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Jewish drag performers inspire a history of the art form in New York
(New York Jewish Week) — In the 1960s, a drag queen named Flawless Sabrina arrived in New York City during a time when drag performances were not only stigmatized in mainstream society, but within LGBTQ circles as well.
But Flawless Sabrina had a plan: Her welcoming demeanor — which she described as a “bar mitzvah mother” — helped her popularize the art form, and over the next few decades she became one of the country’s first well-known drag performers, a prominent LGBTQ activist and a mentor to young queer New Yorkers.
The person behind the drag, the activism and the inspiration was Jack Doroshow, a Jewish boy from Philadelphia who organized his first drag pageant in 1959 as a freshman at the University of Pennsylvania.
Doroshow’s death in late 2017, at age 78, prompted writer Elyssa Maxx Goodman to think seriously about how to document the history of drag in New York City, a lifelong passion of hers. After more than five years of work, her debut book, “Glitter and Concrete: A Cultural History of Drag in New York City,” is out this week.
Goodman told the New York Jewish Week that it was her Jewish upbringing that made her particularly attuned to recording the stories of these artists and performers over the last 150 years.
“One of the things we learn about as Jews from very young is how our stories either were destroyed or faced many attempts at destruction. That’s something that I kind of took with me throughout my life,” Goodman, 34, told the New York Jewish Week. “I wanted to preserve the stories that aren’t being preserved, which is how I approached my relationship to drag history.”
The New York Jewish Week caught up with Goodman ahead of her book’s launch to talk about how her childhood, New York City and her cultural Jewish identity inspired the book.
This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
The 2021 Drag March at Tompkins Square Park, 27 years after its first iteration in 1994. (Elyssa Maxx Goodman)
What inspired you to write this book?
What pushed me to write this book was that it didn’t exist and it was a book I wanted to read. When the very famous New York drag queen Flawless Sabrina, who was also Jewish, passed away in November 2017, I wanted to make sure that there were no stories that got lost. I started to think about what other books had been written that chronicle the life of drag artists in New York City. There wasn’t a book that was really a written-through history. I knew that these artists deserve that and I wanted to make sure that their stories are remembered. That was definitely the driving force in wanting to do the book.
I first was exposed to drag when I was about 7 years old. I saw the movie “To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar” and I was taken with it ever since then. I had grown up watching 1950s movie musicals with my mother, which were these very vibrant technicolor explosions with lots of swirling dresses and beautiful costumes. Drag is a natural extension of that. So for me, at first, it was just another phase of that interest in costume design and glamor. As I got older, I learned more about the very powerful, rebellious nature of drag and how it is a force to be reckoned with on its own, as an art form and as a life force. What can draw you in is the glamour, but as you get older what keeps you there — at least what kept me there — is the appreciation for its spirit of “Glamour as Resistance,” as the artist Justin Vivian Bond says.
How is your Jewish identity or upbringing connected to your interest in drag?
My relationship to Judaism is deeply cultural — that’s the way that I connect to it most strongly. The first people who brought me to a drag show in real life were my parents and throughout my life, they encouraged my interest in drag.
Everything that we learn about ourselves as a culture, whether it is intentional or not, comes through in creating a book like this, or at least it did for me. We’re taught to question — I arrived at this place because I questioned why the book didn’t exist. Then I just kept asking questions: Where did this come from? Why don’t people know about it? How can I teach it to them? The desire for knowledge and desire for education are all things that I took from Judaism.
The Jewish drag artists I encountered in the book, among them Jack Doroshow, aka Flawless Sabrina, as well as Harvey Fierstein and a drag king named Buddy Kent all came from backgrounds where, in some way or another, they had to fight to be themselves. In some ways, that was fighting to take up space as a Jewish person and in other ways as a queer person. For all of them, it was both. The book contains selections of stories about making space for yourself in the world and the way that you want to live in it — I think that that is something that a lot of Jews had to reckon with as they came to this country in a multitude of ways.
Why did you choose to focus only on the drag history in New York?
New York is one of the cultural epicenters of the world. Because it holds all these different kinds of cultures, it draws the people who are drawn to that. That includes drag artists. There’s amazing drag in other cities, but New York is the city that I know best and it has a history all its own.
