09/27 Links Pt2: The Left's embrace of violence against Jews; On visible and invisible Jews; David Collier: The Labour Party conference; The Holocaust That Never Happened

From Ian:

Stop Enabling the Antisemites Who Live Closest to Our Homes

We should reflect deeply on our withdrawal from Afghanistan. The lesson of Afghanistan for the Jews—a lesson we should have learned a thousand times—is that if you want to survive, you need to rely on yourself. You cannot subcontract your defense and protection to anyone, least of all to faux human rights activists and their deluded supporters who sit in ivory towers: intellectuals who write and think all day, who preen with academic arrogance, but are incapable of understanding what is really going on in people’s hearts. Preoccupied with their shallow self-righteousness, they ignore even basic human emotions, motivations, and drives; bleeding hearts who have no heart for bleeding Jews. It is all academic for them. We should have the courage, the decency, the honesty to say that our side, the liberal side, is wrong. We, too, are writing and supporting untruths—vicious, malicious, fallacious, audacious lies.

All of us, especially young adults, teenagers, and university students—you need to feel antisemitism in your kishkes. Learn to appreciate subtlety, nuance, and context. Develop the capacity to distinguish between legitimate critique and the new mutated form of antisemitism dressed up in the garments of pathological anti-Zionism. If you oppose Israeli policies, say so. Be active. Try to influence and make a difference. But whatever you do, you cannot give comfort, cooperation and credibility to those who hate your people. Often what they oppose is not the excesses of the Israeli military, but that a Jewish army exists at all. Jewish tank commanders, Jewish fighter pilots are disorienting to a world that had grown accustomed over the centuries to passive, disempowered Jewish victims—the kind that Rudi Vrba described.

President Roosevelt read the Vrba-Wetzler report sometime in the summer or fall of 1944. Although nothing like the eyewitness account and detailed sketches of the machinery of extermination were previously documented, the broad intentions of the Nazis to annihilate European Jewry were known as early as 1942. The Americans knew. The British knew. The Swiss knew. The Vatican knew. Even The New York Times knew. The victims, themselves, did not know, until the doors were slammed shut and Zyklon pellets were released into what they thought were shower rooms. The Allies never bombed the tracks or the gas chambers, as Vrba urged. Roosevelt insisted that the best way to save the Jews of Europe was for the Allies to win the war as quickly as possible.

For his entire life, Vrba regretted that his report failed to save the Jews of Hungary. George Klein reminded Vrba that he saved at least one Hungarian Jew. To save even one life is to save the entire world, according to our sages. Furthermore, said Klein, you played a role in saving at least 100,000, perhaps 200,000, Hungarian Jews.

In the aftermath of the report, international pressure was placed upon the Hungarian regent, Miklos Horthy, and he intervened to stop the deportations in July—only one week before the scheduled final transport of the Jews of Budapest. Klein suggested to his new friend that even if Hungarian Jews had read the report in full, most of them would have still gotten on those trains. “Denial is natural,” said Klein, who had himself shared the report with 12 other people. None believed him.

George Klein and Rudi Vrba went on to live full and productive lives. They made significant contributions to the well-being of the world. It is the best response to those who hate Jews. Keep moving forward. Find meaning and purpose. Help others. Show compassion. Fight for justice. Defend your people. Resist evil. Warn the world.

The Left's embrace of violence against Jews

The Rutgers faculty and the supporters of the bill to deny Israel Iron Dome share one common view: terrorism against the Jewish state is acceptable, in their minds, because they devalue Israel’s existence and because justice for the Palestinian Arabs is desirable—at any cost—including Jewish lives.

Why should Israel have the advantages of modern technology and weaponry—even with strictly defensive purposes—if the ever-aggrieved Palestinians are, in their minds, dispossessed, occupied, suppressed, and stateless? Why should Israelis be spared the threat of being murdered in their homes, schools, discos, and pizza parlors if terrorists—and their apologists—have decided they have a moral and legal right to carry out such acts because they seek "social justice" and are "victims", it is falsely asserted, of Zionism’s imperialism, colonialism, and militarism?

This explains why the Left has regularly glossed over terroristic behavior on the part of Islamists—Hamas, Hezbollah, Fatah, the Al Aqsa Brigades, or others—and has romanticized this violence as “resistance.” But that idealized world requires that state actors behave in rational ways, something that is clearly absent in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict in which Islamist theology, apocalyptic views of the world, a longing for martyrdom, and genocidal ethnic hatred underlie the ideology of Israel’s current enemies, all of whom are terrorist groups and not conventional armies.

