In the wake of vicious attacks on American Jews, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators joined a chorus of organizations that condemned antisemitism then, after pushback, apologized for not condemning Islamophobia or other forms of hatred in the same statement. Jewish Insider Reporter Gabby Deutch joins us to discuss her discovery that the controversial apology underscored a wider and equally troubling challenge facing Jewish authors. Then, Manya Brachear Pashman weighs in on the controversy surrounding Ben & Jerry’s decision to stop selling their ice cream in the territories captured by Israel in the 1967 war, and how Jewish advocates, including those at AJC, are urging state lawmakers to invoke their anti-BDS statutes. ______ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Gabby Deutch (19:09) Manya Brachear Pashman _____ Show notes: Fill out our podcast audience survey here!

People of the Pod

Antisemitism in the Kidlit World; Ben & Jerry's Shameful Surrender

Earlier this week, four Iranian operatives were charged in the attempted kidnapping of the U.S.-based Iranian exile Masih Alinejad, a human rights activist and journalist. Alinejad was kicked out of her native country nearly a decade ago for her anti-veiling advocacy. This week on the podcast, we’re joined by AJC Europe Managing Director Simone Rodan Benzaquen, who recently interviewed Alinejad about her activism and the harrowing experiences she faced in Iran.  Then, Juan Dircie, Associate Director of AJC's Belfer Institute for Latino and Latin American Affairs, shares his personal reflections on the upcoming anniversary of the bombing at the AMIA Jewish Center in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and why we must never stop fighting for justice.  ______ Lineup: (0:40) Masih Alinejad, Simone Rodan Benzaquen (16:47) Juan Dircie (20:15) Manya Brachear Pashman ______ Show Notes: Win a guest spot on the podcast by filling out our Audience Survey! “Le Sursaut : 3 Questions” featuring AJC Europe Managing Director Simone Rodan in conversation with Masih Alinejad

Hear From the Woman Iran Tried to Kidnap

This week, we bring you highlights from an important announcement made at AJC Virtual Global Forum 2021. Three U.S. Senators, Cory Booker (D-NJ), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), and Tim Scott (R-SC), announced the launch of the Senate Caucus on Black-Jewish Relations. This bipartisan caucus, the first of its kind in the United States Senate, will bring together elected leaders from the Black and Jewish communities, and both sides of the aisle, to strengthen Black-Jewish relations, bolster mutual understanding, and work to combat antisemitism and racism. Then, in the decade-plus since Israel was branded the Start-Up Nation, we have seen still more dazzling successes come out of the Jewish state, like Google's billion-dollar acquisition of the navigation company Waze, Intel's $15 billion acquisition of the self driving car technology company Mobileye, and the NASDAQ initial public offering last month of team management software company Monday.com, which now has a market cap of $10 billion. Joining us this week to talk about the state of the Start-Up Nation is Barak Rabinowitz, Managing Partner of F2 Venture Capital. Episode Lineup: (0:40) Cory Booker, Jacky Rosen, and Tim Scott  (18:12) Barak Rabinowitz (36:00) Manya Brachear Pashman (39:21) Seffi Kogen ____ Show Notes: Fill out our audience survey for a chance to win a spot on the podcast! Full recording of The Launch of the Senate Caucus on Black-Jewish Relations at AJC Virtual Global Forum 2021 

Launch of the Senate Caucus on Black-Jewish Relations; The Startup Nation: “Failure is Not an Option”

In 2017, the Chicago Dyke March ejected Jewish marchers carrying rainbow flags emblazoned with Stars of David. This year, it promoted its upcoming event with a cartoon image showing the burning of Israeli and American flags. To discuss why the Chicago Dyke March has been exhibiting such hostility towards supporters of Israel, we sit down with Ethan Felson, a progressive activist for more than thirty years and Executive Director of A Wider Bridge, a nonprofit that connects American and Israeli LGBTQ communities and works to strengthen LGBTQ inclusion in Israel.  Then, AJC Miami/Broward County Director Brian Siegal shares his personal reflections on the collapse of the Champlain Towers South building in Surfside, Florida, and how the community has come together in the wake of this immense tragedy. ______ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Ethan Felson (16:32) Brian Siegal (19:19) Manya Brachear Pashman (22:22) Seffi Kogen ______ Show Notes: Fill out our audience survey for a chance to win a spot on the show! www.AJC.org/PodcastSurvey  

“We Refuse to Choose Among Our Identities”: A Wider Bridge’s Ethan Felson on Antisemitism at the Chicago Dyke March

Last week, Ebrahim Raisi, a hardline cleric known as “the Butcher of Tehran” for having overseen thousands of executions, was chosen to succeed Hassan Rouhani as Iran’s president. Daniel Schwammenthal, Director of AJC’s Brussels-based Transatlantic Institute, joins us to discuss what Raisi’s selection means for the future of Iran and ongoing nuclear talks. Over in Israel, the country’s new prime minister, Naftali Bennett, has reportedly met several times in recent months with leading public Israeli intellectual Micah Goodman, who previously sat down with us on the podcast. Listen as Goodman discusses his book Catch-67, which focuses on “decreasing the conflict” until a permanent deal can be reached.  Please note that this episode contains depictions of violence that some people may find disturbing.  ____ Episode Lineup: (0:41) Daniel Schwammenthal (Please note that this segment contains depictions of violence that some people may find disturbing.) (14:53) Micah Goodman (30:46) Manya Brachear Pashman (33:42) Seffi Kogen ___ Show notes: Take our People of the Pod Audience Survey for a chance to win a guest spot on the show! Full Micha Goodman interview