It’s also the place that I have the most personal connection to. I’m from South Florida originally and I went to my first drag shows in South Florida, but the drag histories that I learned growing up came from New York. So I moved to New York in July 2010. My primary motivation for moving to New York was to be a writer and to be able to easily access all of the things that I wanted to write about, and drag certainly was one of them. There were these deep-seated histories that had been a passion of mine for a very long time and I wanted to keep telling those stories and learning those stories. New York was a place where I wanted to make myself a student as well as to share my knowledge.
Drag performing has been a major target of right-wing circles this year — as someone who has been involved with and written about the community, how do you respond to the backlash?
I do see it as an opportunity for people to learn more about it. Like I mentioned, drag has been an art form for thousands of years. It’s at least as old as the history of theater. The people who do it are artists and deserve to be respected in such a way. My hope is that with a book that can show the breadth of drag’s involvement in our culture, it can help show that this is an art form with an extended history that can’t just be suppressed and isn’t going anywhere. The struggles the drag is facing are not new, but that doesn’t mean that it should be devalued as an art form, or as a form of self-expression at all.
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The post Jewish drag performers inspire a history of the art form in New York appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Antisemitism in Switzerland Has Surged to ‘Unprecedented Level,’ New Report Finds
A pro-Hamas demonstration in Zurich, Switzerland, Oct. 28, 2023. Photo: IMAGO/dieBildmanufaktur via Reuters Connect
Antisemitism in Switzerland continued to surge to an “unprecedented level” across the country last year, compared to the months leading up to the Hamas-led massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, according to a new report published on Tuesday.
The Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities (SIG), in collaboration with the Foundation Against Racism and Antisemitism (GRA), released its annual report on antisemitism in German-, Italian-, and Romansh-speaking Switzerland last year.
To compile and evaluate all antisemitic incidents, the study used the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism as a reference.
According to the report, the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza prompted a historic surge in attacks on the Swiss Jewish community.
“The war in the Middle East continued to cause a high number of antisemitic incidents in 2024,” the report stated. “The associated wave of antisemitism gained momentum over the course of the reporting
year, reaching an unprecedented level compared to the period prior to Oct. 7, 2023.”
The 31-page report registered 221 “real-world,” or non-online, antisemitic incidents in 2024, marking a 43 percent increase compared to 2023 and a 287 percent rise compared to 2022, the year before the Hamas invasion of southern Israel in October 2023.
Of all the antisemitic incidents registered in 2024, 11 were physical attacks on Jews, including an attempted murder in Zurich and an attempted arson attack on a synagogue. In contrast, prior to the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel in 2023, hardly any such incidents had been reported.
One of the most notorious recent cases was the Zurich attempted murder, in which an Orthodox Jewish man was stabbed and left with life-threatening injuries by a Swiss teenager, an Islamic State supporter of Tunisian origin.
Described by SIG as the most serious antisemitic hate crime in Switzerland in the past two decades, the incident caused widespread shock and led to enhanced security for Jewish sites in Zurich.
According to SIG’s new report, there was a significant increase in antisemitic statements, with 103 reported in 2024 compared to 38 in the previous year and six in 2022.
The study also found that at least 45 percent of all antisemitic incidents were directly related to the Israel-Hamas war, with such a link established in around 28 percent of the total 1,596 registered incidents online.
“Antisemitism has reached the streets in Switzerland,” SIG Secretary General Jonathan Kreutner told Swiss Radio SRF, adding that, despite this development, freedom of opinion, such as support for “Palestine” and criticism of the Israeli government, should be possible in Switzerland.
Based on its analysis, the report explained that “Swiss Jews are often seen as Israeli and are thus held responsible for Israel’s military actions and policies,” leading to members of the Jewish community being targeted in antisemitic attacks because they are seen as responsible for the conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon.
For example, children and young people at schools and universities are being asked to distance themselves from the Israeli government, the study found.
Such rhetoric has fueled the anti-Jewish stereotype of dual loyalty “that Jews are only loyal to themselves and Israel and not real Swiss.” As a result, the report found that the Jewish community in Switzerland feels increasingly insecure, prompting many to hide religious symbols such as the Star of David or a kippah.
In their study, the SIG and GRA demanded that the safety of Jews be guaranteed and call on society and policymakers to ensure the long-term security of Jewish institutions through police action and active support for local security measures.
“Antisemitism in Switzerland is no longer at a crossroads; it has visibly prevailed against all resistance and taken a frightening turn,” the groups said in a statement.
