You'll be in good hands with my colleagues at JC while I'm gone. I feel very lucky that our union was able to win this generous sabbatical in our contract, and encourage other shops to do the same!
I'm heading on sabbatical until May 7th. I won't be reading my work email or any work-related messages until then, and plan not to be on here much, if at all. Look forward to returning to work with new energy in the spring, and in the meantime I welcome any book or movie recs!
“My entire portfolio was focused on white supremacists and violent extremists. After October 7th, it was exclusively pro-Palestine.”
Read @maricohen.bsky.social and @alexbkane.bsky.social's report on the state of the ADL as it faces isolation from the FBI:
jewishcurrents.org/the-adl-trie...
Yuuuuup. But props as always to @jewishcurrents.bsky.social @alexbkane.bsky.social & @maricohen.bsky.social for excellent reporting ✊
Losing its long-cultivated partnership with the FBI is a major blow to the Anti-Defamation League. But the group has few left allies to support it against MAGA after recent attempts to align with Trumpworld.
@maricohen.bsky.social & @alexbkane.bsky.social report:
jewishcurrents.org/the-adl-trie...
A bit over a year ago, my friend and colleague Chris Blackwell had a clemency hearing. As a model of rehabilitation and achievement from prison, he seemed like an obvious candidate. Instead, the process left me wondering "Who is this for?" Read his essay:
jewishcurrents.org/process-of-p...
Pretty overwhelmed by this generous overview of MOBILITY by @maricohen.bsky.social in @jewishcurrents.bsky.social today. She *read* this novel. A gift. 😭 jewishcurrents.org/shabbat-read...
Jewish Currents has learned that the Conscience flotilla, with
Emily Wilder aboard reporting for us, has been intercepted and boarded by the Israeli military. Communications with Emily and the rest of the boat have been cut. We are awaiting further updates.
My conversation with @maricohen.bsky.social associate editor at @jewishcurrents.bsky.social is now up on the public feed.
One of the most important conversations I've had all year. A fascinating/sad/mindbending discussion about the rifts forming within Genocide Studies & more.
In a new On the Nose episode, associate editor @maricohen.bsky.social interviews organizers from a new campaign to shift Jewish communities towards abolitionist strategies for safety and security. Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts. jewishcurrents.org/making-safet...
As if to underscore his point, at least three of those charged with antisemitic hate crimes in the cases identified by Jewish Currents are themselves Jewish.
Important @maricohen.bsky.social story on how hate crime prosecutions are being mobilized to clamp down on pro-Palestine dissent.
jewishcurrents.org/how-support-...
I also report on cases of anti-Israel vandalism and Israeli flag burning that were construed by prosecutors as anti-Jewish hate crimes. Defense lawyers say that prosecutors and judges in these cases often had little background in the nuances of anti-Zionism and antisemitism.
I report on Elias and Hannah, who, in Manhattan and Boise, respectively, had their lives disrupted when they were charged with hate crimes after two-way minor altercations with pro-Israel individuals. The pro-Israel individuals faced no charges in either case.
now, these laws are being used as part of a larger scale criminalization of pro-palestine protest. Since Oct 7, prosecutors have pursued hate crime prosecutions even when evidence of the crime proved dubious, or have sought to equate anti-Zionism w antisemitism.
hate crime laws have long faced criticism from the left on the grounds of being ineffective for deterring racist violence and paradoxically most likely to criminalize the vulnerable.
NEW unpaywalled: My months-long investigation into the use of hate crime charges against Palestine supporters since October 7th. I found 17 individuals who have faced hate crime charges for pro-Palestine activity or speech, and focused on a few cases here: jewishcurrents.org/how-support-...
NEW from our summer issue, out from behind the paywall: @maricohen.bsky.social reports on a chilling new use of hate crime statutes to target individuals for pro-Palestine protest or speech. jewishcurrents.org/how-support-...
In a new On the Nose episode, from a live event in February, @maricohen.bsky.social interviews @rabbiandykahn.com about the history of anti-Zionism in the Reform movement and a new attempt to revive it. Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts:
jewishcurrents.org/the-return-o...
@maricohen.bsky.social reports on cases in which pro-Palestine activity has led to hate crimes charges.
jewishcurrents.org/how-support-...
My latest investigation is now online for @jewishcurrents.bsky.social subscribers. I identified 17 people since October 7th who have been charged with hate crimes for pro-Palestine speech or activity. I tell several of their stories here. jewishcurrents.org/how-support-...
In response to violence in DC and Boulder, American Jewish leaders are doubling down on conflating Zionism with Jewish identity—even as they insist that it's wrong to target Jews for Israel's actions. This response won't protect Jews, writes publisher Daniel May:
jewishcurrents.org/the-tangled-...
confused about trump's apparent distance from netanyahu even as the president ruthlessly cracks down on israel critics at home? @alexbkane.bsky.social's report unpacks the contradictions of trump's israel policy and the rise of the "restraint" movement jewishcurrents.org/unpacking-th...
"Buber thus objected to some basic social and political structures that made his own existence possible. He was walking south in a train heading north."
jewishcurrents.org/wrestling-wi...
i'm caught up on tariffs now! you can be too: jewishcurrents.org/a-leftists-g...
📣 Announcing the 2025 Livingston Awards Finalists in International Reporting!
The Livingston Awards honor the best in journalism by professionals under 35. Championing ambitious, impactful journalism for over four decades.
Explore their work: loom.ly/LAVASEQ
#YoungJournalists
Must read: Mahmoud Khalil speaks out for the first time since his arrest by the Trump administration in an exclusive letter, dictated over the phone to his family, from ICE detention in Louisiana.
talked with Alex Kane and Arielle Angel about how Jewish groups are responding to the abduction of Mahmoud Khalil; what a new-ish liberal opposition means or doesn't mean for political alignments going forward; and the rise of new reactionary groups jewishcurrents.org/the-jewish-i...
really convenient time for twitter to be down, huh?
do you or someone you know work in a national or major regional Jewish organization and have concerns or information about how your organization is responding to the detention of Mahmoud Khalil? Email mari@jewishcurrents.org or Signal maric.95. Anonymity available.
