Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Sorted by date Results 20 - 44 of 1890
(JTA) - The mayor of Muslim-majority Hamtramck, Michigan, has endorsed Donald Trump for president after meeting with him in private. The endorsement comes amid a wave of anger among local Muslims over the Biden-Harris administration's support for Israel. A recent poll from the Council on American-Islamic Relations found that Kamala Harris has the support of just 12 percent of Muslim voters in Michigan, compared to 18 percent for Trump and 40 percent for Green Party candidate Jill Stein, a harsh...
By (JNS) — Israel today finds itself standing increasingly alone as the world rejects its right to defend itself against genocidal enemies. And as the United States heads to elections in November, Israelis are worried that Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris is demonstrating less support for Israel and more sympathy for Palestinians and their supporters. For instance, she has consistently tried to tie Israel’s hands, calling for the Jewish state to end its war against Hamas, and refused to attend Prime Minister Ben...
(JTA) — Michigan’s Jewish attorney general has accused the state’s Palestinian-American congresswoman of antisemitism, in a war of words between two prominent Democrats that could upend an already tense battleground state. The exchange between Attorney General Dana Nessel and Rep. Rashida Tlaib, formerly friends, stems from Nessel’s decision to file charges this month against 11 pro-Palestinian protesters at the University of Michigan. In a Sept. 12 statement, Nessel emphasized the right to free speech but accused the 11 protesters at the uni...
(JTA) — American Jews are one step closer to having a Smithsonian museum dedicated to their history. The House of Representatives unanimously approved a bill Monday to study the possibility of bringing the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History, in Philadelphia, under the Smithsonian umbrella. The Weitzman, as it is known, is considered the premier museum of Jewish history in the United States and already has an affiliation with the Smithsonian. Full membership in the Smithsonian network of museums would unlock federal funding o...
(JTA) — WASHINGTON — Should the U.S. government address antisemitism on its own, or as part of the broader fight against prejudice? That’s the question that occupied — and divided — Republican and Democratic senators on Tuesday at an emotional hearing that, at one point, was brought to a stop by someone shouting antisemitic invective. Tensions were evident almost immediately when the Judiciary Committee’s Democratic chairman, Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois, and its top Republican, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, clashed over the he...
(JNS) — The U.S. should halt federal funding to universities that back antisemitism and incitement against Jewish students, and professors who voice such hate in their classrooms should be ousted from campus, the lieutenant governor of Texas said. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick spoke as the academic year opened in the United States after months of often violent and antisemitic anti-Israel demonstrations on campuses the previous year that stunned the American Jewish community in ways not seen World War II. “There is no room for terrorizing Jewish stu...
(JTA) — WASHINGTON — American Jews plan to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris by a wide margin, according to a new survey by a Jewish Democratic group. The survey also found that 87 percent of American Jewish voters support the Biden administration’s efforts to reach a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war that would release the Israeli hostages held in Gaza. The survey, released Monday by the Jewish Democratic Council of America, shows 68 percent of Jewish voters planning to vote for Harris, the Democratic nominee, and 25 percent plann...
(JTA) - LAS VEGAS - Shabbos Kestenbaum, a Jewish Harvard alumnus who is suing the school over its response to antisemitism, announced that he has broken with the Democratic Party and will be voting for Donald Trump. Kestenbaum made the declaration during a speech at the Republican Jewish Coalition's annual convention here on Sept. 5. He said that he had become disillusioned with Democratic leaders and their policies during his push for action against campus antisemitism. "I did not support Trump...
(JTA) — The University of Maryland has revoked a permit for pro-Palestinian groups to hold an event on the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel, following concerns from Jewish groups that such an event could glorify the Hamas killings. According to the campus Students for Justice in Palestine chapter, the planned event was a “vigil” to be held jointly with the school’s chapter of the anti-Zionist group Jewish Voice for Peace. University President Darryll Pines announced the change in a letter to the school on Sunday, writing...
(JTA) — The family of an 88-year-old Holocaust survivor in Virginia has sued Boar’s Head, claiming that listeria from the meat company’s products is responsible for his death. The filing is the first wrongful death lawsuit to stem from the Boar’s Head listeria outbreak. So far, more than 50 people have fallen ill in connection with the outbreak and nine have died, including Günter “Garshon” Morgenstein, who survived the Holocaust as a child. “We’re all still in shock, for all of the things you know that he’s seen and been through in his lif...
(JNS) - Israeli Cabinet ministers on Sunday night were presented with video footage of the tunnel in Rafah where the six murdered hostages were held, footage they described as "stomach-churning" and "horrific." IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi showed the visual documentation from southern Gaza at the request of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Ministers did not see the hostage's corpses but rather the inhumane conditions in which their Hamas captors forced them to live. The bodies of...
(JNS) - The U.S. Postal Service has announced a "Hanukkah Forever" stamp to commemorate the eight-day Jewish "Festival of Lights." Designed by Antonio Alcalá, it features a ocean-blue background, white hanukkiah and nine floating yellow lights. USPS says the design uses "irregular lines to suggest a more human presence." A first day of issue dedication ceremony will take place on Sept. 19, to be led by Michael Gordon, USPS government liaison director, at the Lillian and Albert Small Capital...
(JTA) — The federal government will spend nearly $150 million more this year than it did in 2023 to secure religious organizations, a jump aimed at addressing a rise in antisemitism since Oct. 7. The Department of Homeland Security announced last week that it had allocated $454.5 million this fiscal year toward the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, which funds security enhancements at houses of worship and religious organizations. It is the largest sum ever allocated toward the program, and a significant increase from last year’s figure of $305...
