Teaching “Never Again” as the Holocaust Fades from Living Memory
I was in elementary school when I first learned about the Holocaust. Every year at my Jewish day school, we had a school-wide, student-led memorial for Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day). Memorial candles marked the six corners of a Jewish star made of masking tape on the wooden floor, recalling the six million Jewish lives … Continue reading
Bill de Blasio is Playing With Antisemitic Fire
It has been clear for some time that antisemitic hate crimes have been rising in New York City. The Jewish community has worked hard to bring attention to the increasingly commonplace verbal and physical attacks, many of which aren’t even officially reported. For his part, Mayor Bill de Blasio has tried equally hard to ignore the … Continue reading
The harmful impulse to stifle coronavirus discussion
When did we stop caring what our fellow citizens think? If ever there were a time to remind us that no person is an island or that other people’s choices directly affect us, it’s now. With a pandemic upon us, the only way out of this crisis is through it — together. But you wouldn’t … Continue reading
melissa langsam braunstein 