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What to do every night of Hanukkah 2022 in NYC

(New York Jewish Week) — Hanukkah 2022 is just days away — the eight-day holiday begins Sunday, Dec. 18 and concludes the evening of Sunday, Dec. 25. 

If you’re looking to celebrate the Festival of Lights beyond the annual family Hanukkah party, you’re in luck: In this great and very Jewish city of ours, there are enough Hanukkah-themed events to keep you busy the entire holiday. 

We’ve put together a packed schedule of celebration for every night of the holiday — whether you’re looking for a candle-lighting ceremony, a concert or a comedy show, there’s something for everybody. If you’re not in New York or can’t make it out, be sure to check The Hub for an updated list of virtual classes, events and celebrations going on throughout the week.

Here’s our guide to eight crazy nights in NYC:

Sunday, Dec. 18

See the newest Jewish adaptation of “A Christmas Carol”

“A Hanukkah Carol, or GELT TRIP! The Musical” is a new musical that puts a Jewish spin on Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol.” The plot centers around Chava Kanipshin, a cruel and manipulative social media influencer who hides her Jewish identity because she was bullied as a child. But on one memorable Hanukkah, Chava is visited by spirits of the past, present and future to reckon with her life before it is too late. On the first night of Hanukkah, songs and scenes from the show will be performed in a live concert. Buy tickets for the in-person or livestream show on at 7:00 p.m. here. ($15-$50) 

Celebrate with Hanukkah songs and Hebrew music 

Conducted by Matthew Lazar, Zamir, one of New York’s preeminent Jewish choirs, is performing on the first night of Hanukkah. Zamir Chorale, the Hebrew-singing choir, and Zamir Noded, the young adults choir, will both sing at the Kaufman Music Center (129 W. 67th St.). The concert will also celebrate Israel’s 75th birthday. Buy tickets for the 7:30 p.m. concert here. ($40)

Watch the lighting of Brooklyn’s largest menorah at Grand Army Plaza

At Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, Chabad of Park Slope will host their annual Hanukkah Kickoff party and concert on the first night of Hanukkah. Beginning at 4:00 p.m., the party will feature a live performance by the band Zusha, as well as latkes and gifts. The largest menorah in Brooklyn will be lit at 5:00 p.m., with nightly lighting to follow. Find more Chabad events and menorah lightings here. (Free)

Get the band together for klezmer in the park

The Brooklyn Conservatory of Music will host a Klezmer Hanukkah Celebration and jam session at the Old Stone House in Prospect Park. Led by Ira Temple, the klezmer session will be open to the public. The celebration, which will include a menorah lighting, will take place from 3:00-4:30 p.m. on the afternoon of Dec. 18. RSVP here. (Free) 

Monday, Dec. 19

Skate the night away

The 15th Annual Chanukah on Ice at Wollman Rink in Central Park will take place from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. on the second night of Hanukkah. The event will feature live entertainment, kosher food and the lighting of a giant ice menorah. Buy tickets and find more information here. ($28-$35)

Show your Jewish pride: Shine a Light on Antisemitism in Times Square

Shine a Light on Antisemitism will host its second annual concert and gathering in Times Square from 5:00-6:30 p.m. The event, emceed by comedian Ariel Elias, will include a public menorah lighting and is meant as a public display of Jewish pride amidst rising antisemitism. Other performers include Nissim Black, The Moshav Band, David Herkowitz formerly of the Miami Boys Choir, The Ramaz Upper School Choir and the cast of the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene’s “Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish.” The event is co-sponsored by UJA-Federation, the Jewish Community Relations Council, the Anti-Defamation League and the American Jewish Committee. Find more information here. (Free)

Naomi Levy, 36, is bringing the pop-up Hanukkah-themed Maccabee Bar to New York. (Ezra Pollard)

Tuesday, Dec. 20

Grab a specialty cocktail at the Maccabee Bar

Taking over the cocktail bar Ollie in the West Village, a Hanukkah-themed pop-up bar is headed to NYC this year. Serving unique cocktails like a Latke Sour and an Ethiopian-inspired mule alongside latkes and other Hanukkah foods, the Maccabee Bar will be open from Dec. 13 through Dec. 31. Check the website for reservations and updated hours, and read our interview with bartender and creator Naomi Levy here. (drinks $10-$16)