This rationalization, that violence is an acceptable, not to say welcomed, component of seeking social justice—that is, that the inherent “violence” of imperialism, colonialism, or capitalism will be met by the same violence as the oppressed attempt to throw off their oppressors—is exactly the style of self-defeating rationality that in this age has proven to be an intractable part of the war on terror.

America-hating and Israel-hating academics and policymakers have not infrequently wished for harm to come to these countries at the hands of the victim groups to whom they readily give their sympathies. They frequently, and mistakenly, ascribe to poverty and helplessness the inclination to lead to terrorism on the part of otherwise weak and oppressed individuals, although a glance at terrorist backgrounds proves that false.

And, like Leftist apologists for other examples of revolutionary violence, they see an opportunity for the tables to be turned on the oppressors and an equal distribution of suffering to be brought about in the resulting power shift.

Additionally, the Left’s being in the thrall of multiculturalism has meant that radical members of Congress like the “Squad,” not to mention university faculty and students, have been seeped in an ideology that refuses to demarcate any differences between a democratic state struggling to protect itself and aggressive, genocidal foes who wish to destroy it with their unending assaults. For the multiculturalist Left, the moral strengths of the two parties are equivalent, even though the jihadist foes of Israel, for example, have waged an unending struggle with the stated aim of extirpating the Jewish state through the murder of Jews.

Thus, this inclination to worship multiculturalism forces liberals to make excuses for those cultures which have obvious, often irredeemable, moral defects, such as the Islamist foes who currently threaten Israel and the West.

It also, apparently, justifies stripping Israel of its very right to defend its citizens from being murdered by the genocidal impulses of Hamas, even when those defensive weapons protect Arab and Muslim lives as well as those of Jews. But in the name of social justice, only the perceived suffering, human rights, justice, and very lives of the "downtrodden" Palestinian Arabs are of interest to Leftist radicals, and if Jews have to die as part of Palestinian self-determination, so be it.

If this is not naked anti-Semitism played out very publicly so that anyone with a moral compass can see it, then nothing is.

The Holocaust That Never Happened

“The Holocaust That Never Happened” Hannah Baron (20, Los Angeles) interviews Efraim Donitz (83, Los Angeles)

“I hear you want to know about the Holocaust that never happened.”

This was Efraim Donitz calling me back to respond to my request for an interview. I arrived at his house in Los Angeles the next day and sat across from him in his living room.

He was only 3 when his family moved to a ghetto in Transnistria some 80 years ago. I doubted he would remember much. But I was wrong. “I remember everything,” he said. “That’s the problem.”

Despite his vivid memories, he spoke of the period like he was giving a history lecture, rather than relaying personal experience. But there were brief moments in which Efraim was overcome with emotion. They happened most frequently when he spoke about how the world remembers—or, rather, doesn’t remember—those events rather than the events themselves.

A few years ago, he and his wife embarked on a pilgrimage through the sites of the occupation. He wanted to show these places to his children and grandchildren because he had been there: “I lost my mother there, and I lost my sister. It’s a part of my life.”

When they were looking for Babi Yar in Kyiv, their tour guide took them to the wrong memorial. For a long time, they couldn’t find a driver who would be willing to take them to the actual site of the massacres. When they finally got there, they found it desecrated. Later, they were told that their tour guide and the drivers likely knew exactly where Babi Yar was, but refused to take them. It made them angry.

Back home in Los Angeles, Efraim tried to get others to hear about it. “I’ve tried everywhere, nobody wants to listen,” he said. He volunteered to teach at the Holocaust museum, and though the museum’s donors appeared very enthusiastic about the idea, he never got a call back.

“I’m just disappointed in the whole thing.” This time, the crack in his demeanor was almost a sob.

Most of the world didn’t have an obligation to remember Babi Yar, he said. But Jews do.

“That is why this is the Holocaust that never happened.”

On visible and invisible Jews

During the middle days of the Sukkot festival, small groups of haredi kids can be seen wandering along the thoroughfares of New York City’s Upper West Side, asking passersby whether they are Jewish. If the answer is affirmative, they will proffer a lulav and an etrog so that the same passerby can perform one of the sacred traditions of the holiday. The kids are effusive but also polite, and most people who encounter them, Jewish or not, do so good-naturedly.

