Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and its affect on Jewish communities around the world.
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News As L.A.-based Coffee Bean drops kosher status, Orthodox customers fight back
A few years ago, Sarah Blitzstein and a few close friends mapped out an unconventional 5K route. Instead of passing through local parks or looping around prominent Los Angeles landmarks, they chose branches of an institution that had been central to their friendship dating back to their youth: The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. “It…
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Community Safe-guarding your post-pandemic synagogue requires fundraising — respectfully
Even while the world is experiencing chaos and confusion, it is inspiring to see organizations, particularly community based and religious institutions such as synagogues, engage with and draw in their communities in meaningful ways. The unknown is most definitely challenging, and over the past two months, people have turned to their local communities for support,…
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Community ‘What are you all eating? Hold it up to the camera, let’s see.’ Ramadan adapts to Zoom
This year, Ramadan is like none we have experienced. While fasting involves abstinence from food, drink, and sexual relations from daybreak to sundown, what makes it the most wonderful time of the year is the communal gatherings. The spirit of community comes alive at iftar, when we break our fast together as the sun sets….
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News ‘Wah-Nee Island’: Private, ‘Jew-ish’ camps plan to open. Here’s how.
Many of the most prominent Jewish summer camps in America have announced that they will not be operating this summer, or have privately admitted that opening will be close to impossible. But there is another segment of the Jewish camping world that’s still holding out hope: for-profit camps that attract a heavily Jewish clientele but…
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News LA entrepreneurs create “wedding registry” for LA hospitals in need
The calls from the frontlines were disturbing. Emily Kane Miller, CEO of Ethos Giving had heard from her medical professional sister-in-law that supplies of personal protective equipment (PPE) were running low in her hospital. Meanwhile, Elizabeth Faraut, CEO of LA LOOP, had heard the same from a doctor in her family. Seeing the need for…
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News Reform leader: merging national organization with others ‘a very real possibility’
The national leader of American Judaism’s biggest denomination said he is considering the possibility of merging parts of its operations with those of other liberal Jewish movements. It’s “a very real possibility” despite some religious differences between the denominations, said Rabbi Rick Jacobs, the leader of the Union for Reform Judaism, which has over 850…
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Community On Omer beards past and present: ‘My fallowing of face reflected many things’
It began as an act of laziness — I admit it. Over the years, vacation or illness had provided ample excuse to liberate my routine and my face from the rigors and razor burn of daily manscaping. There was the occasional foray in pursuit of novelty, a stylistic dynamism that seemed amply available to women,…
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Fast Forward Beloved LA chain of coffee shops ends kosher-only offerings
The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (CBTL), a California-based chain of coffee shops known for its certified kosher offerings, is ending its kosher-only status. In a May 12 statement, the company announced that “extensive consumer research” had revealed a desire for “a broader array of food options” among customers. As of June 8, bakery items…
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Opinion Trump’s first picks are die-hard Israel supporters, mocking the pro-Palestinian protest vote
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News What a Secretary of State Marco Rubio would mean for American Jews and Israel
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