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Holocaust museum celebrates Rebecca Rubin, the Jewish immigrant and American Girl doll
(New York Jewish Week) – Born in 1905, Rebecca Rubin was a Russian-Jewish immigrant who lived on the Lower East Side. Typical of girls her age, she attended public school, lit Shabbat candles with her siblings, watched her father conduct business at his shoe store and loved going to the movies.
And now, this Sunday, the Museum of Jewish Heritage-A Living Memorial to the Holocaust will host a family-friendly event designed to celebrate her life and that of other young Jewish immigrants. On the event’s agenda are special tours, crafts and a panel discussion about Rebecca’s story, as well as others like her who lived in New York in the early 20th century.
But here’s the thing: Rebecca Rubin is not a real person. She is an 18-inch tall American Girl doll — who, like the others in the brand’s uber-popular series of historical dolls, represents the life of a girl who lived during an important period of American history. The aim of American Girl, which launched in 1986, is to inspire “girls to grow up with courage, confidence and strength of character,” according to its web site, and invites young children to learn about history on their own terms.
That mission, as it happens, dovetails nicely with that of the Battery Park-based museum. “We celebrate Jewish life before, during and after the Holocaust, and immigration is a big theme of what we do,” said Joshua Mack, the Museum of Jewish Heritage’s vice president of marketing. “I had been thinking about our immigration pieces and ways to get people into the museum so that they can discover what we do, especially younger people. What’s amazing about American Girl dolls is how historically relevant they are. It’s a way for so many children to get proper history, so it totally fits into our lane.”
Sunday’s “Rebecca Day” is the museum’s first-ever event dedicated to a doll. The idea originated nearly 10 years ago when Mack took his own child, Willa, to the Tenement Museum — a Lower East Side “living history museum” that tells the story of New York’s immigrants by recreating the conditions they lived in — and they toted along their Rebecca doll.
“It seemed like a great way to celebrate Jewish heritage and get fans and enthusiasts to visit us and learn more about the museum,” Mack said of Rebecca Day, adding that when he pitched his team — who are mostly Gen-Z and millennials — they immediately latched onto it.
As one of 12 historical dolls in the active lineup of historical American Girls, Rebecca was the first American Girl doll with a Jewish story when she came on the scene in 2009. (This spring, American Girl released 1990s twin dolls Isabel and Nicki Hoffman, whose father is Jewish.) “The much-anticipated latest addition to the American Girl series of historical characters, Rebecca goes on sale May 31 along with six books about her life,” JTA’s Sue Fishkoff wrote at the time. “No cheap date, she costs $95 with one book, or $118 if accompanied by the complete set.” (Inflation has been kind to American Girl: The Rebecca set today costs $146.)
Each of the dolls in the series comes with period clothing and accessories to flesh out her life story, as well as a set of books that describes the year in their lives when they turn 10. Rebecca’s line includes props like a menorah, Shabbat candles and a Russian-style shawl, as well as a purple bouclé outfit and satin purple hat.
Sunday’s event is also also designed to get people in the building to view the museum’s new exhibit, “Courage To Act: Rescue in Denmark,” its first-ever exhibit geared towards children, Mack said. The interactive exhibit tells the story of how Jewish and non-Jewish communities in Denmark banded together to save 95% of the Danish Jewish population from the Nazis, including by transporting them on rescue boats to Sweden — an endeavor helmed by 22-year-old Henny Sinding Sundø.
Rebecca Day — which is free, though $10 donations are encouraged — includes kid-friendly guided tours of the museum’s exhibits, as well as a festive lunch of latkes for kids and their dolls at the Lox Cafe, the museum’s restaurant, and Hanukkah crafts like dreidel-decorating.
A highlight of the event is a discussion with Jacqueline Dembar Greene, the author of 11 American Girl novels featuring Rebecca Rubin. She plans to answer questions about Rebecca’s story and about what life was like as an immigrant in 1914. Some of the research she did for the books was conducted at the Museum of Jewish Heritage 15 years ago, Dembar Greene told the New York Jewish Week, adding that other stories were lifted from her own family’s experience as Russian Jewish immigrants in the 1920s.
“I tried to write it as if there were readers who didn’t know much of anything,” Dembar Greene said. “But then, for the kids who were Jewish, I wanted to make sure that they felt that they learned a little extra something and see their own lives reflected in some of the traditions.”
American Girl is not sponsoring Rebecca Day at the museum. But spokesperson Julie Parks said the company is “excited” about the event, particularly the fact that Dembar Greene “will be on hand to share how Rebecca, a first-generation Jewish American growing up in early 20th-century New York City, made her own positive mark on the world.
“American Girl is a brand rooted in story,” Parks said, “and each of our beloved characters, like Rebecca, has helped to create a sense of connection and community among our fans.”
