AUGUST 22 • 2024 | 31
J
N
Statement from
Windsor Jewish
Federation
Since Oct. 7, when Hamas
terrorists started a war by
violently attacking Israeli
civilians, Jewish life on campus
at the University of Windsor has
become unbearable. Former
University of Windsor Jewish
Law Students Association
president Sydney Greenspoon
characterized the experience
on campus after Oct. 7 as “an
unsafe place to be an openly
proud Jew. It is a campus
that fosters hate and allows
antisemitism to flourish, forcing
the few Jewish students to hide
any sign of our Jewish identity
in fear for our physical and
psychological safety. This is
the new reality we, the Jewish
students, are facing on campus.”
On behalf of the Windsor
Jewish Federation, including the
Windsor Jewish community and
its students who attend the uni-
versity, we are profoundly disap-
pointed and concerned. These
agreements have far-reaching
implications and impact the
Jewish campus community
directly. Making such agree-
ments and lending institutional
validation to the harmful efforts
of those seeking to further an
anti-Jewish agenda emboldens
lawlessness on campus and will
only serve to marginalize Jewish
students further while discour-
aging them from attending the
University of Windsor.
Sincerely,
Stephen Cheifetz
Windsor Jewish
Federation President
outgoing executive
director of the Windsor
Jewish Federation, “The
University capitulated
to them without
consulting with the Jewish
community.”
Brotman attributes the
outcome to an “adminis-
tration without courage” in a city
that is “very Muslim and Arabic.”
(About 8% of Windsor’s population
of 237,000 speaks Arabic as a first
language.)
Hebert says, “We don’t have
the same ability to protest like
pro-Palestinians and anti-Zion-
ists. We don’t have the luxury or
safety. We have a target on our
backs.”
However, he is grateful for a “ton
of support from the community.”
Cheifetz says the agreements
have engendered a “large blow-
back from across Canada includ-
ing from B’nai B’rith Canada, the
Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs
(CIJA) in Canada, and the Simon
Wiesenthal Center in Canada.
There is pressure from politicians
who are starting to consider legis-
lation.”
Hebert adds, “The administra-
tion is under a tremendous amount
of pressure from donors, alumni
and others.”
He feels that the agreements “sti-
fle meaningful conversation” and
that the university should “build
bridges, not put up walls.”
Emails and phone calls to staff
members of the university’s public
affairs and communications depart-
ment regarding implementation
status of the agreements were not
answered by press time. Instead,
they referred people to the follow-
ing link to read about the agree-
ments: www.uwindsor.ca/653167/
student-dialogue-and-agreements.
Dan Brotman
Stephen
Cheifetz
I
recently had a wonderful
and informative conversa-
tion with my friend Rabbi
Cantor Marcia Tilchin. Marcia
grew up in Metro Detroit, and
her family has
deep connec-
tions with Adat
Shalom. Now
she serves as the
spiritual leader of the
Jewish Collaborative
of Orange County,
a nonprofit com-
munity-building
organization she founded in 2016.
She made me aware of an exciting
concert she had just participated
in called Stars of David, which
she thought would be a great fit
for the Adat Shalom community.
After learning more about it, I
wholeheartedly concurred.
Based on journalist Abigail
Pogrebin’s 2005 bestselling book,
Stars of David: Prominent Jews
Talk About Being Jewish, the
musical Stars of David adapts the
stories of well-known American
Jews into humorous and touching
songs. Some of the personali-
ties celebrated are Joan Rivers,
Leonard Nimoy, Larry King, Fran
Drescher, Kenneth Cole and Ruth
Bader Ginsburg, among others.
How did this venture begin?
Growing up in a New York Jewish
home, Abigail Pogrebin was con-
fused about her heritage. She and
her parents were ambivalent about
religious customs, so she set out
to discover how other Jews han-
dled their own religious conun-
drums. Being a well-known writer
of celebrity profiles, she naturally
turned to inter-
viewing famous Jews. Sixty-two
of these conversations, different
perspectives on what it means to
be Jewish, were published in her
book.
Seven years later, the idea was
conceived to adapt excerpts from
the book to music. Charles Busch
wrote the script, and 22 notable
songwriters were asked to trans-
form a celebrity interview of their
choice into music. The collabora-
tions which resulted produced a
song-cycle of 13 highly entertain-
ing musical pieces about Jewish
identity in America.
I am thrilled that on the eve-
ning of Wednesday, Sept. 4, Stars
of David will be presented at
Adat Shalom. Joining me from all
across the country in this musical
performance will be six highly
talented cantors (including Marcia
Tilchin!).
This event will be the first in
an ongoing series of the Lillian
E. Kaufman Memorial Concerts,
honoring the memory of the
beloved matriarch of the Kaufman
family. The community is invited
to this very special evening.
Tickets and information are
available at adatshalom.org/
starsofdavid or by contacting
(248) 851-5100.
Stars of David
Hazzan
Daniel Gross
Special to
the Jewish
News
Concert exploring Jewish identity
in America takes
place at Adat
Shalom Sept. 4.