Ben Harris
By Ben Harris
-
Fast Forward Palestinians release counterproposal to Trump peace plan
(JTA) — The Palestinian Authority has submitted a proposal for an independent demilitarized Palestinian state in Gaza, the West Bank and eastern Jerusalem. Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh said Tuesday that the P.A. had submitted a proposal to the so-called Quartet of international mediators — comprising the United States, the European Union, the United Nations and…
-
Fast Forward For some small kosher food purveyors, the coronavirus era is boom time
(JTA) — Like many small business owners, Ian Yosef Hertzmark’s small flour operation saw a precipitous drop when the coronavirus pandemic hit the Unites States in March. Almost overnight, Hertzmark’s Migrash Farm, which produces certified kosher flour from grain grown in the Chesapeake Bay region, lost virtually his entire wholesale business after local restaurants and…
-
Fast Forward Veterans Affairs Dept. to reverse course, replace headstones that have swastikas
(JTA) — The Department of Veterans Affairs announced that it will begin the process of replacing three gravestones bearing swastikas in cemeteries in Texas and Utah, less than a month after saying they would be preserved as “historic resources.” The VA told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency last month that it would preserve the gravestones, which…
-
News Aaron Rubashkin, 92, Patriarch Of Troubled Kosher Meat Empire
(JTA) — Aaron Rubashkin knew a thing or two about mistreatment at the hands of governmental authorities. As a child in the Russian town of Nevel, he saw his Jewish school shut down by the Soviet government in 1938. After the Nazis arrived in the summer of 1941, the Rubashkin family fled on foot, landing…
-
News Alison Schwartz, 29, People Magazine Staffer And Devoted Gift Giver
(JTA) — When Alison Schwartz set out to find a gift for her best friend’s wedding in 2018, she did it with her trademark creativity and fastidiousness. The idea was to make a 42-square-foot quilt with all 1,450 words of the couple’s wedding vows hand stitched on the underside. But Schwartz was a perfectionist, and…
-
News David Behrbom, 47, Public School Teacher Who Loved The Yankees
(JTA) — David Behrbom was a talented athlete in his youth, making it all the way to the high school state championships in baseball. But it was a moment on the field in a Babe Ruth League game that his brother says truly encapsulates Behrbom’s character. It was the final inning, the game was tied,…
-
News Martin Wenick, 80, Leader Of Soviet Jewry Fight
A leader of the fight to free Soviet Jews who has later instrumental in helping them resettle in the United States, died on May 7 due to complications of COVID-19. He was 80. Wenick spent 27 years as State Department diplomat before taking over in 1989 as the head of the National Conference for Soviet…
-
News Jerome Spector, 79, Candlemaker Who Planted Gardens
(JTA) — Jerome Spector started making candles when he was living on a commune outside Bennington, Vermont, in the 1960s. Spector was a potter back then, but he didn’t have a kiln. So when someone suggested he could earn money by making candles, Spector used his clay pots as molds, filling them with wax and…
Explore
Most Popular
- 1
Fast Forward ‘Rabbi rebellion’: 33 Orthodox rabbis endorse Harris
- 2
Opinion I was a Bernie supporter. This year, I’m voting Trump. Here’s why liberal Jews like me made the switch
- 3
Opinion Here’s why Orthodox Jews are loyal to Trump — even if they don’t love him
- 4
FIRST PERSON As a rabbi, he helped others mourn. So why wouldn’t his daughter say kaddish for him?
In Case You Missed It
-
Fast Forward Thirsty Philly voters were in for a surprise: Paul Rudd and some handy hydration
-
Opinion Netanyahu’s firing of Gallant is a cynical betrayal of Israel’s security
-
Fast Forward They quit the Biden administration over the war in Gaza. But they are backing Harris.
-
Opinion Benjamin Netanyahu firing Yoav Gallant is a staggeringly reckless decision
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