But not everybody. Walking up Amsterdam Avenue last Thursday, I caught sight of a middle-aged woman scolding a haredi boy of about bar mitzvah age who was standing behind a display table. As I got closer, I noticed that she was jabbing her finger in his direction while she pontificated—although amusingly, the look on the kid’s face suggested that whatever she was saying was going in one ear and out the other.

Once I was in earshot, the first thing I heard her say was, “there’s enough anti-Semitism around without you people making it worse.” I hadn’t planned to interject, but I couldn’t let a remark like that (“you people”) go unanswered. So I faced her and said, “Ma’am, I’m sorry, but you should know that Jews are never responsible for causing anti-Semitism. Anti-Semitism is a non-Jewish problem.”

Arching her eyebrows at me, her first response was to say, “I’m Jewish,” with the inflection in her voice insinuating that since I probably wasn’t, I should mind my own business. As I speak with an English accent and was dressed casually without a kipah on my head, I can understand why she might have come to that conclusion, but I quickly disabused her on that score before explaining that being Jewish doesn’t give you a pass when it comes to making anti-Semitic comments. “You’re telling a Jewish child that he’s provoking anti-Semitism just by standing in the street,” I told her.

At this point, her commentary became a whole lot worse. The young boy she was yelling at wasn’t wearing a mask, and this was the source of her displeasure. Was I not aware, she asked me, that “these kids are coming up here from these communities in Brooklyn where none of them are vaccinated and they don’t wear masks?”

Leveraging diverse background, Fleur Hassan-Nahoum seeks to bring unity, cohesion to agency

Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem Fleur Hassan-Nahoum is one of the candidates to head the Jewish Agency, the largest Jewish nonprofit organization in the world. If elected, she would become the first woman to head the agency.

Established in 1929, the Jewish Agency predates the state itself and acted as a central player in its establishment and development. Today, it facilitates aliyah to Israel, in addition to the absorption of immigrants and funds programs in Israel and around the Jewish Diaspora. “Its history and impact are immeasurable on the state of Israel,” Hassan-Nahoum told JNS.

Former chairman Isaac Herzog recently vacated the position when he became Israel’s 11th president this summer, following the seven-year term of Reuven Rivlin.

For now, Yaakov Hagoel is serving as acting chairman of the Jewish Agency. Traditionally, the prime minister suggests a candidate, who must be approved by nine of 10 members on the selection committee (including Hagoel and other representatives of the World Zionist Organization, Keren Hayesod and the Jewish Federations of North America), and with unanimous confirmation from the board of governors. The chosen successor will serve a four-year term.

The Israel Guys: 3 Reasons Why “Breaking the Silence” Is NOT WHO YOU THINK They Are

I’m sure you’ve heard of them. IDF soldiers giving personal, eye-witness testimonies on camera about how they abused Palestinians during their time in the Israeli military. What could be more authentic?

Today, we’re going to examine three reasons why Breaking the Silence is not a credible organization, and instead, built on lies and anti-Israel rhetoric.

Get ready to bust through some fake news and connect to the true and authentic stories of Israel.

David Collier: The Labour Party conference (and being thrown out at another JVL event)

The first vote at the party conference
The first debate was on the adoption of constitutional laws to adhere to EHRC rulings following the damning report which had concluded the Labour Party acted unlawfully. There was not really much choice in this but the vote still had to pass. It was clear from the debate that this was going to receive a large majority. Jewish members spoke and received ovations – other members came out in solidarity. Very few dissented.

When one woman shouted out about ‘Palestine’ she was quickly silenced. When another raised the Palestinian flag they were told flags were not allowed in the conference hall. This was all million miles from the toxic atmosphere at the 2017 and 2019 events.

The second vote and a warning
The trouble here is that many of the people in the hall giving the Jewish members standing ovations – were also in the hall waving the Palestinian flag in 2019 or treating JVL as heroes in 2017. Many of these delegates are sheep, just leaning in the direction of the wind. At the moment that wind is blowing towards Keir Starmer.

Which is why, as welcome as it was to feel a different breeze in the hall, we cannot read too much into what we are witnessing. Yes there are some good signs – but there are bad signs also. Which brings me to the second vote.