Menorah lighting and party in Brooklyn

Dirah, a “spiritual start-up” Chabad initiative that offers Jewish experiences for people of all affiliations and backgrounds, will host a community menorah lighting, live music and latkes at Carroll Park (291 President St.) in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn at 5:30 p.m. There will also be a fire juggling show to celebrate the festival of lights. RSVP here. (Free)

Wednesday, Dec. 21

Stand-up comedy at the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan

The Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan is presenting “Oy Gevalt Comedy,” hosted by Ashley Austin Morris, featuring a performance by stand-up comedian Lenny Marcus. The in-person show is on Dec. 21 at 7:00 p.m. Buy tickets here and check the JCC’s other Hanukkah offerings here, including several Hanukkah parties and nightly candle-lighting. ($10)

Thursday, Dec. 22

Join Hey Alma for a comedy showcase on the Lower East Side

Hey Alma’s Evelyn Frick will host Get Lit, Bitch: A Hanukkah Comedy Show,” a live stand-up comedy showcase at Caveat NYC (21A Clinton St.) on the Lower East Side. The show, open to those 21 and over, begins at 7:00 pm. Featuring Jared Goldstein (Comedy Central), Benny Feldman (Just for Laughs), Sami Schwaeber (NY Comedy Festival) and Jenny Gorelick (Comedy Central). Buy tickets here for livestream or in person. ($10-$15)

Laugh and sing along at the Chanukahstravaganza in Brooklyn

Comedians Lana Schwartz and Illana Michelle Rubin host “The Sixth Annual Chanukahstravaganza!”, a standup comedy showcase at Littlefield NYC (635 Sackett St.) in Gowanus, Brooklyn. Performers include Brandon Follick, Jess Salomon, Alon Elian, Rebecca Weiser, Charlie Bardey and Anna Suzuki. The show, open to those 21 and older, runs from 8:00-10:30 p.m.. Buy tickets here. ($12)

Ira Kaplan performing with the band Yo La Tengo at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City in 2003. (Getty Images)

Friday, Dec. 23

Rock out with Yo La Tengo

Yo La Tengo is back this year with their annual run of Hanukkah concerts. Playing every night of Hanukkah at The Bowery Ballroom (6 Delancey St.) on the Lower East Side, the indie rock trio is known for bringing out surprise guests during their Hanukkah performances. Buy tickets before they sell out! ($50)

Indulge in all the fried foods 

Yes, latkes are delicious — but why not try something different this Festival of Lights? Head out on a self-guided food tour and feast on Hanukkah treats at one of the many bakeries serving up Hanukkah-themed desserts across the city, including Balaboosta, Edith’s and Breads Bakery. Check out the New York Jewish Week’s guide to get started.

Saturday, Dec. 24

Party all night long at the Matzoball…

Christmas Eve falls on the seventh night of Hanukkah this year, which should make Matzoball, the iconic Jewish Christmas Eve bash, even more fun. This year at Harbor NYC (621 West 46th St.), Matzoball has long been the place for Jewish singles to connect and party the night away. Buy tickets here. ($50)

… or with The Streicker Center at TAO Downtown 

For another Christmas Eve option, check out “The Night Before Christmas” holiday party hosted by The Streicker Outreach Center at Temple Emanu-El as part of their initiative to reach Jewish young professionals. A ticket to the party at TAO Downtown (92 9th Ave.) in the Meatpacking District includes an all-you-can-eat Asian food dinner, an open bar and dancing. DJed by Ann Streichman and Kosha Dillz. Buy tickets here. ($48)

Sunday, Dec. 25

Carry on the tradition at “Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish”

Running at the New World Stages (340 West 50th St.) for only seven weeks, the return of “Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish” is already nearing its end. The cast will be performing a matinee and evening performance on the last night of Hanukkah, and the show is the perfect way to get into the spirit of “Tradition!” Buy tickets and find showtimes here. (Tickets starting at $87)


The post What to do every night of Hanukkah 2022 in NYC appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

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In the tunnels of Gaza, hostage Eli Sharabi found a way to be a blessing

In synagogue this past Yom Kippur, someone handed me a machzor with a bookplate that read: “Dedicated by [X] in memory of Rabba Sara Hurwitz and Josh Abraham on the birth of Natan.”

