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Israel is under attack, with over 1,500 rockets fired from Gaza, millions of Israelis in bomb shelters, and the threat of further violence continuing in Jerusalem and throughout the country.  In this week’s episode, we bring you highlights from AJC’s live Advocacy Anywhere online event with AJC Jerusalem Director Avital Leibovich and i24news Senior Correspondent Owen Alterman. Hear their front-line report on the evolving crisis and AJC CEO David Harris’ inspiring closing message.  Then, AJC Director of Contemporary Jewish Life Laura Shaw Frank joins us to explain what we need to know about the Pew Research Center’s just-released Jewish Americans in 2020 report.  ____ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Avital Leibovich and Owen Alterman (19:32) David Harris   (26:31) Laura Shaw Frank (38:40) Avi Mayer (41:29) Manya Brachear Pashman (44:25) Seffi Kogen ____ Show Notes: Frontline Report: Escalation in Israel - AJC Advocacy Anywhere Pew Research Center: Jewish Americans in 2020 report More information on the May 20th Advoc

This week, we speak to Emi Palmor, former Director-General of Israel’s Ministry of Justice and a current member of The Oversight Board, which makes binding policy decisions on Facebook and Instagram, to discuss the board’s ruling on Facebook’s indefinite ban of former President Trump and other recent decisions.  Then, leading American Jewish historian Jonathan Sarna, a professor of American Jewish history at Brandeis University and the author of American Judaism: A History and When General Grant Expelled the Jews, joins us to kick off Jewish American Heritage Month and reflect on what advocates can and should draw from the history of Jews in America. _____ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Emi Palmor (7:40) Jonathan Sarna (27:24) Holly Huffnagle (29:42) Manya Brachear Pashman (33:07) Seffi Kogen ___ Show notes: Music: “Hava Nagila” by Sam Bikov Translate Hate and Quiz

Earlier this month, six world powers reopened negotiations with Iran over the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), from which the United States withdrew in 2018. Washington Institute Director of Research Patrick Clawson, a longtime friend of American Jewish Committee, joins us to discuss the implications of those talks and the threat posed by Iran. Then, AJC Project Interchange Director Nisha Abkarian joins us to share her grandmother’s harrowing story of survival during the Armenian Genocide and the significance of President Biden’s recognition of the events of 1915. ___ Episode Lineup (0:40) Patrick Clawson  (21:51) Nisha Abkarian (26:00) Manya Brachear Pashman (29:06) Seffi Kogen

On April 27, 2019, in the middle of Passover, a white supremacist burst through the doors of a Chabad synagogue in Poway, California and opened fire, killing congregant Lori Gilbert-Kaye and injuring three others. As we approach the second anniversary of the shooting, we speak to Mayor Steve Vaus, a Grammy-winning country music singer, who was serving his first term as Poway’s mayor at the time.  Then we’re joined by AJC Paris Director Anne-Sophie Sebban-Bécache to talk about the case of Sarah Halimi, a 65-year old French woman who was murdered in 2017 because she was Jewish. France's highest court has ruled that her killer will not stand trial due to his “delirious state” from smoking marijuana. _____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Mayor Steve Vaus (15:32) Anne-Sophie Sebban-Bécache (19:02) Manya Brachear Pashman (22:15) Seffi Kogen ____ Show Notes: One Candle by Steve Vaus

Author and journalist Yossi Klein Halevi joins us to talk about the wisdom of the Israeli calendar in how Israel remembers the fallen on Yom HaZikaron, followed by celebrating its independence on Yom HaAtzma’ut the very next day.  Then, we’re joined by Erica Mindel, AJC’s Assistant Director of Program Development for Project Interchange, who served in the IDF as an Armored Corps instructor and shares what this week means to her.  _____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Yossi Klein Halevi (25:53) Erica Mindel (27:45) Manya Brachear Pashman (30:25) Seffi Kogen  _____ Show Notes: A Conversation with Yossi Klein Halevi about His New Best Seller Orthodox Jewish Women Can’t Sing In Front of Men. Instagram Is Giving Them a Voice Music: Hatikvah (National Anthem Of Israel) - Beta Records - United States Navy Band

