viewpoints » S end letters to: letters@thejewishnews.com
GO
jewfro
See You When I See You
H
ere are three premises
(gazebo!). Teen Mentors will
and seven invitations
lead the service with PeerCorps
for your consideration:
founder Blair Nosan before she
1. Negative energy swirls
heads off to rabbinical school.
around and separates us. It is
2701 Bagley Ave.
not clear to me whether it is
Yad Ezra, June 3, 3-5 p.m. I
a function of contemporary
learned more from Carly Sugar
politics, technology, segregation,
when she was a Repair the World
Ben Falik
stratification, etc. — or just a
Fellow than she did from me. She
modern manifestation of people’s
has been toiling for months on 11
tendency toward a life Thomas Hobbes
Mile to launch the Max M. and Marjorie S.
described 365 years ago as “solitary, poor,
Fisher Giving Gardens, featuring the Geri
nasty, brutish and short.” But I feel it often, Lester Green House. It is an extraordinary
and it is like a punch in the gut.
space for growing both food and our com-
2. Encountering people IRL (“in real
munity’s consciousness about health and
life,” fwiw), it becomes painlessly obvious
hunger — in our backyard and far afield.
that those around us are generally kind,
2850 11 Mile Road.
curious and compassionate. For every
Repair the World, June 4, noon-4 p.m.
ounce of vulnerability in those encounters, Big ol’ Block Party with beer from near
there is a pound of power to be had by
and food from an Airstream. Soundtrack
engaging others.
of compelling conversations by you and
3. This is a busy time of year and civili-
tunes by DJ Stinky Pete. 2701 Bagley Ave.
zation. All the more reason for us to make
Northwest Activities Center, June 5,
time (you’ll never find it) to show up in
1-4 p.m. In the ’50s, Congregation Beth
places and spaces that reflect our values
Abraham was on Seven Mile and the
and challenge our assumptions.
JCC was a mile and a half away; reports
Please partake in some magical merri-
of the neighborhood’s subsequent death
ment that will serve as an antidote to all
have been greatly exaggerated. So we are
the indifference and intolerance out there: teaming up with Beth Ahm and Project
PeerCorps, May 27, 6:30 p.m. Shabbat Healthy Community for Detroit and Us:
shalom, indeed. Join PeerCorps — partici- Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. Planting
pants, families and community partners
the community garden, sourcing and sort-
celebrating three years of building sturdy
ing books for Summer in the City’s mobile
bridges — and the Isaac Agree Downtown libraries, reminiscing about Northwest
Synagogue for Shabbat (outdoors!) and
Detroit’s Kodachrome past and learning
dinner (kosher!) at Repair the World
about its bright future. 18100 Meyers.
Palmer Park Preparatory Academy
(formerly Hampton Elementary), June
15, 4-7 p.m. Calling all Hampton Alumni
and Palmer Park fans to beautify P³A to
celebrate a successful school year with tat-
toos (temporary), cookie decorating (nut-
free), parachute games (on terra firma)
and Sno Kones (that do not disprove cli-
mate change.) 3901 Margareta Ave.
Do it For Detroit, June 23, 6:30 p.m.
farmers market, 7:30 program. We’ve
been doing it for Detroit — in the form of
micro-grants for grassroots groups voted
on by event attendees — for a few years
now and the caliber of these food justice
folks never ceases to amaze me. This
year, we’ll be convening with Yad Ezra,
NEXTGen and Hazon at The Eastern,
a way cool warehouse space at Eastern
Market for food, drink and small invest-
ments in big ideas. 3434 Russell St.
Belle Isle, June 24, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. The
First Friday Field Trip of Summer in the
City’s 15th year, replete with visits to the
Aquarium, Conservatory, Nature Zoo,
Great Lakes Museum and, God willing,
the Giant Slide. (While you’re at it, mark
your calendar for Finale Friday on Aug. 12
at the Adams Butzel Center.)
Can’t wait to see you. Fair warning: I’m
a hugger.
*
ALL IN
with a CD from
Talmer Bank
1.10% APY*
Questions? ben@werepair.org or 313-3388-BEN.
P.S. If you are reading this on or before May 22, stop
what you are doing and go to Bookstock.
11-month CD
guest column
Jewish College Students: Activists In A Political Crucible
I
’m part of an academic community
— the University of Michigan. These
days I find myself looking back six
decades to when I was a college student,
contemplating the changes that have
occurred in the experience of Jewish
college students since that time.
In the 1950s, Jewish
students often felt
the way that Alan
Dershowitz describes
his own experience
at Harvard (my alma
mater) where he felt
like a “guest” at some-
one else’s institution.
Toby Citrin
For the most part, we
kept our “Jewishness”
to ourselves, wanting to blend in with
the majority culture. Anti-Semitism was
certainly present, but not violent. We
were proud that Israel had just become
a state, but what was happening in Israel
seemed of little concern to most of our
non-Jewish classmates.
Fast forward to the ’60s and ’70s.
Thanks in part to the African-American
“roots” movement, Jewish students
began to be more visibly proud of their
heritage, celebrating Jewish holidays
openly and expressing their commit-
ment to the values of justice, equality
and empathy that they had been taught
in their communities.
They expressed these values not only
through membership in Jewish orga-
nizations, but also by playing a leading
role in the struggles for voting rights,
fair housing and employment practices
and economic justice, in which many
of their classmates were also engaged.
They experienced less anti-Semitism
than earlier generations and they cel-
ebrated Israel’s triumph in the Six-Day
War.
The current phase of the Jewish
student experience on campus poses
new challenges. Criticism of Israel has
become the focus of political activity
by the same kinds of student groups
in which liberal Jewish students would
have participated in earlier periods. This
leaves progressive Jewish students in a
quandary.
They sometimes find that their cred-
ibility as progressives is challenged
unless they support attacks on Israel.
They want to express the values of jus-
tice and equality that their parents and
rabbis have instilled in them, but don’t
continued on page 8
800.456.1500
talmerbank.com
* Annual Percentage Yield (APY) of 1.10% is accurate
as of May 2, 2016. The minimum balance to open
a CD and earn the advertised APY is $1,000, which
must be deposited in a single transaction. Maximum
allowable deposit is $250,000 per account. Offer
applies to personal accounts only and may be
discontinued at any time. Deposits must be new
money (funds not currently on deposit at Talmer
Bank and Trust). A penalty may be imposed for early
withdrawals. At maturity, the CD will automatically
renew at the rate in effect on that date, unless you
instruct us otherwise. Visit talmerbank.com for current
rates, terms and account requirements.
2096650
May 19 • 2016
5