“Whereas attacks such as verbal abuse, spitting, physical assault, and even brutal attacks on life and limb were previously only distant occurrences happening abroad, they are now a reality here, too,” the SIG and GRA added. “The sense of security felt by many Jewish people has deteriorated considerably.”
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Miami Beach Mayor Withdraws Proposal to Evict, Withdraw Funding for Theater Screening Anti-Israel Film
Basel Adra and Yuval Abraham pose with the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature Film for “No Other Land” at the Governors Ball following the Oscars show at the 97th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, US, March 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mike Blake
Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner on Wednesday morning rescinded his proposal to evict a local movie theater from a city-owned building and revoke funding for the venue because of its screening of an Oscar-winning documentary that is critical of Israeli military actions in the West Bank.
The decision was announced at a Miami Beach City Commission meeting, where many members of the community addressed the commission and spoke in opposition to Meiner’s proposal against O Cinema, a sponsor of the Miami Jewish Film Festival, and its sold-out screenings of “No Other Land.” The Orthodox Jewish mayor of Miami Beach withdrew his proposal and deferred discussion to an alternative proposal he introduced on Tuesday night, which encourages O Cinema to show films that “highlight a fair and balanced viewpoint.”
“I really am appreciative of the passion that we saw today,” Meiner said at the conclusion of Wednesday’s meeting. “I’m trying not to get emotional, but I legitimately view this as a public safety threat — not immediately. I don’t think anyone in Miami Beach is going to get hurt or attacked because this movie is being shown, but I see and I’m witnessing what is going on in our world,” he added, addressing the global rise in antisemitism.
“What I was trying to do was highlight a level of hurt and what propaganda — yes, it all needs to be heard — but a level of propaganda that eventually can lead to devastation, whether it be pogroms in Europe, the Holocaust, and certainly Oct. 7,” the mayor said, referring to Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel. “It stars with propaganda and dehumanizing people. And that’s why I brought this to the forefront because, in my view, it was a public safety issue.”
“Even though some of you said some things [that] were hurtful, I love you all. I really, really do,” he concluded. “We’re all Americans, we’re all proud to be in this country, it is a great country, and I really just want what’s best for us, our city, and our country, and the world. God Bless.”
Meiner introduced his eviction proposal last week, after he failed to convince O Cinema to cancel its screenings of “No Other Land” in a letter that he sent to its CEO Vivian Marthell on March 5. At the meeting on Wednesday, five of the commission members said they would oppose the eviction proposal, which also called to suspend grant money to the theater and discontinue any further funding.
On Monday, more than 700 international filmmakers — including Oscar winner Michael Moore and “Moonlight” director Barry Jenkins – signed an open letter supporting O Cinema and encouraging the Miami Beach commissioners to reject Meiner’s proposed eviction of the theater.
O Cinema began screening “No Other Land” on March 7. The film centers on the demolition of Palestinian homes in Masafer Yatta, a collection of villages in the West Bank, and the struggles of Palestinians who confront Israeli armed forces over being evicted from the land, which Israel wants to turn into a military training facility. The film portrays Israeli armed forces as violent land grabbers that oppress and displace Palestinian families in Masafer Yatta, without explaining that Palestinians illegally built homes on the land that Israel had claimed for a military training zone in the 1980s. The film was made by a collective of Israeli and Palestinian filmmakers and activists, including Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham and Basel Adra, a Palestinian who lives in Masafer Yatta with his family.
“No Other Land” won best documentary feature film at the 97th Academy Awards on March 2. It has won a slew of other awards as well, including the prestigious Berlinale Documentary Award and Panorama Audience Award for Best Documentary Film.
The post Miami Beach Mayor Withdraws Proposal to Evict, Withdraw Funding for Theater Screening Anti-Israel Film first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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NYC Mayoral Contender Cites Hamas-Produced Casualty Figures While Condemning Israel for Restarting Gaza Campaign
Zohran Mamdani. Photo: Ron Adar / SOPA Images via Reuters Connect
Zohran Mamdani, one of the top contenders in the New York City mayoral race, on Tuesday condemned Israel for restarting war operations in the Gaza Strip, accusing the Jewish state of committing a “genocide” and citing Hamas-produced casualty statistics.
