Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of Taglit-Birthright Israel, a free 10-day trip to Israel for young adults with Jewish heritage.
Birthright
The Latest
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Opinion Why We Need To Subsidize Teen Travel to Israel
Another summer season has passed and parents of high-school-age teens who wanted to give their children an experience of Israel had to dig deep into their pockets and pay the full cost. Programs for teens that range from three to six weeks can cost up to 10,000 dollars for teens coming from the West Coast…
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Breaking News Birthright Sets Record With 30,000 Summer Trips
Birthright, the free 10-day trip to Israel, has brought a record 30,000 young Jewish people on its trips this summer. The number of summer participants, coming one year after Israel endured a 50-day war last summer, is Birthright’s highest in its 15 years of existence. The participants came from 32 countries on six continents, and…
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Opinion I Don’t Want Birthright Telling Me What To Think About Iran
“Help the State of Israel by contacting your congressman and senator and requesting that they reject this deal and override President Obama’s veto of their decision.” That was a plea sent out on Tuesday to New York-area Birthright alumni by “The Alumni Community.” Is it right for this group to impose the political viewpoint of…
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Breaking News Birthright Dedicates Memorial to Lone Soldier Max Steinberg
Birthright Israel dedicated a memorial site in northern Israel to Max Steinberg, an American who died fighting for the Jewish state. The site was established at the ancient synagogue in the Arbel nature reserve in the lower Galilee, where a ceremony was held Thursday, the organization said. On hand were the late soldier’s family, soldiers…
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Opinion How Birthright Is Failing the Pro-Israel Cause
“So you’re going to support racist nationalism to get a free trip?” That’s the question a college housemate asked me when I returned from Birthright. She had seen the freshly uploaded photos that decorated my Facebook profile that week: my friends and I slathered in clay at the Dead Sea, riding camels in the Negev,…
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News Calling All Newlyweds — Now You Can Make Birthright Your Honeymoon
(JTA) — Jay and Mikelle sat next to each other on the bus as it ascended the road to Jerusalem. Later the same day they accompanied each other on an emotional trip to Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust museum. The next day they planned to trek up to the desert fortress at Masada and swim together…
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Israel News Introducing Birthright for Evangelical Christians
Conservative Jewish funders and Christian donors of Hobby Lobby fame have joined forces to launch a Christian Birthright trip, modeled after the successful program that has taken thousands of Jewish young adults to Israel for the past 16 years. Covenant Journey, a subsidized evangelical 11-day trip to Israel that was officially announced May 8, will…
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Israel News Birthright Paves Path to BDS for Some Participants
Sam Sussman’s tour of Masada started in a pretty standard way. It happened three years ago as part of the Taglit-Birthright program, which offers young Jews free 10-day trips to Israel. At Masada, 50 American students were on hand. Sussman, a 24-year-old New Yorker, climbed to the top of the plateau and expected the requisite…
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