Thank God, my husband Josh and I are very much alive. Somehow “in honor of” was replaced by “in memory of.” But my son, Natan, has just turned 9 years old — so what better reminder could there be to pause and examine my life? To ask the big questions that Shmuel in the Gemara (Yoma 87b) insists that we ask in the waning hours of Yom Kippur during Neilah: Mah anu, what are we? Meh chayeinu, what are our lives?

These questions don’t end with Yom Kippur. They echo back to the very beginning of our story as a people, when God calls Avram in Genesis 12:2, to leave his home with the divine promise: “I will make your name great, and you shall be a blessing.” The structure of this verse, which will be read in most synagogues this Shabbat, is striking. God doesn’t say “I will bless you” (that comes in the previous verse). Here, God says something different: “You shall be a blessing.” Avrahram is not a passive recipient but an active agent. His very existence, his life itself, will be a source of blessing to others.

This is God’s answer to Shmuel’s questions: What are we? We are blessings. What are our lives? Our lives are meant to be a source of blessing to the world. How do we live lives that fulfill this divine mandate?

This year, I hold these questions alongside the words of Eli Sharabi, the first hostage to publish his account of captivity. To call his book “Hostage” merely an autobiography misses its essence. It is a sacred text about what it means to live in darkness and fear and still choose life, still choose to be a blessing.

In the tunnels of Gaza, stripped of everything, Eli was forced to answer Shmuel’s questions in the starkest terms imaginable: What am I? What is my life? You would expect the answer to be: I am nothing. My life is nothing. But instead, his answer reverberates with a fierce, almost defiant vitality: “I don’t want to survive just for them [his family]. I don’t want to live just for them. I want to live for myself too. For me, Eli Sharabi. I want to live. I love life. I crave it.”

If Eli, who lived for 491 days in constant hunger, dealing with the brutality of his captors, living in the filth of the tunnels, without knowing if his beloved family were alive or dead — if he can still crave life against all odds, then I too, even when I feel shrouded in darkness and fear will not take what I have for granted, and I will embrace life.

To be a blessing begins with recognizing the gift of simply being alive, of breathing freely, off walking down the street. When we crave life itself, we become capable of blessing others. Eli writes: “I want to breathe life, to walk free, to return to the open skies, to go back home, to work, to purpose…. To return to the roads, to driving, to walking down the street, to my simple regular worry-free day-to-day.”

Sadly, Eli was released to learn that his wife Lianne and daughters Noiya and Yahel were murdered on Oct. 7 and that his brother Yossi, too, had been abducted and then killed in captivity. This week, we watched as Eli and his family buried Yossi in Israel, at long last.

A detail of the cover of “Hostage,” Eli Sharabi’s memoir of his time in Hamas captivity. (Harper Influence)

Still, Eli’s testimony offers something even more profound about what it means to fulfill “and you shall be a blessing.” In absolute darkness, starving, and humiliated, he and his fellow hostages created a daily ritual to think of good things that happened to them each day and express gratitude — from sweet tea to a day without humiliation. In hell, they chose to find gratitude and see the tiny miniscule blessings in their lives. And in doing so, they became blessings to each other.

Hope was the hostages’ spiritual practice. Gratitude became resistance. Searching for good was an act of defiance against fear, and a way of being a blessing to those around them. In the tunnels of Gaza, Eli wasn’t just surviving, he was creating a practice of blessing. This is what God means when telling Avraham “and you shall be a blessing.” You don’t need to wait for perfect conditions. You don’t need to be free, comfortable, or secure.

As we move forward into a new year, Shmuel’s questions travel with me, now illuminated by God’s command to Avraham: Mah anu. What are we? We are called to be blessings. Like Eli, can we search for good even in difficulty? Can we be sources of hope and light for those around us, even when we ourselves are struggling?

