Ben Fractenberg
By Ben Fractenberg
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News Lawsuit Protesting Special Standards For Jewish Schools Might Get Thrown Out
More than 100,000 children in Orthodox Jewish schools in New York state are getting a substandard education that makes it virtually impossible for them to function in secular society, a federal lawsuit brought by former students alleges — but the suit has a potentially fatal legal weakness that might get it thrown out, experts say….
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News Jewish Candidates Help Bolster Democratic Fundraising In Swing Districts
Mike Levin said small donations have paid off for him in a big way. The Southern California Democrat is part of a slew of swing-district candidates whose strong fundraising numbers experts consider an indicator the party has a shot of retaking the House of Representatives in November. Levin, whose father is Jewish and mother’s parents…
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News Billionaire Ex-GOP Megadonor Seth Klarman Bets Big On Democratic ‘Blue Wave’
Hedge fund guru Seth Klarman used to be a major Republican donor. Now he’s putting substantial money towards helping the Democrats’ “blue wave.” Klarman, who is Jewish and a registered independent, has donated more than $250,000 to around 80 Democratic candidates so far this year, the Forward can reveal. The investor gave more than $2.9…
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News Julia Salazar Says Jewish Roots Helped Inspire Her Political Activism
College was where Julia Salazar began to really explorer her Sephardic roots and class consciousness. She attended Columbia University, one of the most heavily Jewish schools in the country, but also one of the most affluent. For Salazar, it was a crucible that forged her identity as a Jewish working-class woman. “I was a nanny,…
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News Riverdale Teacher Quits ‘On Principle’ After Elite School Scraps Israel Seminar
Long-serving Riverdale Country School history teacher Joel Doerfler told the Forward he quit the elite Bronx private school “on principle” after administrators did not provide an “intellectual, pedagogical or ethical reason(s)” for cancelling a popular Israeli-Palestinian seminar he taught. “I have taught the subject of Israel-Palestine in the same way I have taught all my…
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News Young Evangelicals Feel The Complexity Of Conflict After Traveling To Israel
One of Ryan Mills’ most powerful memories of his recent trip to Israel was the moment he gazed over a barrier wall at the Israel-Gaza border and saw what seemed like a Hamas lookout post. “It was kind of eerie,” Mills said about traveling so close to the heart of the long-simmering conflict less than…
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News Anti-Fascist Groups Plan Counter-Protest At Charlottesville Anniversary Rally
Thousands of anti-fascist protesters will confront the white nationalists and neo-Nazis planning an August rally in Washington, D.C. on the anniversary of the “Unite the Right” march in Charlottesville, protest organizers told the Forward. Jason Kessler, who planned last year’s Charlottesville rally, has been given initial approval to hold an Aug. 12 “Unite the Right…
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News Can GOP Use Israel As Wedge Issue Against Democrat Who Donated To BDS Groups?
A Democratic congressional candidate running in a heavily Jewish district outside Philadelphia won the endorsement of a prominent local Jewish organization after he disavowed his family foundation’s donations to groups supporting the boycott, divestment and sanctions campaign against Israel. Scott Wallace had come under fire after the Forward revealed his foundation donated hundreds of thousands…
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Opinion Here’s why Orthodox Jews are loyal to Trump — even if they don’t love him
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FIRST PERSON As a rabbi, he helped others mourn. So why wouldn’t his daughter say kaddish for him?
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