Aftermath of antisemitism at G.W. + Sarah Silverman stumps for sister + Andy Griffith's Yiddish roots

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Donald Trump sparks controversy with Israel comments, Jews and Mormons swap lives on NBC reality show, Orthodox Jew wins World Series of Poker and more.

FROM THE FORWARD

A rabbi reads from a Torah scroll at a rally in response to vandalism at a Jewish fraternity. (Photo: Eric Lee)

Hundreds gathered at George Washington University Monday evening to protest the vandalism of a replica Torah in a fraternity house. While some pointed to a history of antisemitic incidents on campus, others thought it may have just been a Halloween prank gone awry. Our reporter Arno Rosenfeld was there with photographer Eric Lee. Read the story >

Antisemitism on campuses is challenging administrators and spilling over into college towns, writes our language columnist, Aviya Kushner. In a new column, she notes that swastikas were spray-painted at a park in Iowa City, and points to other incidents in Wilmington, Del., and Newark. “I have no doubt that the Torah’s beauty and majesty will survive,” she says, “but the question is whether great universities, faced with hatred burning on their campus, will survive with their ethical standing intact.” Read the story >

On today’s ballot: A candidate with a history of antisemitic tweets — and the GOP endorsement. He’s a former Pennsylvania radio host who helped promote the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville. Now he’s running for school board in Idaho. Michelle Lippert, a current board member in the 6,000-student district, sees only one difference between him and Aryan Nation groups of the 1980s. “Today they wear ties and jackets and don’t shave their heads,” she said. Read the story >

You know the headliner must be really special when her warm-up act is Sarah Silverman. “Without further ado, a Jew,” the comedian said as she introduced her sister, Rabbi Susan Silverman. The event was a fundraiser for Second Nurture, a group Rabbi Silverman created to promote adoption and foster care in Jewish communities. “Susie knows that families and communities are forces for social change,” Sarah said. “This model works – this model needs to be replicated everywhere.” Read the story >

Who would you put on baseball’s all-star all-Jewish lineup? When a Forward reader in 1903 wondered about the point of America’s favorite pastime, our founding editor, Ab Cahan, had a ready response. “Let your boys play baseball and play it well,” he wrote. “Let us not raise the children that they grow up foreigners in their own birthplace.” More than a century and dozens of Jewish players later, Peter Dreier draws his dream roster, choosing a member of the tribe for each position. Read the story >

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Nov 4 – 11

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Don’t miss this year’s Other Israel Film Festival, providing an in-depth look into Israeli and Palestinian societies.

For more info and tickets, visit otherisrael.org.

WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

🎙 Donald Trump said that he “could run for prime minister of Israel and win very easily — they like me over there.” While being interviewed on a conservative radio show, the former president also said that Jewish people in the United States, “many of them, do not like Israel,” then added: “I’m not talking about Orthodox Jews.” (JTA/Forward)

🙏 The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who is half-Jewish, apologized on Monday for suggesting that the impact of climate change would be worse than Nazi genocide. In an earlier interview, he had said that global warming “will kill people all around the world for generations” and “allow a genocide on an infinitely greater scale” than the Holocaust. (BBC)

♿︎ And speaking of climate change… Israel’s Energy Minister Karine Elharrar was not able to attend the United Nations conference in Glasgow on Monday because it is not fully accessible by wheelchair. “It is sad that the U.N., which promotes accessibility for people with disabilities, in 2021, does not provide accessibility to its events,” she said. (NPR)

🚀 Six humans just returned from Mars … kind of. An international team of astronauts entered a Mars habitat in southern Israel’s desert three weeks ago for a simulation of what life would be like on the Red Planet. After conducting a host of experiments (and fixing a broken toilet), they emerged optimistic. “We learned many things that will get us one step closer to Mars,” said João Lousada of Portugal. (Times of Israel)

