A “Die-In” at Bard College

By Misha Schaffner-Kargman December 28, 2023

“As the war continues, students search for an outlet for their grief, and ways to do something that feels meaningful. But constraints like social anxiety, institutional pressure, and blacklisting have made activism difficult.”

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Image of a black painted fist in a circle on a white diamond on a stone wall.

The Mizrahi Black Panthers Dreamed of a Different Future

By Maia Golzar Anderson August 20, 2023

“At this moment of heightened conflict, we must remember, and draw inspiration from the Mizrahi legacy of intersectional activism through the Mizrahi Black Panther Party in Israel.”

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Is Ye the New Wagner?

By Miri Verona June 14, 2023

“He just has so many bangers!” said another Jewish friend begrudgingly the same week, dismayed that we weren’t putting Ye West on the playlist for the rager that night.

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Review: “The Rational Passover Haggadah” by Dennis Prager

By Drew Perkoski March 2, 2022

Published this week by a conservative Christian media group, New Voices sat down to read Dennis Prager’s new haggadah.

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Diaspora English: An American Election in Israel

By Daniel Crasnow December 2, 2020

“While American Jews continue to care about Israel, Israelis do not care as much about America.”

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Meet the Young, Progressive Voter Constituency Budding in Los Angeles’ Persian Jewish Community

By Sophie Levy November 5, 2020

“I used to feel so ostracized, so stigmatized and isolated because of my leftist beliefs…but I don’t feel like a pariah anymore. The network of support I’ve found with other young Persian Jews is small, but it’s really made an immediate difference in our lives. It feels like there’s been a shift in the ground I’m standing on.”

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“The Itch to Create”: A Jewish Currents Fellowship Reflection

By Jess Schwalb February 6, 2020

I rediscovered the power of art and creativity from the other New Voices fellows; when I write the next niggun, I will send it to them first.

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My Pluralistic Agenda

By Sara Weissman November 16, 2017

Over the course of my time at New Voices, I’ve been called a lot of things in comment sections, tweets, and emails from dubious Hotmail accounts. I’ve been called a radical leftist, a right-wing apologist, a snowflake, a “silly little girl who should listen to her mama.” (My mama is a progressive, too – surprise!)…

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Dear Teachers, We Have an Israel Education Problem

By Sarah Asch September 15, 2017

Dear Jewish educators, First, I would like to thank you for dedicating your lives to helping students like me understand faith and tradition. Thank you for allowing me to develop life-long friendships, for allowing me to grow my creativity and for patiently fielding my questions. Thank you for encouraging my feminism and my passion for…

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Between Politics and Religion: Jewish Activism at Columbia

By Solomon Wiener December 20, 2016

Originally published in the Fall 2016 edition of The Current. Since the famed student uprising of 1968, many generations of Columbia students have felt an obligation to perpetuate the legacy of the late 60s by creating a myriad of activist clubs and organizations here on campus. And not uncommonly, Jewish students have occupied prominent lay…

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Jewish Institutions, Oppose Bannon – or Millennials Will Leave You Behind

By Marc Daalder December 8, 2016

Over the past three weeks, President-elect Donald Trump’s choice of Steve Bannon for chief strategist has drawn a lot of attention. Bannon has been accused of turning conservative website Breitbart News into a home for neo-Nazis and the alt-right movement, of being a racist, a white supremacist, and even an anti-Semite. At the same time,…

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Is the Other Side as Stupid as You Think?

By Daniel Levine November 23, 2016

Original version published on whoknowsoneblog.wordpress.com. With our country divided, and the finger pointing showing no sign of decreasing, we need to step back and wonder, what led to this national split? The answer goes beyond this election and ultimately lies deeply rooted in social psychology. It is antithetical to any sort of intellectual or constructive conversation to…

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Students Protest Steve Bannon at the ZOA Gala

By Sara Weissman November 21, 2016

“Racist, fascist, anti-gay! Stephen Bannon, go away!” Jewish protesters shouted last night as they marched toward the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City – where Stephen Bannon, Donald Trump’s appointed chief strategist, was invited to attend this year’s Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) Gala. When police told protesters to disperse outside the hotel or risk…

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Steve Bannon: Sympathy for White Supremacists in the White House

By Jackson Richman November 16, 2016

President-elect Donald Trump has started to select members for his upcoming cabinet. Two positions have already been filled: Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Preibus as chief of staff and Breitbart News Executive Chairman Steve Bannon as chief strategist. The former is a sane and solid choice, based on his experience in the GOP establishment, while…

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We Can Fight Our Fear of Trump’s America

By Rebekah Sherman November 14, 2016

Original version published on the blog “floating, falling, flying.”  The election of a United States president should not be met with fear. I am in Tacoma, Washington, where the sky is usually cloudy, gray, and dripping with rain. Today, though, the clear blue sky seems to be taunting me. “Look how much better things are up…

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