Elie Wiesel walked out of Buchenwald, one of the largest concentration camps in Germany, on April 11, 1945, the same day as the late father of journalist Howard Reich, the legendary former jazz critic for The Chicago Tribune. Reich never talked to his father or mother, both survivors, about their Holocaust experiences. But in 2001 Reich’s mother began to relive those experiences, and his quest to piece together the stories he never knew about led to his book and subsequent film, Prisoner of Her Past. Nearly a decade later, Reich sat down to interview Elie Wiesel and discovered an instant connection, which he wrote about in The Art of Inventing Hope. Reich joins us to discuss all this, plus how jazz helped him confront his family’s past. Then, in honor of Yom HaShoah, we’re joined by Lilli Platt, AJC Senior Development Director and Director of Women's Leadership Board, who was born in a Displaced Persons (DP) camp and is the child of Holocaust survivors.  _____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Howard Reich (23:01) Lil

This week we hear from Martin Doblmeier, the director of Spiritual Audacity: The Abraham Joshua Heschel Story on the history of one of the most inspiring and preeminent scholars of the 20th Century. Doblmeier discusses Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel’s profound impact on the civil rights movement, the relationship between Jews and the Roman Catholic Church, and the “evil of indifference.” Then, Natalia Mahmud, AJC’s Associate Director of U.S. Muslim-Jewish Relations, speaks about the Jabara-Heyer NO HATE Act, ahead of its reintroduction in Congress, and in honor of baseball’s Opening Day, we dip into AJC’s Oral History Library to hear directly from one of the greatest Jewish baseball players ever, Hall of Famer Hank Greenberg, also known as “The Hebrew Hammer.” Greenberg recounts what it was like to be a Jewish baseball player in the 1930s and 1940s and the level of antisemitism he had to endure.   _____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Martin Doblmeier (16:55) Natalia Mahmud (19:36) Manya Brachear Pashman (23:00) Seffi

This week we’re joined by Allison Kaplan Sommer, Ha’aretz journalist and panelist for The Promised Podcast, to discuss some of the headliners from the Israeli election: potential kingmaker and Ra’am Party leader Mansour Abbas and Rabbi Gilad Kariv, who will be the first Reform rabbi to serve in the Knesset. Kaplan Sommer also discusses how democracy plays out in Israel and the United States and what it’s like to live in Israel, a complex, multicultural society. Then, AJC CEO David Harris shares a moving Passover message about his first-hand involvement in the Soviet Jewry movement and modern-day exoduses.  _____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Allison Kaplan Sommer (18:26) David Harris (20:27) Manya Brachear Pashman (23:34) Seffi Kogen

Ahead of the March 23rd elections in Israel, we’re joined by Haviv Rettig Gur, The Times of Israel's senior political analyst. Gur discusses the highly polarized sentiment around Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the conflict within the Haredi community over pandemic restrictions, and the gap between the positions of the political parties that represent Arab Israelis and the concerns of Arab Israelis themselves.  Then, Dina Siegel Vann, Director of AJC's Belfer Institute for Latino and Latin American Affairs, reflects on the anniversary of the 1992 suicide bombing attack on the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, which left 29 dead.  _____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Haviv Rettig Gur (23:16) Dina Siegel Vann (26:23) Manya Brachear Pashman (29:45) Seffi Kogen

This week, we’re in conversation with Eli Rosenbaum, Director of Human Rights Enforcement Strategy and Policy at the Department of Justice. For 40 years, Rosenbaum has helped the department track down former Nazis and hold them accountable for their World War II crimes, a role that has earned him the moniker of “Nazi Hunter”.  Then, Shira Loewenberg, Director of AJC's Asia Pacific Institute (API) speaks about the wide-scale democracy protests across Myanmar in the weeks since the local military’s February 1 coup d'état.   _____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Eli Rosenbaum (19:45) Shira Loewenberg (22:37) Manya Brachear Pashman (25:31) Seffi Kogen ___ Episode Transcript