♠️ Gershon Distenfeld, an Orthodox Jew from New Jersey, won the World Series of Poker and said he will donate his winnings. “My wife Aviva and I have been blessed with financial means and it’s a core value of ours to give both our money and our time to help make the world a better place,” he said. (PokerNews)

🕎 Customers are complaining about culturally insensitive Hanukkah merch at Bed, Bath & Beyond, Target and other retailers. Two items invoked Passover, a totally different holiday: a mug was decorated with the words “Deck the halls with matzo balls,” and a pillow printed with “Why is this night different from all other nights? Happy Hanukkah.” The pillow was removed. (JTA)

Shiva call > Dr. Aaron T. Beck, the developer of cognitive therapy, died at 100. Born to Russian Jewish immigrants in Providence, R.I., Beck’s insights transformed the treatment of anxiety and depression. “There is more to the surface than meets the eye,” he used to say. (NYT)

What else we’re reading > A ‘Survivor’ contestant’s ‘Baruch Hashem’ was a historic reality TV moment … A field guide to modern Israeli alternative music … This guy has collected 4,000 tiny dreidels found by Eastern European treasure hunters.

FROM OUR CULTURE SECTION

Was Andy Griffith’s first big hit really an old Yiddish vaudeville routine?In 1953, Griffith recorded “What It Was, Was Football,” which went on to sell 750,000 copies and help launch his career. The skit may have sounded familiar to fans of “Getzel at a Football Game.” It followed the same storyline, though the character was on a subway in the Bronx rather than en route to a church tent meeting. And the routine was in Yiddish. Read the story >

When Jews and Mormons swap lives, it’s as awkward as you’d expect: Ava Duvernay, best known for award-winning films like “Selma,” has taken a new direction: reality TV. Her new show, “Home Sweet Home” on NBC, sees people swapping homes and lives for a weekend. The show attempts to challenge stereotypes, but is “so didactic that it can be nearly unwatchable,” writes our culture critic Mira Fox. She was, however, pleased with the diverse, artistic Jewish characters. “No single family can represent an entire tradition, but if we had to pick one, I’m glad it was the Silversteins.” Read the story >

ON THE CALENDAR

Hank Azaria (second from right) portrayed Albert Freedman in the 1994 film 'Quiz Show.'

On this day in history: Charles Van Doren, a game-show contestant, admitted to Congress on Nov. 2., 1959, that he was given the questions and answers in advance. The cheating scandal, famously recreated in the Robert Redford film “Quiz Show,” highlighted how Jewish producer Albert Freedman was the one who aided Van Doren, in the process knocking off the reigning champion, Herbert Milton Stempel, a Jewish military veteran. “Freedman helped create a televised paradigm of a Christian media hero, idolized by millions of Cold War-age Americans, conquering a Jewish opponent who was carefully coached by producers to look as nerdy and neurotic as possible,” wrote our contributor Benjamin Ivry.

It’s also the birthday of David Schwimmer, one-sixth of the cast of “Friends” and star of an under-appreciated 2001 miniseries about the Warsaw Ghetto uprising.

Monday, Nov. 8 at 7:30 p.m. ET: Our editor-in-chief, Jodi Rudoren, will be in conversation with New Israel Fund CEO Daniel Sokatch. In his new book, “Can We Talk About Israel? A Guide for the Curious, Confused, and Conflicted,” he dives into why many people – even those who don’t fully grasp the situation – feel so strongly about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Register now >

PHOTO OF THE DAY

Passengers from the United States arrived at Israel’s Ben Gurion International Airport on Monday, marking the first time the country opened its borders since March 2020. Tourists must either be vaccinated or have recovered from COVID-19. The move comes shortly before the Christmas season, when hundreds of thousands of people usually visit Bethlehem.

Thanks to Mira Fox, Lauren Markoe, Arno Rosenfeld and Talya Zax for contributing to today’s newsletter. You can reach the “Forwarding” team at editorial@forward.com.

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