Two sides of the same coin
The second debate was about a change to the leadership election process. Starmer wanted to change the system so as to make another Corbyn style takeover much more difficult.

This debate was different. Speaker after speaker took to the stand and this was a different breed. Most signalled their opposition to the changes. There was one who did it in a Corbyn t-shirt. Another had a JVL badge. Most had PSC lanyards.

Starmer won this vote too – but only just – with 52% of the vote. These delegates may have been forced to give up on the EHRC battle – but they were not willing to so easily surrender their hope for another Corbyn style project in the future.

It was an odd spectacle because the same ethical force drove both debates. On the one hand the floor roundly stood with their Jewish colleagues who had been so badly treated. On the other many refused to rule out repeating the exercise That contradiction is a sign of how much trouble the party is still in.

Labour’s new antisemitism complaints process backed by three-quarters

Nearly three-quarters of delegates at Labour Party conference have endorsed a new independent complaints process prompted by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) report into antisemitism the party.

But in a swipe at the remaining 24 per cent of delegates who failed to support the changes that the party were ordered to adopt by the watchdog, the Jewish Labour Movement’s vice-chair Ruth Smeeth branded the rebels as “racist.”

The changes to disciplinary procedures will affect the handling of complaints about antisemitism, Islamophobia, other forms of racism, sexual harassment, and discrimination.

Keir Starmer said the approval of the moves represented a “decisive and important day in the history of the Labour Party.”

He added:”I promised to tackle antisemitism in our party. We’ve now closed the door on a shameful chapter in our history. I want to acknowledge the courage of all the people who spoke up against it.”

After Labour’s ruling NEC had backed the moves earlier this month, under Labour’s rule book, they needed final approval at party conference.

When the results emerged on Sunday evening 73.6 per cent of delegates voted in favour of the changes, with 26 per cent opposing the EHRC’s recommendations.

And in an often emotional debate on the Brighton Centre conference floor a stream of Jewish Labour figures stepped up to speak in favour of the changes to disciplinary procedures, in a move aimed at repairing the damage of the Jeremy Corbyn era.

UK Labour members OK motion accusing Israel of ‘ongoing Nakba in Palestine’

Delegates in the British Labour Party on Monday passed a resolution condemning Israel for allegedly perpetrating an “ongoing Nakba in Palestine,” drawing outcry from some party officials.

“Conference condemns the ongoing Nakba in Palestine, Israel’s militarised violence attacking the Al Aqsa mosque, the forced displacements from Sheikh Jarrah and the deadly assault on Gaza,” the motion passed at the main opposition party’s annual conference read.

“Nakba,” which means “catastrophe” in Arabic, is used by Palestinians to denote Israel’s establishment in 1948.

The motion brought by Young Labour passed at Monday’s conference with about twice as many votes for as against, according to the Jewish News website.

It added that “together with the de facto annexation of Palestinian land by accelerated settlement building and statements of Israel’s intention to proceed with annexation, it is ever clearer that Israel is intent on eliminating any prospects of Palestinian self-determination.”

The delegates recognized “unequivocal” reports by the Israeli left-wing NGO B’Tselem and the New York-based Human Rights Watch that branded Israel as an “apartheid” state.

The motion also noted a Trades Union Congress in 2020 that described Israel’s West Bank policies, including settlement building and what it charged was annexation, as “another significant step towards the UN Crime of Apartheid.”

Different leader, but same Jew hatred and antisemitism in @UKLabour! #Lab21 https://t.co/NyXTsc9lb7

— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) September 27, 2021

LBC political editor ‘assaulted’ by ‘notorious antisemite’ at Labour conference

The political editor of radio station LBC has accused notorious anti-Israel activist Tony Greenstein of “assaulting” him at a fringe event at the Labour Party conference.

The incident on Sunday evening took place during a Jewish Voice for Labour event listed in the Labour Party official guide, entitled: ‘Labour in crisis: Tackling racism in the party’. It was chaired by JVL’s Jenny Mason and attended by former shadow chancellor John McDonnell.

LBC’s Theo Usherwood tweeted: “I have just been been forcibly removed from the JVL fringe event at the Labour Party….I was assaulted by Tony Greenstein, who was in the event, and was expelled from the Labour Party for antisemitism… he grabbed my phone.