This week, the Israeli Supreme Court handed down a ruling on conversions conducted by non-Orthodox rabbis. We hear from AJC's Director of Contemporary Jewish Life Laura Shaw Frank, a leading thinker on this important issue, about how this decision will affect the Israel-Diaspora relationship. Then, in celebration of International Women’s Day, Director of AJC’s Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights Felice Gaer reflects on what it means to see the world and human rights through women’s eyes.  _____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Laura Shaw Frank (17:10) Felice Gaer  (19:38) Manya Brachear Pashman (23:34) Seffi Kogen ___ Episode Transcription 

Journalist Soraya Nadia McDonald is the Culture Critic for The Undefeated, ESPN’s platform for exploring the intersection of sports, race, and culture. She is a Pulitzer Prize finalist for her essays on theater and film, including The Unbearable Whiteness of Oklahoma. Last year, when her fellow Howard University alumnus Nick Cannon made antisemitic remarks, Soraya wrote a more personal essay about being Black and Jewish. Soraya sat down with us for a conversation about confronting antisemitism as a Black Jewish woman.  Then AJC Chief Advocacy Officer Dan Elbaum reflects on his 11 years at AJC, Manya Brachear Pashman discusses Michael Che’s antisemitic joke on Saturday Night Live, and Seffi Kogen on criticism of a Jewish storyline on the NBC show “Nurses”.  _____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Soraya Nadia McDonald (19:14) Dan Elbaum (22:28) Manya Brachear Pashman (25:40) Seffi Kogen _____ Show Notes: Tell NBC: Antisemitism Isn’t Funny - Petition Episode Transcription

Last weekend, the International Criminal Court at The Hague determined that it has jurisdiction in the West Bank and Gaza, taking a major step toward prosecuting Israelis for alleged war crimes. To help us unpack what’s been happening and what it means for Israel, we’re joined by Barak Ravid, Contributing Correspondent for Axios and Diplomatic Correspondent for Walla News. Then we hear from AJC Chief Innovation Officer Belle Yoeli on the power of song during the pandemic, Manya Brachear Pashman on how Israel expects the unexpected, and Seffi Kogen on how snow is affecting both the United States and Israel.   _____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Barak Ravid (17:22) Belle Etra Yoeli (19:26) Manya Brachear Pashman (22:12) Seffi Kogen _____ Show Notes: Episode Transcript

This week, we’re in conversation with Joel Finkelstein, cofounder and director of the Network Contagion Research Institute, a nonpartisan, multidisciplinary research group of experts who study online disinformation, and Pamela Paresky, a senior scholar at the Institute who focuses on the psychology of thriving in a liberal democracy. Both have been sounding the alarm about the dangers of the antisemitic conspiracy theory movement QAnon and they join us to discuss what we can expect next from the movement and how we can take steps to stop it.  Then we hear from AJC Managing Director of Global Communications Avi Mayer on storytelling and AJC’s Arabic video series, Manya Brachear Pashman on President Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Seffi Kogen on the second impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump.   ____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Pamela Paresky and Joel Finkelstein (19:05) Avi Mayer (21:18) Manya Brachear Pashman (24:15) Seffi Kogen _____ Show Notes: Arabic Video on Protocols of the El

A controversial curriculum for teaching ethnic studies in California public schools will face a final vote in March. Since the first draft came out in 2019, a coalition of Jewish organizations has advocated for content that meaningfully includes Jews and other groups, discusses antisemitism, and avoids perpetuating stereotypes that put Jews in danger. We sit down with Director of AJC Northern California Rabbi Serena Eisenberg about the curriculum and why it should matter to all of us. Then, on Shabbat Table Talk, AJC’s Chief Field Operations Officer Melanie Maron Pell joins us to speak about AJC’s Mayors United Against Antisemitism initiative, Manya Brachear Pashman on why she isn’t laughing at the Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) jokes, and Seffi Kogen on antisemitism on college campuses. ____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Rabbi Serena Eisenberg (13:24) Melanie Maron Pell (18:15) Manya Brachear Pashman (20:27) Seffi Kogen _____ Show Notes: We need your help before California’s Ethnic Studies Model Cur

