Chloe Sobel

Tevye the Dairyman’s Seventh Daughter

By Chloe Sobel May 16, 2016

i. Tevye Comes to Brooklyn My dad and I read Sholem Aleichem when I’m young. He has a copy of Tevye the Dairyman and the Railroad Stories, but we stick to Tevye. We sit on the couch and he reads out loud to me. I grow up on Aleichem, not Fiddler on the Roof; my…

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IfNotNow’s protest at the ADL ended with 17 arrests — and stronger connections to Judaism

By Chloe Sobel April 22, 2016

IfNotNow’s “Liberation Seder” in New York on Wednesday began with a march from Bryant Park to the lobby of the Anti-Defamation League’s office building, and ended with the arrests of 17 protesters. The New York action was one of five that took place from April 19-21 held by the Jewish anti-occupation group. IfNotNow was founded…

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Stanford student’s apology for anti-Semitism misses the mark

By Chloe Sobel April 11, 2016

Last week, I wrote a news piece about a Stanford student who argued that the old anti-Semitic canard that Jews control the media isn’t necessarily anti-Semitism. Gabriel Knight, a student senator in Stanford’s Undergraduate Senate, was discussing the language of a resolution to support the Stanford Jewish community against anti-Semitism. Knight was referring to a clause that…

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Stanford student: Saying Jews control banks isn’t necessarily anti-Semitism

By Chloe Sobel April 6, 2016

  At a meeting of Stanford University’s Undergraduate Senate last night, a student senator said the idea that Jews control “the media, economy, government and other societal institutions” is “not anti-Semitism.” According to the Stanford Daily, Gabriel Knight was questioning the language of a resolution to support the Stanford Jewish community against anti-Semitism. The bill was…

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Swastika found off-campus at Brandeis — at a party hosted by Jewish frat

By Chloe Sobel April 5, 2016

  Sometime between Friday night and Saturday morning at Brandeis University, someone drew a swastika in condensation on the window of a house where the college’s AEPi chapter was hosting a party. Brandeis’ student population is 47 percent Jewish, according to Hillel International, and it was founded in 1948 as a non-sectarian, Jewish-sponsored university. “That a…

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Does the anti-Semitism debate at CUNY pose a threat to academic freedom?

By Chloe Sobel April 1, 2016

What exactly is going on at CUNY? The public university has recently come under fire from the Zionist Organization of America for alleged anti-Semitic incidents on some of its campuses, which ZOA is blaming on chapters of Students for Justice in Palestine. ZOA is so convinced of SJP’s responsibility that it has explicitly called for…

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Anti-Semitic slurs found in University at Buffalo admin building

By Chloe Sobel March 30, 2016

The University at Buffalo has been added to the list of university campuses that have seen anti-Semitic graffiti this year. According to The Spectrum, the anti-Semitic slurs were found on March 23 in a men’s bathroom in Capen Hall, the university’s main administration building. The University Police Department believes it to have been an isolated incident, but…

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Campus anti-Semitism isn’t always about Israel

By Chloe Sobel March 29, 2016

Today, the Forward published six students — five studying at American universities, one in South Africa — who answered a call to write about an experience at college that had shaped their Jewish identity in ways good, bad, or other. It’s an interesting read. The preface states that “every student interpreted the question as being about…

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University of California approves statement condemning anti-Semitism

By Chloe Sobel March 24, 2016

The University of California’s governing board has signed off on the “Statement of Principles Against Intolerance,” which condemns anti-Semitism and anti-Semitic forms of anti-Zionism. The original statement, which has since been revised, stated that “anti-Semitism, anti-Zionism and other forms of discrimination have no place at the University of California.” The University of California Academic Council objected to the original language…

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Emory J Street U: Student government failed us

By Chloe Sobel March 23, 2016

The J Street U chapter at Emory University has released an op-ed in The Emory Wheel describing the events that led to their charter being revoked due to what they say was lack of professionalism on the student government’s end. Emory J Street U received a charter in November 2015 after a hearing and an additional request from…

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Bibi is wrong: Brussels is not Israel

By Chloe Sobel March 22, 2016

In 1996, I moved to Brussels. In 2000, I left. In 2007 and 2011, I went back again, both times for only a few short days. I have no Belgian ancestry or citizenship, but I’ve always felt a little bit Belgian — it’s hard not to, when it played such an important role in my…

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Anti-Semitic graffiti found at Brown Jewish frat

By Chloe Sobel March 18, 2016

On the night of March 17, the Brown University undergrad residence that houses Jewish fraternity Beta Rho Pi and co-ed fraternity Zeta Delta Xi was defaced with anti-Semitic and homophobic graffiti. According to an email provided to New Voices, written by the interim assistant vice presidents of Brown Campus Life & Student Services, Mary Grace Almandrez and…

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The Kvetch-Up: Why are people still surprised that anti-BDS campaigns don’t work?

By Chloe Sobel March 14, 2016

Welcome back to our weekly news round-up, where we try our long-winded best to summarize the Jewish news of the week. If you read something here that you want to say something about, get in touch: editor@newvoices.org. Jay Sanderson, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, told Haaretz that Israeli government officials need…

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The Kvetch-Up: Robots may be the future of Israel activism

By Chloe Sobel March 7, 2016

Welcome back to our weekly news round-up, where we try our long-winded best to summarize the Jewish news of the week. If you read something here that you want to say something about, get in touch: editor@newvoices.org. Yesterday, the Vassar Student Association voted to pass a resolution that called for it to politically support the BDS…

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The Kvetch-Up: Everyone wants a vote in student government

By Chloe Sobel February 29, 2016

  Welcome to the revival of our weekly news round-up, where we try our long-winded best to summarize the Jewish news of the week, with bonus pop culture stars at the end. If you read something here that you want to say something about, get in touch: editor@newvoices.org. Students at McGill University in Montreal voted against…

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