Sephardic Heritage Update 982
David Shasha
Friends,
As we continue to see the violence of White Supremacy under a rogue White House, and an Orthodox Jewish community that has maintained its loyalty to the Fascist Trump, it is important to point to seemingly innocuous “Motivational” speakers like the vile Orly Wahba as fellow travelers in this racist process. Wahba has consistently deployed racist figures in her Mister Rogers advocacy marketing scam, and here I examine her pal Henry Clay and his deplorable White Supremacist legacy. What a great example for the kids! Steve Bannon would be proud.
Gabby Deutsch introduces us to a group of young HASBARAH meisters, including a Sephardi named Isaac de Castro. I was curious about him, and found an article he wrote about his “Jewish roots” in Spain. It is an interesting juxtaposition that allows us to see how Sephardi students know nothing of their heritage, and have imbibed the White Jewish Supremacy and its many Zionist depredations without any critical sense.
That flows right into Tikvah Rabbi Yeshoshua Pfeffer and his debased attacks on Liberal values. Once again, we see how The Tikvah Fund is working with reactionary enemies of humanity and how close they are to the world of the Alt-Right Trump Christians.
We then move on to the Ashkenazi irrational as it applies to Hanukkah. Rabbis Elyahu Safran and Michael Leo Samuel address the magical occult as it applies to the Dreidel. It is another excellent example of how the Ashkenazi tradition has sought to erase Maimonidean Jewish Humanism in favor of the dark arts.
A far more helpful article on Hanukkah comes from Rabbi Evan Hoffman who reviews the history of that period and how it was understood by the rabbis of the Talmud. For us to better understand the significance of Hanukkah, it is important to understand historical reality, rather than rely on the myths generated by magicians.
One of the most laudable voices in the current discourse on humanity and poverty is Chef Jose Andres, who has been a tireless advocate of food security for all people. He has built institutions to feed the hungry, and used his voice to speak out on their behalf. We should acknowledge this precious work, and extol his name to the heavens.
We close with a fascinating article on the late Charley Pride, one of the only African-Americans in Country music in the 1960s and 70s, by the venal Jon Caramanica. Caramanica is a strong proponent of the racist Bro Country movement, and his discussion of the racism that Pride faced is an interesting contrast to his usual applause for Corporate Nashville Poptrash. It is unclear what Pride’s legacy will be, as Country music continues to beat the Trump Alt-Right drum, which spells danger for Black people – just as Henry Clay did in the 19th century.
David Shasha
How Kind was Henry Clay? Let’s Ask Orly Wahba About “Mindfulness” and Abolitionist Hiram Mendenall
By: David Shasha
Meets the Students Carving Out a Place for Pro-Israel Jews on Instagram
By: Gabby Deutsch
A Day in Toledo: Reconnecting with My Jewish Roots in Spain
By: Isaac de Castro
Liberalism: Its Peril and Its Deliverance
By: Rabbi Yehoshua Pfeffer
Miracles: They Spin and Spin All Around
By: Rabbi Eliyahu Safran
History and Meanings of the Dreidel
By: Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel
Chanukah, Daniel 11, and the Rabbis’ Limited Knowledge of History During the Greek Period
By: Rabbi Evan Hoffman
What the Pandemic Can Teach Us about Treating Hunger
By: José Andrés
We Need a Secretary of Food
By: José Andrés
Too Much Was Asked of Charley Pride
By: Jon Caramanica