Usherwood was later allowed back into the meeting and tweeted: “Listening to one speaker declare the EHRC findings are being used by ‘Starmer to run a tyrannical regime’.”

Greenstein was declared bankrupt earlier this year after losing a libel case after being called a “notorious antisemite”. He was ordered to pay Campaign Against Antisemitism more than £81,000 after unsuccessfully suing for libel. He also lost a subsequent appeal.

.@nytimes are toxic, they consistently downplay antisemitism or make antisemitic comments. According to this article by @_stephencastle antisemitism in @uklabour was “allegations” & “infighting” he doesn’t mention @uklabour breaking the equalities act! https://t.co/tLWZ7IjzY6

— GnasherJew®????? (@GnasherJew) September 26, 2021

Dr. Osama Abuirshaid Executive Director of American Muslims for Palestine: Israel Is a Parasite That Sucks the Blood of America; The More Americans Know about Israel the Less They Like It #Israel #antisemitism #IronDome @AMPalestine @OsamaAbuirshaid pic.twitter.com/QWEk1NQ0wV

— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) September 27, 2021

‘Courageous’ Palestinian Coyotes: Daily Beast Encourages Human Trafficking Into Israel Despite Security Threats

Seemingly out of nowhere and for no good reason, Israel built a wall that has, according to Salmon, “facilitated the continued annexation of Palestinian territories by Israel.”

In fact, the construction of the security barrier was in direct response to the unprecedented wave of violence unleashed by Palestinian terrorists beginning in September 2000 against Israeli citizens during what became known as the Second Intifada.

This dark period saw over 1,000 Israeli civilians and soldiers killed. An additional 7,000 were injured as a result of suicide bombings and shootings. The Israeli government thus approved and began construction of the security barrier in an attempt to stop rampant Palestinian terrorist infiltrations and murders.

Due to the security fence’s effectiveness, suicide bombings carried out by Palestinians entering Israel from the West Bank decreased sharply. The number of such attacks fell by 90 percent. In 2002, 457 Israelis died from terrorist attacks. In 2009, that figure had dropped to eight Israelis.

Despite the barrier’s success, a spasm of recent violence emanating from the West Bank attests to the continued precariousness of Israel’s security:
- On September 8, hundreds of Palestinians rioted across the West Bank and Jerusalem, in solidarity with the six security prisoners who had broken out of Gilboa Prison earlier in the week.
- On September 8, a Palestinian man tried to stab two IDF soldiers at a hitchhiking station in the West Bank.
- On September 13, a Palestinian teenager from the West Bank stabbed two Israeli men inside a pharmacy near the Jerusalem Central Bus Station, moderately wounding them.
- On September 17, dozens of Palestinians in eastern Jerusalem threw stones and hurled firecrackers at the police and at Jewish homes.

The Daily Beast article praises human smuggling in Israel. However, The Daily Beast covers the scourge of human trafficking quite differently when it is happening outside of Israel:
- How Mexico’s Cartels Are Behind the Border Kid Crisis
- The Border Crackdown is Forcing Migrants to Become Mexican Cartel Slaves
- The Smugglers Cashing In on Children’s Misery
- 2 Smugglers Jailed for Death of Aylan

Moreover, The Daily Beast and other outlets are so fixated on lambasting Israel that they are oblivious to the dire state of human trafficking inside the Palestinian Authority (PA)-run West Bank. According to the US Department of Labor’s Bureau of International Affairs, the PA “does not criminally prohibit child trafficking or forced labor in accordance with international standards. In addition, laws criminalizing commercial sexual exploitation of children are insufficient because they do not criminalize the use, procuring, and offering of all male and female children for prostitution, the production of pornography, or pornographic performances. Further, there are no criminal penalties for recruiting children into non-state armed groups.”

Everyone knows Jews aren’t funny.

— Bethany S. Mandel (@bethanyshondark) September 27, 2021

Guardian op-ed actually suggests the UN doesn't condemn Israel enough

We’ve looked into it, and it appears that a Guardian op-ed arguing that the UN hasn’t condemned Israel enough isn’t a parody, and (based on the date it was published) doesn’t appear to be an April Fool’s joke or a Purim Spiel. Here’s the headline of the Sept. 25th piece, co-authored by long-time Palestinian official Hanan Ashrawi and former Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi:

In addition to hurling false charges of apartheid and the antisemitic charge of “Jewish supremacy” at Israel, the modern revival to the 1975 Soviet-PLO ‘Zionism is racism’ resolution, the op-ed argues that only if the UN General Assembly (UNGA) acts to hold Jerusalem accountable and investigate their crimes can it “restore faith” in its ability to act on the most pressing issues. It also calls on the UNGA to form a “special UN committee” to “dismantle” Israel’s racist policies.

