Facing the Mountain by Daniel James Brown is the story of Japanese American patriots fighting for the U.S. in World War II while their parents and siblings were incarcerated in concentration (euphemistically termed relocation) camps in the West and South. In this intensely moving and deeply researched narrative, Brown lays out in grueling detail the …
Continue reading More winter reading – pt. 2, non-fiction books
Few windows into today's higher education leadership were as shocking as the testimony of three distinguished university presidents (from Harvard, Penn and MIT) before the star chamber hearing of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce last month. In their obtuse, overly lawyered statements on anti-Semitism on their respective campuses, they wrapped themselves in a …
Continue reading Harvard president gone – for the right reasons
Some of Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar’s comments are disconcerting at best, damaging and divisive at worst. Equally troubling, she is allowing herself to be used as a tool by Donald Trump to drive a wedge in the Democratic Party. The Somali immigrant’s comments are fuel to his incendiary style, which often incites violence against immigrants …
If you're Jewish, think twice about moving to Bedford, MA. That's the message of recent anti-Semitic incidents in that west suburban town. Elementary school children play a game called "Jail the Jews." Swastika graffiti is discovered at an elementary school, at Bedford High School and a local playground. Such anti-Semitism is not unique to Bedford, …
Marjorie Arons-Barron 