The Butcher of Tehran; The Great Debate Over the West Bank

For the first time since 2009, Israel has a new prime minister, Naftali Bennett. The Jerusalem Post Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Lahav Harkov joins us this week to shed some light on the new prime minister and help us understand what we can expect from Israel’s new government. Then, we bring you one of the most-discussed sessions from AJC Virtual Global Forum 2021. Bret Stephens, op-ed columnist for The New York Times, Bari Weiss, journalist and author of How to Fight Antisemitism, and Simone Rodan-Benzaquen, Director of AJC Europe, discuss rising Jew-hatred in a session titled “The Mainstreaming of Antisemitism: How Should We Respond?” Finally, AJC Director of Contemporary Jewish Life and Acting Director of AJC New York Laura Shaw Frank explains what we need to know about AJC’s annual survey of American Jewish opinion and its companion survey capturing the views of Israeli Jews.  ___ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Lahav Harkov (20:48) Bret Stephens, Bari Weiss, and Simone Rodan-Benzaquen (43:11) Laura Shaw Frank (45:42) Manya Brachear Pashman (49:52) Seffi Kogen ____ Show notes: Please fill out our audience survey and be a part of shaping the future of the podcast! The Mainstreaming of Antisemitism: How Should We Respond? AJC 2021 Survey of American and Israeli Jewish Opinion

What You Need to Know About Israel’s Diverse New Government; The Mainstreaming of Antisemitism

This week, we bring you highlights from AJC Virtual Global Forum 2021. First, in a conversation moderated by Manya Brachear Pashman, we hear from H.E. Dr. Ali Rashid Al Nuaimi, Chairman of Hedayah, and Rabbi David Rosen, AJC Director of International Interreligious Affairs, in The Siegler Family Annual Muslim-Jewish Symposium on How Interfaith Relations Helped Drive the Abraham Accords. Then, two college student activists, Julia Jassey, University of Chicago ‘23, and Talia Rosenberg, University of Pennsylvania ‘21, help us understand today’s challenges and opportunities on campus for pro-Israel students during the AJC Virtual Global Forum’s session, The View from Campus, moderated by Meggie Wyschogrod Fredman, AJC Deputy Director of Young Leadership. ___ Episode Lineup: (0:40) H.E. Dr. Ali Rashid Al Nuaimi, Rabbi David Rosen, Manya Brachear Pashman (21:38) Julia Jassey, Talia Rosenberg, and Meggie Wyschogrod Fredman 

How Interfaith Relations Helped Drive the Abraham Accords; A View From Campus

Have American, European, and Israeli policymakers learned anything since signing the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), known as the Iran nuclear deal? We sat down this week with AJC Jerusalem Director Avital Leibovich, AJC Transatlantic Institute Director Daniel Schwammenthal, and AJC Chief Policy and Political Affairs Officer Jason Isaacson to analyze what the next few months could bring. We were also joined by AJC CEO David Harris for a closing message on Iran. Then, in our closing segment, Shabbat Table Talk, we hear from co-host Manya Brachear Pashman on Kim Kardashian’s response to the violence in Israel and co-host Seffi Kogen shares his thoughts on the recent surge in antisemitism. _____ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Avital Leibovich, Daniel Schwammenthal, and Jason Isaacson  (33:41) David Harris (41:25) Manya Brachear Pashman (43:45) Seffi Kogen _____ Show Notes: AJC.org/GlobalForum High Stakes: What’s Next for U.S. Policy on Iran? - AJC Advocacy Anywhere

High Stakes: What’s Next for U.S. Policy on Iran?

This week, we engage Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) in conversation about the violence in Israel and Gaza and about Jewish American Heritage Month, with a special salute to another trailblazing Jewish congresswoman, Bella Abzug.  Then, as Israel comes under attack from Hamas-ruled Gaza, we hear from AJC CEO David Harris on the immense challenges facing the Jewish state, the importance of confronting misinformation, and the need for solidarity. __ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Debbie Wasserman Schultz (17:24) David Harris (30:35) Doreen Rosenblum (33:31) Manya Brachear Pashman (36:11) Seffi Kogen __ Show Notes: Urgent Briefing on the Situation in Israel - AJC Advocacy Anywhere PaleyImpact: Media's Role in Identifying, Explaining, and Combating Antisemitism (with AJC's U.S. Director for Combating Antisemitism Holly Huffnagle) Photo credit: Israel Police Spokesperson

Talking Israel with Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz and AJC CEO David Harris

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 (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 Advocacy Anywhere program can be found here  

Israel Under Attack: What You Need to Know

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

Breaking Down the Facebook Ban and Celebrating American Jewish Heritage Month

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

What You Should Know About the Iran Nuclear Talks

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

“I Will Never Forget That Day”: Poway’s Mayor on the Second Anniversary of the Chabad Shooting

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

Yossi Klein Halevi on The Third Era of Jewish History

Elie Weisel 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) Lilli Platt (25:29) Manya Brachear Pashman (29:05) Seffi Kogen  _____ Show Notes: Prisoner of Her Past  The Art of Inventing Hope: Intimate Conversations with Elie Wiesel The Four Questions in Irish, and 4 More Great Moments from AJC’s 2021 Diplomatic Seders  

The Art of Inventing Hope: Elie Weisel’s Masterclass for Humanity

People of the Pod is a weekly podcast analyzing global affairs through a Jewish lens. A partnership between AJC and The Times of Israel, People of the Pod examines political events, the people driving them, and what it all means for the Jewish people and Israel. Hosted by Seffi Kogen and Manya Brachear Pashman.

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People of the Pod

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