Meh chayeinu. What are our lives? God tells Avraham that his life will be a blessing. What about ours? Do we only celebrate the extraordinary moments, or can we embrace the mundane — like walking down the street, breathing, being free to be at home with our loved ones? This is the wisdom of someone who faced death and chose, deliberately, consciously, to love life and to be a blessing, not despite the darkness, but in the darkness.

This year, I will hold Eli’s courage and search for good even when it’s hard to find. I will strive to make hope and gratitude a daily practice. I will try to fulfill “and you shall be a blessing” — to raise up those around me, in big ways and small.


The post In the tunnels of Gaza, hostage Eli Sharabi found a way to be a blessing appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

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ADL enlists major law firms to launch pro bono network for antisemitism cases

(JTA) — The Anti-Defamation League is launching a nationwide legal service to connect victims of antisemitism with lawyers who are able to take their cases on a pro-bono basis.

The initiative comes as the ADL has increasingly turned to litigation as a tactic — the group says it has filed more lawsuits and legal complaints in the last years than in its previous 110 years combined.

Announced on Wednesday, the ADL Legal Action Network comes out of a partnership with Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, one of the largest law firms in the country. In total, more than 40 firms have agreed to participate, collectively tapping a pool of 39,000 attorneys.

The network will accept online submissions involving discrimination, intimidation, harassment, vandalism or violence and use artificial intelligence to evaluate them. Tips that make it through the system will be referred to partner firms or the ADL’s in-house litigators.

“For decades, victims of antisemitism have come to ADL to receive frontline services,” ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement. ​”We are now dramatically expanding our capabilities to support more Jewish Americans by helping to provide direct access to legal support anywhere in the country.”

Gibson Dunn partner Orin Snyder called the network an “unprecedented legal firewall against antisemitism, extremism, and hate.”

The initiative comes as the ADL, which is flush with donations, retreats from some of its traditional advocacy and educational work while facing an onslaught from the right, including the cutting of longstanding ties to the FBI after the agency’s director, Kash Patel, said the ADL has been “functioning like a terrorist organization.” (The group has also faced criticism from the left.)

The group recently eliminated an online resource known as the Glossary of Extremism and Hate, which counted more than 1,000 entries after accusations of bias by conservatives. It has also, for example, eliminated a signature anti-bias training for students and school teachers that included a focus on racism and LGBTQ issues.

Greenblatt has said he is intentionally retooling the organization to prioritize countering antisemitism as American Jews report increased harassment and discrimination.

The legal network formalizes and expands the Campus Antisemitism Legal Line, which Gibson Dunn launched with the ADL, Hillel International and the Louis D. Brandeis Center in 2023. The ADL says CALL has received nearly 1,000 reports from 230 campuses and helped spur civil rights complaints and criminal cases. The new system extends that model beyond higher education to workplaces, public accommodations and allegations involving extremist organizations and individuals.

One example that originated with a tip is a federal complaint filed by the ADL and its partners in June alleging that a high school in the Boston suburbs failed to protect Jewish students from antisemitism.

The complaint said that Concord-Carlisle High School and Concord Middle School became hotbeds for abuse of Jewish of students, including “Nazi salutes in school hallways, students dividing themselves into teams called ‘Team Auschwitz; and ‘Team Hamas’ during athletic games, swastikas drawn in notebooks and on school property, and the use of antisemitic slurs such as ‘kike,’ ‘dirty Jew,’ and ‘go to the gas chamber,’” according to the ADL. School administrators allegedly downplayed or dismissed students’ complaints.

The district has said it takes antisemitism seriously and that it is cooperating with officials. It also said it is consulting with Jewish groups as it reviews its classroom policies and training programs.

Directing the expanded network is James Pasch, who was tapped in 2023 to head a new litigation division for the organization. In an interview, Pasch said the organization is deliberately making the courthouse a central arena.

“ADL does and has done, historically, three things incredibly well — we educate, we advocate and we investigate — and now we litigate,” he said. The aim, he added, is to “create life-altering costs to perpetrators who are committing illicit acts of antisemitism,” develop case law that better protects Jews, and give victims “a necessary outlet to tell their story in a complete way.”

