Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of Taglit-Birthright Israel, a free 10-day trip to Israel for young adults with Jewish heritage.
Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of Taglit-Birthright Israel, a free 10-day trip to Israel for young adults with Jewish heritage.
Confronting challenges including the pandemic and younger generations’ growing alienation from Israel, Birthright Israel is merging with a smaller and lesser-known organization that provides internships, study and immersive living experiences in the Jewish State. Birthright, which has provided free 10-day trips to Israel for some 750,000 young adults since its founding in 1999, has in…
Over two decades, Birthright Israel delivered more than 750,000 free-of-charge trips to young Jews, but amid the COVID-19 pandemic, like so many organizations, its programming came to halt. More than a year of inactivity and cancellations later, the group is now beginning to think about what a return to normalcy might look like. For Birthright,…
There is often confusion among Jews around the globe about why, when and how the tradition of Hanukkah gift-giving originated. Has exchanging gifts with loved ones and friends always been a part of the tradition? Why do we do it? There is nothing in religious texts nor the original retellings of the Maccabees that specifically…
New data from researchers at Brandeis University show that participants in the Birthright program that provides young adults free trips to Israel continue even up to two decades later to be more likely to marry other Jews, raise their children Jewish and have a strong attachment to Israel than their peers. The study, which compares…
A new program will lower the cost of Israel trips for high school students by about $3,000 in order to give them that experience before they get to college — not during or after, as Birthright does. The Jewish Education Project will lead the RootOne initiative, which will subsidize trips by five Jewish youth groups…
Last week, J Street U, the campus arm of J Street, wrapped up its inaugural free trip to Israel for Jewish college students. The “Let My People Know” trip was conceived as a response to protests against Birthright, which does not include meetings with Palestinians on its trips, or discussions about the occupation. While the…
It sounds more like an NC-17 dream than reality — the man People magazine called “The Sexiest Doctor Alive” leaped into action to save a life when a passenger on his flight to Israel went into anaphylactic shock. But you know what they say about Israel: If you will it, it is no dream. 29-year-old…
A first-of-its-kind “alternative Birthright” tour aimed at progressive-minded young American Jews kicks off in Israel on Tuesday. Forty participants are set to take part in the 10-day inaugural trip, titled “Let Our People Know,” which is sponsored and financed by J Street. The tour includes visits to the West Bank cities of Hebron and Ramallah,…
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