In honor of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, the Museum of Jewish Heritage held a special event, “18 Voices: A Liberation Day Reading Of Young Writers’ Diaries From The Holocaust.” We sit down with Broadway actress Mandy Gonzalez, who read diary excerpts during the virtual reading, and Alexandra Zapruder, curator of “18 Voices” and author of “Salvaged Pages.” Then, we speak to Lahav Harkov, Senior Contributing Editor and Diplomatic Correspondent for The Jerusalem Post, about Israel’s record-shattering vaccine rollout and the controversy over access for Palestinians. Finally, to close out the episode, past president of AJC Westchester/Fairfield Beverly Block Rosenbaum shares the story of her mother, a survivor of multiple concentration camps who was told by a Nazi officer that she was “too pretty to be a Jew,” to which she bravely replied: “I am a Jew and I’m proud of it.” ___________________ Episode Lineup (00:45) Mandy Gonzalez (11:28) Alexandra Zapruder (27:41) Lahav Harkov (38:15) Beverly Block Ros

One day after inauguration, we sit down with AJC Chief Policy and Political Affairs Officer Jason Isaacson to discuss President Joe Biden’s inaugural address and what to expect from the new administration. Then, we hear from AJC Senior Director of Policy and Political Affairs Julie Fishman Rayman on how to engage with those with whom we disagree, Manya Brachear Pashman on President Biden’s call for truth and his condemnation of white supremacy, and Seffi Kogen on the photo of Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) that launched a million memes. _____ Episode Lineup:  (0:41) Jason Isaacson (16:10) Julie Fishman Rayman (19:26) Manya Brachear Pashman (21:46) Seffi Kogen

This week, we sit down with Daniel Lombroso, director of The Atlantic’s first feature documentary, White Noise, an inside story of the far right in America. Lombroso, who spent four years with the leaders of white supremacist and antisemitic movements, joins us to discuss how that period informs his perspective on the horrific events of January 6 at the United States Capitol and the ensuing fallout. Then, if you missed our special episode yesterday, freshman Congressman Ritchie Torres (D-NY) shares his reflections on the antisemitism, racism, and white supremacy he witnessed on January 6; impeachment proceedings in Congress; and how the nation can move forward.   _____ Episode Lineup:  (0:40) Daniel Lombroso (24:42) Ritchie Torres (39:11) Holly Huffnagle (41:50) Manya Brachear Pashman (44:44) Seffi Kogen ________ Show Notes: White Noise on Amazon Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/White-Noise-Lauren-Southern/dp/B08M5XPRLT White Noise on Apple TV: https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/white-noise/umc.cmc.6m36k2zgur

Tune in for an exclusive conversation with freshman Congressman Ritchie Torres (D-NY) about the horrific events of January 6 at the United States Capitol. Listen as he shares his reflections on the antisemitism, racism, and white supremacy he witnessed that day; impeachment proceedings in Congress; and how the nation can move forward.  _____ Show notes: We must not ignore the presence of antisemitism in the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol - Instagram post: https://www.instagram.com/p/CJywbSQLJuV/

Earlier this week, we spoke to former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro, who served alongside President-elect Joe Biden in the Obama administration and was an advisor to his presidential campaign. Ambassador Shapiro broke down what we can expect from the Biden administration when it comes to Israel, Iran, the Palestinians, and the Abraham Accords. Then, as our nation reels from Wednesday’s mob attack on the United States Capitol, AJC Director of Contemporary Jewish Life Dr. Laura Shaw Frank, Manya Brachear Pashman, and Seffi Kogen share their reactions to the riots on Shabbat Table Talk.  _____ Episode Lineup:  (00:40) Daniel Shapiro (23:17) Laura Shaw Frank (26:48) Manya Brachear Pashman (29:29) Seffi Kogen _____ Show Notes: 12/17 Episode with UN Mideast Envoy Nickolay Mladenov: https://www.ajc.org/news/podcast/un-mideast-envoy-nickolay-mladenov-celebrating-hanukkah