Evidently, the co-authors are somehow unaware that Israel is not only already on the UN’s “agenda”, but, year after year, is obsessively critical of of the Jewish state whilst ignoring truly horrific human rights abuses by other nations. From 2015 till today, according to UN Watch, the UNGA has passed 157 country specific condemnatory resolutions, 112 of which (71% of the total) were against Israel. By comparison, during that time, Iran only garnered 5 such condemnatory resolutions, North Korea 6, and Syria 8. China has not been condemned at all.

At the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), there have been 170 country specific condemnatory resolutions, 95 of which targeted Israel (56% of the total), which is nearly nine times as many as the resolutions critical of Iran. In fact, Israel is the only country at the UNHRC whose human rights record is examined under a special agenda item (No. 7), while all other countries’ records are scrutinized in the general debate. It has adopted zero resolutions on gross human rights abuses perpetrated by nations such as China, Cuba, Egypt, Gaza, Russia, Turkey and Zimbabwe.

HATE CRIME HOAX: Black University Employee Arrested For Allegedly Painting Racist Graffiti on School Building

In August, someone painted several racist and offensive slurs on a building at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. At the time, local news outlet WSBTV reported that the “Emory Autism Center has become the target of several crimes, including burglary and vandalism, including graffiti of racial slurs and swastikas.”

A police report for the incident also mentioned that vending machines in the building were vandalized, along with a glass door that had been shattered. A large rock was found several feet away.

“The area where racial slurs were reportedly written along the walls are near the workspace occupied by two African-American women and a swastika was in a hallway near a Jewish man’s office,” WSBTV reported.

In a statement, Emory University spokesperson Laura Diamond told the outlet: “These acts of racism and antisemitism are painful for all of us at the EAC and in the Emory community. They will not be tolerated, and every effort will be made to bring the perpetrators to justice.”

A week later, the perpetrator was charged with burglary second degree by Georgia law enforcement and named as Roy Lee Gordon, Jr. The College Fix reported on August 25 that the school was refusing to reveal Gordon’s race and that he wasn’t charged with a hate crime even though such slurs would typically lead to such a charge.

The Fix reported that the school refused to provide a copy of the police report, arrest warrant, or photos of the alleged vandalism.

When Gordon was arrested on August 20, Emory released a much more sanitized statement, saying, “Emory University is committed to fostering a safe and inclusive campus for all faculty, staff, students, patients and their families.”

Entire League Protests Referee Demanding Yarmulka be Removed

I would like to share a story about my friend Motti Avraham, who hails from Montreal, Canada. He is a 15-year-old talented athlete, whose passion is soccer.

In January 2021, Motti signed up to play in a competitive municipal soccer league. The rule is that before every game, all the players go to the referee for a safety check. He makes sure they are wearing the proper gear; shin guards under their socks, cleats, etc.

Before one such game, the referee noticed a yarmulka on Motti’s head.

“You are not wearing that”, he said.

Motti asked why and the referee responded curtly, “I don’t have to tell you.” Motti protested, but to no avail.

Per the rules, Motti would be allowed to wear a sports bandana which would hide his yarmulka. However, the referee’s remark of “You are not wearing that” did not sit well with him. He thought for a while, bravely summoned the courage to approach his coach and told him clearly that he was not removing his yarmulka, even if it meant not playing.

The coach then conferred with the referee whose ruling was that if Motti played with a yarmulka, he would get a red card. It would have meant the automatic ejection of Motti and that his team would remain shorthanded for the remainder of the match.

Just as the game was about to start, to Motti’s amazement, the coach told the whole team to get down on one knee in protest. It was then that the coach told the players what was going on. The stunned players then heard about the referee not allowing Motti to play with a yarmulka and that if the team continued to protest and not play, it would be a forfeit and an automatic loss.

The coach from the opposing team didn’t quite understand what was happening. When he heard what the protest was about, he instructed his team to get down on one knee in support of Motti.

