jew. She didn’t know what to say; why couldn’t she be both? For many American Jews, including me, this question is ridiculous. I have no problems with the intersecting…
To the Jewish world, the name Damian Black means very little. He was a rapper from outside of Seattle, with his own music label and growing popularity. Unfortunately, as many can attest, success can make others feel threatened and force a response. Another rapper in the community did just that. He threatened D Black, as…
Good music calms your brainwaves and massages your emotions. But great music does something else too: It tickles your mind and makes you think. This winning combination of heart and intellect are what world band Epichorus inspires within curious listeners. Initially, you should expect to get lost in the exotic, meditative beats and richly layered sounds on debut album “One…
Today’s Required Reading shared a story about a set of atheist billboards directed at two cities with heavy Muslim and Jewish populations. Each print the name of God in Arabic and Hebrew. The billboards are sponsored by a group called American Atheists. Using the name of God to describe religious narratives as “myths” is (surprise,…
Atheist organizations unveil controversial series of billboards [Jewish Press] “You know it’s a myth… and you have a choice” reads a new series of billboards by the organization American Atheists. These billboards, placed in Paterson, New Jersey, and Williamsburg, Brooklyn (where heavy Muslim and Jewish populations reside, respectively) evoke the name of God: in Arabic…
NYPD tracked Muslim students, organizations [Columbia] Recent news that the New York Police Department willfully performed surveillance on Muslim student organizations in the name of anti-terrorism measures has been met with harsh criticism by many. In light of the fears this news may provoke, the Spectator, newspaper for Columbia College, unpacks the threat to free…
While researching my article about Jewish Greek life here at American University, one of the most Jewish private universities in the country (depending on who you ask), I ran into someone interesting. Ibraheem Samirah is a normal college student. He’s a junior studying political science and pre-dentistry, he likes hanging out with friends, he ran…
The man who vandalized a Jewish building at the University of Indiana turned himself in to police. [JTA] A Jewish student goes to India and takes a cooking class with three Israelis. Why are we not surprised? [Pink Pangea] Increasingly more Muslim students are attending Catholic universities. [WaPo] A British student leader says Jewish persecution is a…
Note: This article has been edited to reflect a correction. At first the article mentioned vandalism of the Northwestern University Chabad’s property, implying in context that that vandalism was driven by anti-Semitism. Although initial reports of that incident in October claimed it to be anti-Semitic, police later confirmed that the vandalism was not driven by…
There is no Two-State Solution. The IDF physically forced my grandparents from their home and chased them down the street, said Anwar, an Israeli-Arab. A group of us, mostly Americans, were sitting in a friend’s dorm alongside a full moon when the topic came up. She was recounting the story about the Nakba, cataclysm in…
Bethlehem, Christmas Eve 2009. It was a dark, still night. I huddled close with friends and drank hot tea poured from a thermos by a vendor circulating the crowd to keep warm. Red and blue lights illuminated the crosses over the Church of the Nativity. A towering fir tree glistened on the side of the…