“Israel’s renewed bombing of Gaza — funded by our tax dollars — has already killed more than 400 Palestinians in just a few hours, including scores of women and children. It is among the deadliest days of a genocide which has taken the lives of more than 50,000 civilians,” Mamdani said in a statement. “‘The Israeli government has chosen to give up on the hostages,’ an organization of Israeli families said this morning. The Trump administration must bring all of its pressure to bear on [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu to establish the ceasefire now.”
On Monday night, Israel resumed airstrikes targeting Hamas in Gaza under the directive of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose office said in a statement that the military action followed “Hamas’s repeated refusal to release our hostages, as well as its rejection of all of the proposals it has received from US presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and from the mediators.”
The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry claimed that around 400 Palestinians were killed from the initial Israeli airstrikes, although the ministry does not distinguish between terrorist combatants and civilians. Moreover, researchers have shown that casualty figures published by Gaza’s Hamas-run health authorities have been inflated to defame Israel.
Mamdani, a representative within the New York State Assembly and progressive firebrand, has made anti-Israel activism a cornerstone of his political career. Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist, has both advanced state legislation seeking to punish Israel and labeled the Jewish state’s defensive military operations in Gaza a “genocide.”
Although Mamdani is considered a threat to win the New York City mayorship, his position in the race has slipped. Mamdani commands 8 percent of the vote among New Yorkers, good enough for third place, according to a poll by Quinnipiac conducted between Feb. 27-Mar. 3. Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo holds a commanding lead at 38 percent, per Quinnipiac.
Comparatively, according to a poll conducted by Honan Strategy Group from Feb. 22-23, Mamdani previously sat in second place with 12 percent of the vote.
In 2021, Mamdani issued public support for the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement —an initiative which seeks to economically and diplomatically isolate Israel iasthe first step to its eventual destruction. He claimed that support for the anti-Israel movement is growing within New York City, saying on X/Twitter that “the tide is turning. The fight for justice is here. The moment is now.”
That same year, he also called for prohibiting New York lawmakers from visiting Israel, asserting that “every elected [official] must be pressured to stand with Palestinians.”
In May 2023, Mamdani advanced the “Not on Our Dime! Ending New York Funding of Israeli Settler Violence Act,” legislation which would ban charities from using tax-deductible donations to aid organizations that work in the West Bank. Mamdani argued that the legislation would help the state fight against so-called Israeli “war crimes” against Palestinians. The socialist dismissed critics of the legislation, saying that his anti-Israel proposal is “in line with the sentiments of most New Yorkers.”
On Oct. 8, 2023, 24 hours following the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust, Mamdani published a statement condemning “Netanyahu’s declaration of war” and suggesting that Israel would use the terror attacks to justify committing a second “Nakba.” Many Palestinians and anti-Israel activists use the term “Nakba,” or “catastrophe,” to refer to the establishment of the modern state of Israel in 1948.
Mamdani then said that Israel can only secure its long-term safety by “ending the occupation and dismantling apartheid.”
Five days later, he further criticized Israel’s response to the Hamas-led massacres, saying that “we are on the brink of a genocide of Palestinians in Gaza right now.”
In January 2024, he called on New York City to cease sending funds to Israel, saying that “Voters oppose their tax dollars funding a genocide.”
In addition, Mamdani is a high-profile member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), a far-left political organization with critical views of Israel. Though the DSA has long opposed Israel, the organization has ramped up its pro-Hamas rhetoric during the ongoing war in Gaza. On Oct. 7, the organization issued a statement saying that Hamas’s massacre was “a direct result of Israel’s apartheid regime.” The organization also encouraged its followers to attend an Oct. 8 “All Out for Palestine” event in Manhattan.
In January 2024, the DSA issued a statement calling for an “end to diplomatic and military support of Israel.” Then in April, the organization’s international committee, DSA IC, issued a missive defending Iran’s right to “self-defense” against Israel. In addition, the socialist group slammed former US Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) over his vote in favor of replenishing Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system.
Mamdani’s political ascendance comes amid a spike in anti-Jewish hate crimes within New York City.
New York City has been ravaged by a surge in antisemitic incidents in the 17 months following the Oct. 7 massacre. According to police data, Jews were targeted as the victims in a majority of all hate crimes in the city last year.
Meanwhile, pro-Hamas activists have held raucous — and sometimes violent — protests on the city’s college campuses, oftentimes causing Jewish students to fear for their safety. New York City schools are also currently facing criticism for failing to protect Jewish and Israeli students from antisemitism.
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