Jewish Students Buckle Down for Lingering Election

By Rena Yehuda Newman November 4, 2020

Though litigation, demonstrations, and civil unrest seem likely, many Jewish students are focused on the pursuit of democracy. “The most important thing to remember is that everything we do is political.”

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How Jewish Students Prepare for the 2020 Election

By Rena Yehuda Newman November 3, 2020

Part one of New Voices Magazine’s 2020 Election coverage, reporting on Jewish student responses to this historic event.

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Beyond Continuity: Speaking Out Against Toxic Hookup Culture in Jewish Youth Groups

By Lila Goldstein October 30, 2020

“Four years after my entry into youth groups, I’ve finally been able to process the harmful culture I was subjected to. Now, I’m more than ready to join a discussion about consent and power in Jewish spaces; there is still much work to be done, and we need participation from the community as a whole in order to create a healthier culture for every Jewish teen.”

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Photo by Arighna Gupta

A Strike Against Despair

By Miriam Saperstein September 21, 2020

On the eve of Rosh Hashanah, a University of Michigan undergraduate reflects on the sense of possibility unleashed by the grad student strike.

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Here We Are: A High Holidays Podcast

By Zachary Federman September 17, 2020

Listen to a new two-part High Holidays podcast “Here We Are,” fresh out of Providence, Rhode Island. In a time of unprecedented turmoil, this group of Jewish students has gathered stories and reflections on how they’re entering the new year in the face of a pandemic, climate change, political upheaval, and personal struggle.

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College Relationships in the Time of Quarantine

By Monica Sager May 29, 2020

While states apart isn’t the preferred distance for many couples, for the time being, it seems like it will have to be the norm.

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At Columbia, Jewish Students Like Me are Caught in a Culture War

By Talya Wintman February 19, 2020

With the release of the Trump peace plan, it’s been made even clearer that the two-state solution is no more than a platitude — and international activism for Palestinian human and civil rights is more important than ever. However, as a prelude to this politically expedient deal, President Trump announced an executive order which risks…

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Maccabee Games

By Jess Schwalb December 27, 2019

“The reason that I went was that everything was paid for,” she said, adding, “It was so clear that there was an agenda, but I didn’t ask who funded it. I didn’t really want to look a gift horse in the mouth.”

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Rabbi Lawson Says Hineni

By Leonard Robinson III October 23, 2019

After the service, everyone exits the sanctuary to return to the Hillel House where an oneg awaits. Lawson’s wife Susan presents her homemade vegan challah for the rabbi to bless and the students to nourish themselves with. Despite many requests, neither Susan nor the rabbi will give up the secret recipe.

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Second Judaism On Our Own Terms Conference Wrestles with Sustainability

By Sophie Hurwitz October 18, 2019

Judaism On Our Own Terms (JOOOT), a network of college students attempting to build Jewish communities without major donor-fueled organizations like Hillel and the Jewish Federations, has only existed since last April. The weekend of September 16th, they held their second-ever national conference on the campus of Brown University.  According to one attendee, a former…

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A Program that Welcomed Scholars Fleeing Nazi Germany Still Harbors Academics in Exile

By Julia Métraux September 27, 2019

Turkish scholar Nazan Bedirhanoglu traveled to the United States after submitting a dissertation for her Ph.D at Binghamton University. Four days before she was set to return to her native Turkey, Bedirhanoglu received the news that she had been blacklisted by the Turkish government.

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Creating Space as a Disabled Jew

By Julia Métraux August 13, 2019

Growing up, immediately before I attended a bar or bat mitzvah ceremony, I was often filled with dread and embarrassment. I grew up in an interfaith household, and the only time I went to synagogue, other than when my family visited our more religious relatives, was to attend a friend or cousin’s b’nai mitzvah. I…

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Red Line Rebellion

By Jess Schwalb July 9, 2019

Though JOOOT-affiliated independent groups lack the financial resources and name recognition of Hillel International, they offer students a powerful invitation: create the Judaism you want to be a part of. Kahn believes that JOOOT’s impact will extend far beyond the campus. “We’re giving people a taste of what the potential of radically inclusive Judaism can be,” he says.

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J Street’s Israel-Palestine Trip Invites Critique and Hope

By Sarah Asch March 28, 2019

J Street recently announced the launch of a new free trip that will take American Jewish students to Israel-Palestine this upcoming July. The trip will include meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders and stops in both Palestinian cities and Israeli settlements in the West Bank. According to J Street U President and Stanford senior Eva…

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Converting to Judaism in Small-Town Kentucky

By Jay Wells March 14, 2019

Before 23-year-old Aleah Gabbard began her conversion to Judaism four years ago, she grew up around deeply-rooted anti-Semitism in Owensboro, Kentucky. Owensboro made national news this past Halloween when a resident wore a Nazi soldier costume and dressed his young son as Hitler. This incident reflects the environment that Gabbard experienced in public schools in…

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