(JTA) — Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who injected outlandish comments about Jews into the national dialogue and also vocally supported Israel, suspended his campaign Friday and said he would support Donald Trump. Kennedy, who had previously run in the Democratic party and had gained attention in recent years as an anti-vaccine activist, dropped his bid Friday during an extended press conference in Phoenix, shortly before a scheduled Trump rally nearby. Kennedy’s lon...
(JTA) — CHICAGO — The Democratic National Convention is denying a speaking spot to a group of pro-Palestinian delegates, a decision it confirmed after the parents of an Israeli-American hostage, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, delivered an address that brought the convention to a standstill. The delegation of activists belongs to “Uncommitted,” the movement that calls for an end to the Biden administration’s support for Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. They protested the decision by staging a sit-in outside the convention center that lasted into...
(JNS) — Outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden said on Monday in a keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago that anti-Israel protesters “have a point.” “Those protesters out on the street. They have a point. A lot of innocent people are being killed on both sides,” the 81-year-old president told the United Center crowd on the first night of the convention after being introduced by First Lady Jill Biden and their daughter, Ashley Biden. Four demonstrators were arrested after anti-Israel protesters breached an outer fence lin...
(JNS) — During Barack Obama’s presidency, Thomas Nides attended foreign policy meetings as U.S. deputy secretary of state for management and resources. Just as he saw Obama include Joe Biden, then the vice president, Nides has seen President Biden consult with Vice President Kamala Harris. “I sat in the Situation Room for hundreds of meetings with President Obama and the vice president, and the vice president was included on almost every major foreign policy decision,” Nides told JNS on the sidelines of the Democratic National Convent...
(JTA) — CHICAGO — Doug Emhoff talked about Passover brisket and riding the bus to Hebrew school. And Chuck Schumer wore a blue-square pin below the American flag on his lapel, symbolizing the struggle against antisemitism. The second night of the Democratic National Convention was intensely Jewish: Along with Emhoff and Schumer directly discussing their Jewish identities, two other prominent Jewish elected officials — Bernie Sanders and J.B. Pritzker — took the stage, while the night opened with an invocation by Rabbi Sharon Brous. Jewish herit...
(JTA) — CHICAGO — In a speech on the Democratic convention floor, President Joe Biden vowed to “end this war” in Gaza and free hostages. But he did not mention Israel by name and gave a nod to protesters outside the convention hall, where pro-Palestinian demonstrators had gathered. “We’ll keep working to bring hostages home and end the war in Gaza, and bring peace and security to the Middle East,” he said. “We’re working around the clock — my secretary of state — to prevent a wider war and reunite hostages with their families, and surge humanit...
(JNS) — The parents of Israeli-American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, along with those in attendance on Wednesday evening at Chicago’s United Center, provided the Democratic National Convention with one of its most memorable moments. Entering to chants of “Bring Them Home,” Jonathan Polin and Rachel Goldberg-Polin brought tears to the eyes of many in attendance with the gut-wrenching story of their son and Chicago native, and their broader thoughts on the hostages held in the Gaza Strip. Speaking with reporters Wednesday night, Hersh’s...
(JNS) - In a sign of the times, billboards have been placed along highways in Los Angeles and Philadelphia to address the rising tide of antisemitism in the United States. "Who's behind this chaos?" reads one. Another says, "Did you miss your flight when this airport was shut down by an anti-Israel mob?" Three billboards were put up in Los Angeles during the last week of July, and two in Philadelphia were erected the first week of August. Both are scheduled to stay in place through most of the...
(JTA) - Kamala Harris' presidential campaign has named Ilan Goldenberg, an Israeli-born former peace negotiator, as its liaison to the Jewish community, sources say. Three people with close ties to the organized Jewish community and the Harris campaign confirmed the pick to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. The campaign did not return a request for comment. Goldenberg, who has served as Vice President Harris' adviser on Middle East issues, has previously been an acerbic critic of both Israeli...
(JTA) — Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar won her Democratic party primary on Tuesday, securing a victory for the hardline-left “Squad” member who is one of Israel’s fiercest critics in Congress. Omar defeated her challenger, Don Samuels, in Minnesota’s 5th District by a margin of 56 percent to 43 percent with nearly all votes reported. Samuels is a centrist, pro-Israel Democrat who narrowly lost a primary vote to Omar in 2022. This time around, Omar’s campaign said it had learned from the close call and worked harder to shore up support. Omar’s win...
(Israel Hayom via JNS) — A video from 2018 has surfaced showing Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz referring to a Muslim cleric with controversial views as a “master teacher,” according to reporting by the Washington Examiner. The footage, which emerged during Walz’s campaign for vice president, contradicts recent statements from his campaign team. The video, recorded at a Feb. 16, 2018, event hosted by Minnesota’s Muslim American Society, captures Walz praising Asad Zaman, director of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota. “I am a teacher, so...
(JTA) — For days, Democratic vice-presidential candidate Tim Walz has been dogged by criticism — including from the Republican Jewish Coalition — about his ties to a Minnesota imam who praised Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack and once shared a link to a pro-Hitler documentary. Now, the Harris-Walz campaign has responded, saying that Walz has no “personal relationship” with Imam Asad Zaman, the executive director of the Muslim American Society Minnesota, a network of seven mosques, despite appearing together in public events on several occasions....
