Enkontro de Alhad (Zoom, 26 Jan)

[allyson....@fulbrightmail.org]

Please see forwarded message below:

Dear Friends,

I wanted to share a few items of interest, for those in Seattle and for those around the world:

Enkontro de Alhad (Zoom) In a moment of such political and ideological conflict, it can be helpful to turn to the past to gain a broader perspective. I am therefore happy to invite you to my upcoming Enkontro de Alhad, a weekly zoom program in Ladino hosted in Buenos Aires by Centro Cultural Sefarad. 

During the session this coming Sunday, January 26, I will be joined by Dr. Rena Molho (Greece) and Dr. Gila Hadar (Israel), two major authorities on the history of Salonica's Jews, to discuss the development of Jewish political movements in the city prior to the Holocaust -- liberalism, Zionism, communism, among others. The conversation will take place entirely in Ladino.

Sunday, January 26 at 8 am PT/ 11 am ET / 17:00 Spain&France / 18:00 Greece&Israel/ 19:00 Turkey

Zoom link here

Flyer attached

Letters from Mothers in the Thessaloniki Ghetto to their Sons (in person, Seattle). In partnership with the University of Washington Hellenic Studies Program, the Sephardic Studies Program invites you to a guest presentation by Dr. Leon Saltiel on his book, Do Not Forget Me: Three Jewish Mothers Write to their Sons from the Thessaloniki Ghetto. Do not miss this opportunity to hear from Dr. Saltiel, who will be visiting all the way from Geneva.

Thursday, February 6 at 4:30 pm PT, UW campus, Communication Building 120; reception to follow.

Flyer attached.

"Bad Jews" (in person, Seattle). The Sephardic Studies program and the Stroum Center for Jewish Studies, together with the Latin American and Caribbean studies program, will be hosting what promises to be a fascinating talk by professor Mir Yarfitz (Wake Forest University): "Bad Jews: Bad for the Jews? Sex, Shame, and Policing in Argentine Jewish History." February 5, 7 pm PT, UW campus, Thomson Hall 101. Details and registration here. 

Paco Díez in Concert (in person, Seattle area): 

Acclaimed Spanish musician Paco Díez will be performing Sephardic songs at the Mercer Island JCC, this coming Sunday, January 26 at 5 pm PT. Details and tickets here. 

Coming up: 

America as reflected in Ladino Newspapers (Zoom)

I am happy to share that I have been invited to deliver a talk over Zoom with Baruch College, CUNY, as part of a new Distinguished Speakers Series on Sephardic Voices. I will share some of the fruits of my research while on sabbatical:

A ":Curious" and "Exotic" Land: The United States as Reflected in Ladino Newspapers from the Ottoman Empire 

February 11 at 1:15 pm PT/ 4:15 pm ET

Complete details still pending. See here for the preliminary announcement. If you'd like to receive the zoom link, let me know!

Description:

The United States gained fame in the imagination of Yiddish-speaking Jews from Eastern Europe as the “Goldene Medina,” the golden land, the land of opportunity where hopeful migrants escaping violence and economic hardship could fulfill the American Dream. 
What did Sephardic Jews from the Ottoman Empire think of America? Close study of Ladino newspapers from the Ottoman Empire reveals a different perception of the country— a “curious,” “strange,” even “exotic” land. America emerged as a land of questionable opportunity, one marred by economic extravagance, racial tensions, and a sense that Jews went there to lose their Judaism. Yet many Ottoman Jews nonetheless ventured the trip. Find out how Sephardic Jews imagined the US and why, despite the warnings, many eventually settled here. 

Kon mis mijores saludes,

Devin

-- 

Dr. Devin E. Naar (he/him)
The Isaac Alhadeff Professor in Sephardic Studies
Associate Professor, Stroum Center for Jewish Studies & Dept. of History
The Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies
University of Washington, Campus Box 353650
Seattle, WA 98195
+1.206.616.6202

den...@uw.edu

www.devinenaar.com

Check out: Jewish Salonica: Between the Ottoman Empire and Modern Greece