Pasch said the ADL’s litigation team has grown into “like a boutique litigation firm inside ADL,” with roughly seven litigators plus support staff, while most large matters proceed with support from outside law firms. The expansion comes amid skyrocketing fundraising, which topped $170 million in annual donations, according to its most recent audited financial statements — a $65 million increase over its best year.

Pasch said settlements, or even the threat of a filing, can lead to immediate impact and set standards for other institutions.

The ADL’s case list since Oct. 7 ranges across campuses, K-12 districts, workplaces and terror-finance suits. The group filed federal actions seeking to hold Iran, Syria and North Korea responsible for allegedly supporting Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack; separate complaints invoke Title VI against universities and school districts over what the ADL calls failures to adequately respond to antisemitism. The organization has also backed a church lawsuit targeting intimidation by a white supremacist group.

The initiative comes as many large firms reportedly recalibrate their pro bono work under pressure from the Trump administration, which has elevated antisemitism as a signature priority. To avoid becoming targets over more politically sensitive matters such as immigration and asylum, some firms are reportedly steering clear of those cases. Partnering with Jewish organizations on antisemitism claims lets the firms align with an issue the administration has endorsed.

Under President Donald Trump, the Department of Justice has reorganized its civil rights division to focus on a narrow list of priorities, among them antisemitism. The department has launched probes into universities accused of mishandling last year’s protests over the war in Gaza, and last month brought charges against an alleged Palestinian militant who participated in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel before entering the United States as an immigrant.

Pasch said he welcomes federal efforts but added that increased government action is no reason for civil society to let up the legal pressure.

“This is a moment that will take an all-of-society approach from the government, to NGOs, to private business,” he said. “In legal cases, the Justice Department generally does not represent private individuals who are victims of antisemitism, but ADL along with our partners in firms have the ability to bring those cases to the forefront.”

The ADL is not the only Jewish group also ratcheting up litigation.

The Brandeis Center, a Washington, D.C.–based nonprofit dedicated to advancing “civil and human rights of the Jewish people” on Monday announced five new hires. The group is led by Kenneth Marcus, who is credited with pioneering the use of federal civil rights law — especially Title VI — to address antisemitism in education.

The pro-Israel group StandWithUs reports that its legal team has tripled in since the Oct. 7 attacks and has been publishing semiannual reports detailing new cases.

The increase in legal activity comes amid a broader debate about how to balance civil rights enforcement with free-speech protections. As part of settlement negotiations, the ADL has demanded that school districts and universities formally adopt what’s known as the IHRA definition of antisemitism.

But civil liberties groups and Palestinian-rights advocates have criticized the use of Title VI complaints tied to the IHRA definition because they say aggressive enforcement can stifle political discussions about Israel. The ADL and its partners counter that the cases target conduct — harassment, threats, discrimination — not viewpoints, and that filings have already yielded concrete changes on campuses and in districts.

In explaining how he selects what cases to pursue, Pasch said the criteria include whether a filing would disrupt harmful activity, strengthen or establish law, and give victims a full voice.

“We can’t heal the injured and we can’t bring people back from the dead,” he said. “But we can provide a voice and some semblance of relief for victims, whether that be policy change or monetary relief.”

The post ADL enlists major law firms to launch pro bono network for antisemitism cases appeared first on The Forward.

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ADL enlists major law firms to launch pro bono network for antisemitism cases

The Anti-Defamation League is launching a nationwide legal service to connect victims of antisemitism with lawyers who are able to take their cases on a pro-bono basis. 

The initiative comes as the ADL has increasingly turned to litigation as a tactic — the group says it has filed more lawsuits and legal complaints in the last years than in its previous 110 years combined. 

Announced on Wednesday, the ADL Legal Action Network comes out of a partnership with Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, one of the largest law firms in the country. In total, more than 40 firms have agreed to participate, collectively tapping a pool of 39,000 attorneys.

The network will accept online submissions involving discrimination, intimidation, harassment, vandalism or violence and use artificial intelligence to evaluate them. Tips that make it through the system will be referred to partner firms or the ADL’s in-house litigators. 

“For decades, victims of antisemitism have come to ADL to receive frontline services,” ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement. ​”We are now dramatically expanding our capabilities to support more Jewish Americans by helping to provide direct access to legal support anywhere in the country.”