Dembar Greene said one of the biggest challenges in writing the Rebecca books was nailing just how observant the Rubin family might have been — Rebecca’s father opens his shoe store on Shabbat, for example, but her parents wouldn’t let her go to a movie then — while acknowledging that part of the immigrant experience at that time was assimilating to American culture. It’s one of the themes that Rebecca contends with throughout the series.
“I tried to reflect that the most important thing in the families, that was not changeable, was the acceptance of moral traditions,” she said, adding that “tikkun olam, making the world a better place, and the way you treat other people,” are major factors in both Rebecca’s story and Jewish life in general.
“Partly why these books are still popular and still very relevant, even though the story is based so long ago, is that we have new immigrants coming in and contributing to the American story their energy, their drive, their fresh ideas and new ways of looking at things that drive progress,” she added.
“Rebecca Day” will take place at the Museum of Jewish Heritage at 36 Battery Pl. on Sunday, Dec. 3 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Register here.
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Hamas Warns Against Cooperation with US Relief Efforts In Bid to Restore Grip on Gaza
Hamas terrorists carry grenade launchers at the funeral of Marwan Issa, a senior Hamas deputy military commander who was killed in an Israeli airstrike during the conflict between Israel and Hamas, in the central Gaza Strip, Feb. 7, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
The Hamas-run Interior Ministry in Gaza has warned residents not to cooperate with the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, as the terror group seeks to reassert its grip on the enclave amid mounting international pressure to accept a US-brokered ceasefire.
“It is strictly forbidden to deal with, work for, or provide any form of assistance or cover to the American organization (GHF) or its local or foreign agents,” the Interior Ministry said in a statement Thursday.
“Legal action will be taken against anyone proven to be involved in cooperation with this organization, including the imposition of the maximum penalties stipulated in the applicable national laws,” the statement warns.
The GHF released a statement in response to Hamas’ warnings, saying the organization has delivered millions of meals “safely and without interference.”
“This statement from the Hamas-controlled Interior Ministry confirms what we’ve known all along: Hamas is losing control,” the GHF said.
The GHF began distributing food packages in Gaza in late May, implementing a new aid delivery model aimed at preventing the diversion of supplies by Hamas, as Israel continues its defensive military campaign against the Palestinian terrorist group.
The initiative has drawn criticism from the UN and international organizations, some of which have claimed that Jerusalem is causing starvation in the war-torn enclave.
Israel has vehemently denied such accusations, noting that, until its recently imposed blockade, it had provided significant humanitarian aid in the enclave throughout the war.
Israeli officials have also said much of the aid that flows into Gaza is stolen by Hamas, which uses it for terrorist operations and sells the rest at high prices to Gazan civilians.
According to their reports, the organization has delivered over 56 million meals to Palestinians in just one month.
Hamas’s latest threat comes amid growing international pressure to accept a US-backed ceasefire plan proposed by President Donald Trump, which sets a 60-day timeline to finalize the details leading to a full resolution of the conflict.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump announced that Israel has agreed to the “necessary conditions” to finalize a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza, though Israel has not confirmed this claim.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to meet with Trump next week in Washington, DC — his third visit in less than six months — as they work to finalize the terms of the ceasefire agreement.
Even though Trump hasn’t provided details on the proposed truce, he said Washington would “work with all parties to end the war” during the 60-day period.
“I hope, for the good of the Middle East, that Hamas takes this Deal, because it will not get better — IT WILL ONLY GET WORSE,” he wrote in a social media post.
Since the start of the war, ceasefire talks between Jerusalem and Hamas have repeatedly failed to yield enduring results.
Israeli officials have previously said they will only agree to end the war if Hamas surrenders, disarms, and goes into exile — a demand the terror group has firmly rejected.
“I am telling you — there will be no Hamas,” Netanyahu said during a speech Wednesday.
For its part, Hamas has said it is willing to release the remaining 50 hostages — fewer than half of whom are believed to be alive — in exchange for a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and an end to the war.
While the terrorist group said it is “ready and serious” to reach a deal that would end the war, it has yet to accept this latest proposal.
In a statement, the group said it aims to reach an agreement that “guarantees an end to the aggression, the withdrawal [of Israeli forces], and urgent relief for our people in the Gaza Strip.”
According to media reports, the proposed 60-day ceasefire would include a partial Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, a surge in humanitarian aid, and the release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas, with US and mediator assurances on advancing talks to end the war — though it remains unclear how many hostages would be freed.
For Israel, the key to any deal is the release of most, if not all, hostages still held in Gaza, as well as the disarmament of Hamas, while the terror group is seeking assurances to end the war as it tries to reassert control over the war-torn enclave.
The post Hamas Warns Against Cooperation with US Relief Efforts In Bid to Restore Grip on Gaza first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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UK Lawmakers Move to Designate Palestine Action as Terrorist Group Following RAF Vandalism Protest
Police block a street as pro-Palestinian demonstrators gather to protest British Home Secretary Yvette Cooper’s plans to proscribe the “Palestine Action” group in the coming weeks, in London, Britain, June 23, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
British lawmakers voted Wednesday to designate Palestine Action as a terrorist organization, following the group’s recent vandalizing of two military aircraft at a Royal Air Force base in protest of the government’s support for Israel.