On This Day: French Jews given full rights under law

On September 27, 1791, the French National Assembly voted to give the Jewish people of France equal rights under the law.

Gradual improvement in conditions for Jews was making headway leading up to the vote. In 1785, the poll tax on Jews was abolished, and restrictions on locations of Jewish settlement were abolished.

However, when the Declaration of the Rights of Man was passed in August of 1789, it was interpreted at the time to not including Jews.

The Loi relative aux Juifs was passed September 27, 1791, proposed by Adrien-Jean-Fracois Duport. The text reads:
"I believe that freedom of worship does not permit any distinction in the political rights of citizens on account of their creed. The question of the political existence of the Jews has been postponed. Still, the Muslims and the men of all sects are admitted to enjoy political rights in France. I demand that the motion for postponement be withdrawn, and a decree passed that the Jews in France enjoy the privileges of full citizens."

World War II Letter Connects Families of Jewish Survivors, Polish Farmer Who Hid Them

The descendants of two Holocaust survivors and the farmer who hid them from the Nazis in Poland have connected with the help of a recently discovered post-World War II letter.

Karolina Jurzyk, 35, said that in 1942, her great-grandfather, Stanislaw Jurzyk Sr., and his wife hid two orphaned sisters, both in their 20s, at their family farm east of Warsaw during the war. That same year, Stanislaw’s wife died in childbirth, leaving him to raise their children alone while still caring for the women. The sisters stayed at the farm for two years before leaving.

Jurzyk never knew her great-grandfather, who died in 1989, but his son (her grandfather), Stanislaw Jurzyk Jr., did recall those days.

Not long ago, Karolina’s father discovered a letter from 1948 that the women wrote to Stanislaw from a displaced person’s camp in Germany. The letter carried the full names of the correspondents—Fela and Jadzia Kejzman—and after searching online, Jurzyk found them on the genealogy website MyHeritage.

She messaged the family tree’s host, Karen Norman, 42, who is Jadzia Kejzman’s granddaughter. The two women have since corresponded online and look forward to speaking on the phone soon, CNN reported. Their families and MyHeritage hope to apply to Yad Vashem to have Stanislaw recognized as a Righteous Gentile for the Righteous Among the Nations honorific and database.

Norman revealed that after the war, her ancestors moved to North America and had families: her grandmother in Toronto and her great-aunt Fela in Chicago. Jadzia died several years ago, and Fela passed away in December at the age of 103.

Police Chief From Small Town in France to Be Named ‘Righteous Among the Nations’ by Yad Vashem for Saving Jews During the Holocaust

A Nazi-era police chief from a rural Protestant town in France is to be declared a “righteous among the nations” by Yad Vashem due to his efforts to save Jews targeted by collaborationist forces during World War II.

At the time, France had been conquered by Nazi Germany, and was ruled by the pro-Nazi puppet Vichy regime, which aided the Germans in rounding up Jews and sending them to their deaths.

As the BBC reported Saturday, the small town of Vabre proved an exception to the general atmosphere of collaboration and antisemitism. Led by town pastor Robert Cook, it united against the Vichy regime and became a center of Resistance activity. In addition, the town had long had business ties with Jews in the Paris garment industry, many of whom found sanctuary there.

Partly because of the memory of their ancestors’ own persecution as Protestant Huguenots in the 1600s, the town citizens sympathized with Jews hunted by the Germans and their collaborators, a phenomenon that reached its peak in 1942.

Police Chief Hubert Landes took the lead. After his men participated in a mass arrest of Jews in another town, Landes decided never to allow such a thing to happen again.

A year later, when another roundup was on the way, Landes warned the targeted Jews, and many of them went into hiding or joined the Resistance — including a Jewish Resistance group in the area, called the Compagnie Marc Haguenau.

In 2015, Vabre itself was named a “Town of the Righteous” by Yad Vashem. Now Landes himself will be named a righteous among the nations, joining Pastor Cook, who has already been recognized as such.

Aharon Jakobson (wearing a white shirt in the center of the photo), dances with a torah scroll along with fellow members of the Zionist Youth Front during #SimchatTorah in the Lodz ghetto.

Aharon was later murdered at Gleiwitz, a sub-camp of Auschwitz https://t.co/kvl6vgwWz5 pic.twitter.com/FcdvxnRluv

— Yad Vashem (@yadvashem) September 27, 2021

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