22 February 28 • 2019
jn
Jews & Human Rights
James Loeffl
er is the 2019 Belin Lecturer.
O
n March 12, the Frankel
Center will welcome
Professor James Loeffler to
the University of Michigan to deliv-
er the 2019 David W. Belin Lecture
in American Jewish Affairs.
Loeffler’
s lecture, “Prisoners
of Zion: American Jews, Human
Rights, and the Israeli-Palestinian
Conflict,” based on his recently pub-
lished Rooted Cosmopolitans: Jews
and Human Rights in
the Twentieth Century,
will explore how
American Jews have
become polarized over
human rights issues
related to both Israel
and anti-Semitism.
The lecture will begin at 7 p.m.,
following a 6:30 p.m. reception in
Forum Hall of Palmer Commons,
100 Washtenaw Ave., Ann Arbor.
The Belin lecture was established
at U-M in 1991 through a gift from
the late David W. Belin to provide
an academic forum for the discus-
sion of contemporary Jewish life in
the United States. Each lecture is
subsequently published in the Belin
Lecture Series.
“Global anti-Semitism has
returned to the world in ways few
ever anticipated after World War
II,” Loeffler said. “For some in the
Jewish world, the only solution is a
renewed commitment to protecting
human rights at home and abroad.
For others in the Jewish world,
the very phrase ‘
human rights’
has become a symbol of today’
s
anti-Semitism, especially in the
context of the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict.”
Loeffler is the Jay Berkowitz
Endowed Chair in Jewish History
at the University of Virginia, where
he teaches courses on Jewish and
European history, legal history and
the history of human rights. Rooted
Cosmopolitans explains the histo-
ry of Jewish political activism in
human rights through the stories of
five Jewish activists, and shows how
the idea of human rights has been
intertwined with Jewish history in
the last 70 years. It was named a
“new and noteworthy” book by the
New York Times.
The book began as a relatively
narrow study of American Jewish
political advocacy and legal diplo-
macy on behalf of Eastern European
Jewry between the two world wars,
and morphed over time into a glob-
al history of Jewish involvement in
both the Zionist movement and the
modern human rights movements
of the 20th century. Loeffler’
s work
weaves together stories across five
continents, seven languages and
eight decades.
Loeffler reasons that the people
in his book would be shocked and
disappointed by today’
s politically
polarized climate and the amount
of historical ignorance. Not because
they, too, argued over the meaning
of human rights, but because they
understood there was a need to
work together to try to reach prag-
matic global solutions.
Loeffler’
s lecture will help the
audience understand that human
rights are in crisis and will investi-
gate how we got to today’
s political
climate. “That means viewing the
intertwined pasts of human rights
and Zionism not as political fables
but as complex, real chapters in his-
tory,” he said.
Human rights “grew out of the
world of politics and particular-
ly the world of post-World War I
Zionism,” he said. “Human rights
were not the antidote to too much
nationalism; they were an attempt
to balance the nation-state with the
new international order — for Jews
and everyone else.” ■
jews d
in
the
James Loeffler
NOT T I N G H I L L
o f W E S T B L O O M F I E L D
6535 Drake Road, West Bloomfield, MI 48322
phone 248.592.2000 | www.cienafacilities.com
24-Hour Nursing Care
HEALTH SERVICES
Our caring, professional staff offers you or your
loved ones a wide array of around-the-clock health
care services that include but are not limited to:
24-hour Nursing Care
Post-Surgical Care
Dental, Podiatry and Psychiatry Services
X-ray, Pharmacy and Laboratory Services
Wound Care Management
Care Management, Discharge Planning
and Social Work Services
Pain Management
Physiatrist and medical Physician on site full time
IV Therapy
Registered Dietitian
The
Jewi
sh
Federati
on
of
Greater
Tol
edo
seeks
an
energeti
c
l
eader
for
thi
s
cl
osel
y-kni
t
Jewi
sh
communi
ty.
Wi
th
stabl
e
l
eadershi
p
and
a
sound
financi
al
base,
we
seek
an
Executi
ve
who
has
the
vi
si
on
and
dri
ve
to
bui
l
d
on
our
strengths
and
i
mpl
ement
a
pl
an
for
future
servi
ces
and
programs
consi
stent
wi
th
findi
ngs
from
our
strategi
c
pl
anni
ng
i
ni
ti
ati
ve.
For
compl
ete
j
ob
descri
pti
on,
go
to
www.
j
ewi
shtol
edo.
org/career-center
.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
For more information and to apply,
please submit a cover letter and
resume by January 31, 2019, to:
Ti
na
Sti
eben,
Interi
m
COO,
Jewi
sh
Federati
on
of
Greater
Tol
edo,
6465
Syl
vani
a
Avenue,
Syl
vani
a,
OH
43560
Steven E. Stein, M.D.
With 27 years of experience, Dr. Stein
has performed 1000’s of Tummy Tucks,
Breast Augmentations, and Liposuction
Procedures. Now you can have the
bathing suit body you’ve always wanted.
Because of his vast knowledge, Dr. Stein
is the only plastic surgeon you should
be choosing for your body contouring
surgery.
Somerset Center for
Plastic Surgery
Steven E. Stein, M.D.
1579 W. Big Beaver Rd. Suite B-7, Troy, Michigan 48084
Call us and make your appointment today
Spring is coming; Winter’s dreams will
transform into Spring’s magic. What kind of
magic can we do for you? 248-643-7710
Metro Detroit's
Best Kept Secret
Spring Mommy
Makeover Special