Last month, members of the UK-based anti-Israel group Palestine Action broke into RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, a county west of London, and vandalized two Voyager aircraft used for military transport and refueling — the latest in a series of destructive acts carried out by the organization.
Palestine Action has regularly targeted British sites connected to Israeli defense firm Elbit Systems as well as other companies in Britain linked to Israel since the start of the conflict in Gaza in 2023.
Under British law, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has the authority to ban an organization if it is believed to commit, promote, or otherwise be involved in acts of terrorism.
Passed overwhelmingly by a vote of 385 to 26 in the lower chamber — the House of Commons — the measure is now set to be reviewed by the upper chamber, the House of Lords, on Thursday.
If approved, the ban would take effect within days, making it a crime to belong to or support Palestine Action and placing the group on the same legal footing as Al Qaeda, Hamas, and the Islamic State under UK law.
Palestine Action, which claims that Britain is an “active participant” in the Gaza conflict due to its military support for Israel, condemned the ban as “an unhinged reaction” and announced plans to challenge it in court — similar to the legal challenges currently being mounted by Hamas.
Under the Terrorism Act 2000, belonging to a proscribed group is a criminal offense punishable by up to 14 years in prison or a fine, while wearing clothing or displaying items supporting such a group can lead to up to six months in prison and/or a fine of up to £5,000.
Palestine Action claimed responsibility for the recent attack, in which two of its activists sprayed red paint into the turbine engines of two Airbus Voyager aircraft and used crowbars to inflict additional damage.
According to the group, the red paint — also sprayed across the runway — was meant to symbolize “Palestinian bloodshed.” A Palestine Liberation Organization flag was also left at the scene.
On Thursday, local authorities arrested four members of the group, aged between 22 and 35, who were charged with conspiracy to enter a prohibited place knowingly for a purpose prejudicial to the safety or interests of the UK, as well as conspiracy to commit criminal damage.
Palestine Action said this latest attack was carried out as a protest against the planes’ role in supporting what the group called Israel’s “genocide” in Gaza.
At the time of the attack, Cooper condemned the group’s actions, stating that their behavior had grown increasingly aggressive and resulted in millions of pounds in damages.
“The disgraceful attack on Brize Norton … is the latest in a long history of unacceptable criminal damage committed by Palestine Action,” Cooper said in a written statement.
“The UK’s defense enterprise is vital to the nation’s national security and this government will not tolerate those that put that security at risk,” she continued.
The post UK Lawmakers Move to Designate Palestine Action as Terrorist Group Following RAF Vandalism Protest first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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US-backed Gaza Relief NGO Vows ‘Legal Action’ Against AP Claim Group Fired on Palestinian Civilians
Palestinians collect aid supplies from the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, June 9, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Hatem Khaled
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a US-backed nonprofit operating aid distribution centers in the Gaza Strip, is pushing back forcefully against an Associated Press report alleging that its contractors opened fire on Palestinian civilians.
The GHF is accusing the AP of withholding key evidence and relying on a “disgruntled former contractor” as a central source.
“In response, we are pursuing legal action,” the organization said in a statement released Wednesday.
GHF said it conducted an “immediate investigation” after being contacted by the AP, reviewing time-stamped video footage and sworn witness testimony. The group concluded that the allegations were “categorically false,” stating that no civilians were fired upon at any of their distribution sites and that the gunfire heard in the AP’s video came from Israeli forces operating outside the vicinity.
“What is most troubling is that the AP refused to share the full video with us prior to publication, despite the seriousness of the allegations,” the statement read. “If they believed their own reporting, they should have provided us with the footage so we could take immediate and appropriate action.”
The nonprofit’s public rebuttal raises sharp questions about the AP’s reporting process, suggesting the outlet declined to engage with the organization in good faith and instead leaned on a source GHF describes as having been terminated “for misconduct” weeks prior. The group also claimed the AP’s recent coverage of its activities had begun to “echo narratives advanced by the Hamas-controlled Gaza Ministry of Health.”
The AP has not yet responded publicly to the GHF’s accusations or provided clarification about its decision not to share the video footage before publication. The original report alleged that American contractors employed by GHF had fired weapons near or toward civilians.
The GHF statement confirmed that a contractor seen shouting in the AP’s video had been removed from operations, though the group insisted this was unrelated to any violence and did not constitute evidence of wrongdoing.
GHF, which describes its mission as delivering food to Gaza “safely, directly, and without interference,” said it remains committed to transparency but would not allow its operations to be “derailed by misinformation.”
The dispute highlights the fraught information environment in Gaza, where limited access and competing narratives frequently complicate the verification of on-the-ground events.
The post US-backed Gaza Relief NGO Vows ‘Legal Action’ Against AP Claim Group Fired on Palestinian Civilians first appeared on Algemeiner.com.