Obama's Hebrew Voice
Jacob Berkman
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
I
n what is likely to be remembered
as the first YouTube presidential
campaign, perhaps the most talk-
ed about video has been singer Will.
i.am's celebrity-dotted homage to the
"Yes We Can" mantra of Barack Obama.
The video features split-screen
images of several prominent celebri-
ties, past and present, singing along-
side clips of Obama's victory speech in
South Carolina.
For those listening closely and with
an ear for Hebrew, it's one of the lesser-
known, albeit just as eye-catching, per-
formers who stands out: Israeli-born
actress Maya Rubin.
Twice in the video, Rubin can be
heard saying, "kein anu yecholim"
— Hebrew for "Yes We Can!'
The video was released as the Obama
campaign was laboring to rebut asser-
tions that he is unfriendly to Israel as
well as an e-mail campaign circulating
in the Jewish community that falsely
paints him as a closet Muslim who
attended a radical Muslim school, took
his oath of office on the Koran and
refuses to say the Pledge of Allegiance.
Was Rubin's Hebrew cameo part
of the campaign's effort to shore up
Obama's standing among Jewish voters?
No, said director Jesse Dylan, insist-
ing that he hadn't even known about
the smear campaign when he put up
$10,000 to cover the costs of the two-
day shoot.
"We just thought it would sound nice
to have Hebrew;' said Dylan, whose
father, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
singer Bob Dylan, became a legend
with his politically themed music.
Catholic mother with a complex
family history. Helena's maternal
grandmother, born into a very rich
Austrian-Jewish family, converted
to Catholicism to marry Helena's
grandfather, Eduardo Propper de
Callejon, a Spanish Catholic diplo-
mat. Meanwhile, Helena's mater-
nal grandmother's sister, Liliane,
married Baron Elie De Rothschild
of the French Rothschilds. When
Lilane died at age 86 in 2003,
she was the grande dame of the
Rothschild clan.
Eduardo Propper, whose own
father was Jewish, has just been
named "Righteous Among the
Nations" by Yad Vashem, the
Israel-based Holocaust remem-
brance authority. Propper, who was
"There was no intention on any-
body's part:' he added. "I am a Jew
myself and was unaware of the e-mails,
and that was never a thought."
Rubin, whose Hebrew line is now
being used on pro-Obama campaign
signs, said the video has played well
with Jewish people she knows.
"People love it," she says of her
appearances in the video. "It was very
subtle, which I think is even more cool:'
Legendary Fish 'n Chips
Israeli-born actress Maya Rubin
The fledgling actress was born in
Jerusalem, served in the Israeli army
and moved to the United States in 1998
to pursue her career.
Rubin, 28, starred in the Showtime
movie Milk and Honey, has had guest
spots on CSI: NY and appeared in sev-
eral commercials.
She convinced William, who has
cited Anne Frank as one of his inspira-
tions for the video, and Dylan to use
her on the video based on her work on
an unreleased Jewish rap album called
Chutzpah she cut with some friends.
Speaking of her desire to be in the
pro-Obama video, she said, "I believe
what he says and think he is an inspir-
ing politician. He's probably one of the
most inspiring politicians that I have
seen in my lifetime?'
❑
based in Nazi-occupied France in
1940-41, defied orders and issued
thousands of Spanish visas to
Jewish and non-Jewish refugees
(including Liliane Rothschild) so
they could transit across Spain
and find refuge in a third country.
Propper was punished for his
good deed by being posted to
North Africa, and the records of
his visa issuance mysteriously dis-
appeared. Propper's son diligently
gathered testimonies from those
his father helped, helping Propper
to meet the strict standards for
the Yad Vashem honor. Bonham-
Carter, who is now making a Harry
Potter film, hopes to be able to
be in Jerusalem in March for the
induction ceremony.
❑
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