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Jewish Space Lasers
When Republican Congresswoman Majorie Taylor Greene blamed the Californian wildfires on a secret Jewish Space Laser, the internet went wild with memes. Mel Brooks’ ‘Jews in Space’ featuring Star-of David-shaped spaceships, flown by haredim, singing of the glories of ‘defending the Hebrew race’ was particularly popular. As was the Death Star of David. There were also […]
A Scholarly Unorthodox
Karen H. Skinazi reviews Zalman Newfield’s Degrees of Separation. When my teenage son was little, he used to sway back and forth if he was concentrating hard on something—a book, a puzzle, a Lego creation. ‘Who knew shokeling was hereditary?’ we joked. My husband comes from Hasidische stock. If my son still shokels while he […]
It’s Time to Celebrate Jewish Power
Loolwa Khazzoom celebrates the Jews in the new Biden administration. I watched inauguration day with great emotion, for numerous reasons, including the fact that a Black Indian woman is in the White House, for the first time in history. I was equally excited not only about the corollary fact that there is a second gentleman […]
Introducing Tsitsit, the Jewish Fringe
Alastair Falk tells us about a new initiative and wants your support. You will know the feeling. It’s the Edinburgh Fringe and there’s this huge list of performances which you are desperately working out how to choose what to try and see. Of course, for Jews it’s always slightly easier: just look for shows that […]
A Trip to (Jewish) Shanghai
In need of a little armchair travel in lieu of the real thing, Karen Skinazi revisits a trip to Shanghai, where she is amazed by both the cosmopolitan city and the thriving Jewish community she finds there. When we’re not playing Settlers of Catan, or watching movies on Disney+, or going on chilly walks and […]
Dear Mandy: A Jewish woman, a Muslim woman, and an interfaith book group
In the second of these paired posts, Abda responds to Mandy‘s letter published yesterday. Dear Mandy Thank you for your insightful letter. I never imagined when we met that such a wonderful friendship would bloom, not only with you but with so many remarkable women. Nisa Nashim book club is so much more than a […]
Dear Abda: A Jewish woman, a Muslim woman, and an interfaith book group
In these paired posts, Abda and Mandy, members of the Nisa-Nashim West Midlands Book Group, reflect on learning from reading Jewish and Muslim books, and from each other. Dear Abda, Over twenty years ago, my Jewish reading group started, reading Jewish writers – mostly fiction, poetry, and memoir. We are reading our brothers, fathers, and […]
Naivety not Nativity: 40 Years of Limmud
Alastair Falk looks back at four decades of Limmud. For forty years, every Christmas, Jews have been wandering the wildernesses of deserted university and school campuses. This is because of Limmud, the energetic alternative to the traditional festivities in Britain. This year’s Limmud Festival ( even the name now hints at its seasonal feel) may need to […]
On Jewish communal sex-that-is-not-sex
Continuing our series, Keith Kahn-Harris revisits Jews & Sex from a more sociological standpoint. Featured image: The Naughty Jewish Boys Calendar In 2018, American Jewry became embroiled in the then-current ‘#MeToo’ movement when multiple allegations of sexual harassment by the prominent sociologist of Jewish life Steven M. Cohen were made public. Cohen did not contest […]
Manchester’s King of Glamour and Strip
In the second part of our series on Jews & Sex, Sue Fox reminisces about her Uncle Arthur and his striptease business. My uncle Arthur Fox died in 1970. Mancunians of a certain age might remember his name. He owned The Revue Bar in George Street. I don’t know where George Street was or even if it still exists. Uncle Arthur was the (very non-PC) black sheep […]