Gibson Dunn partner Orin Snyder called the network an “unprecedented legal firewall against antisemitism, extremism, and hate.”

The initiative comes as the ADL, which is flush with donations, retreats from some of its traditional advocacy and educational work while facing an onslaught from the right, including the cutting of longstanding ties to the FBI after the agency’s director, Kash Patel, said the ADL has been “functioning like a terrorist organization.” (The group has also faced criticism from the left.)

The group recently eliminated an online resource known as the Glossary of Extremism and Hate, which counted more than 1,000 entries after accusations of bias by conservatives. It has also, for example, eliminated a signature anti-bias training for students and school teachers that included a focus on racism and LGBTQ issues.

Greenblatt has said he is intentionally retooling the organization to prioritize countering antisemitism as American Jews report increased harassment and discrimination.  

The legal network formalizes and expands the Campus Antisemitism Legal Line, which Gibson Dunn launched with the ADL, Hillel International and the Louis D. Brandeis Center in 2023. The ADL says CALL has received nearly 1,000 reports from 230 campuses and helped spur civil rights complaints and criminal cases. The new system extends that model beyond higher education to workplaces, public accommodations and allegations involving extremist organizations and individuals. 

One example that originated with a tip is a federal complaint filed by the ADL and its partners in June alleging that a high school in the Boston suburbs failed to protect Jewish students from antisemitism. 

The complaint said that Concord-Carlisle High School and Concord Middle School became hotbeds for abuse of Jewish of students, including “Nazi salutes in school hallways, students dividing themselves into teams called ‘Team Auschwitz; and ‘Team Hamas’ during athletic games, swastikas drawn in notebooks and on school property, and the use of antisemitic slurs such as ‘kike,’ ‘dirty Jew,’ and ‘go to the gas chamber,’” according to the ADL. School administrators allegedly downplayed or dismissed students’ complaints.

The district has said it takes antisemitism seriously and that it is cooperating with officials. It also said it is consulting with Jewish groups as it reviews its classroom policies and training programs. 

Directing the expanded network is James Pasch, who was tapped in 2023 to head a new litigation division for the organization. In an interview, Pasch said the organization is deliberately making the courthouse a central arena. 

“ADL does and has done, historically, three things incredibly well — we educate, we advocate and we investigate — and now we litigate,” he said. The aim, he added, is to “create life-altering costs to perpetrators who are committing illicit acts of antisemitism,” develop case law that better protects Jews, and give victims “a necessary outlet to tell their story in a complete way.”

Pasch said the ADL’s litigation team has grown into “like a boutique litigation firm inside ADL,” with roughly seven litigators plus support staff, while most large matters proceed with support from outside law firms. The expansion comes amid skyrocketing fundraising, which topped $170 million in annual donations, according to its most recent audited financial statements — a $65 million increase over its best year. 

Pasch said settlements, or even the threat of a filing, can lead to immediate impact and set standards for other institutions.

The ADL’s case list since Oct. 7 ranges across campuses, K-12 districts, workplaces and terror-finance suits. The group filed federal actions seeking to hold Iran, Syria and North Korea responsible for allegedly supporting Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack; separate complaints invoke Title VI against universities and school districts over what the ADL calls failures to adequately respond to antisemitism. The organization has also backed a church lawsuit targeting intimidation by a white supremacist group.

The initiative comes as many large firms reportedly recalibrate their pro bono work under pressure from the Trump administration, which has elevated antisemitism as a signature priority. To avoid becoming targets over more politically sensitive matters such as immigration and asylum, some firms are reportedly steering clear of those cases. Partnering with Jewish organizations on antisemitism claims lets the firms align with an issue the administration has endorsed.

Under President Donald Trump, the Department of Justice has reorganized its civil rights division to focus on a narrow list of priorities, among them antisemitism. The department has launched probes into universities accused of mishandling last year’s protests over the war in Gaza, and last month brought charges against an alleged Palestinian militant who participated in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel before entering the United States as an immigrant. 

Pasch said he welcomes federal efforts but added that increased government action is no reason for civil society to let up the legal pressure. 

“This is a moment that will take an all-of-society approach from the government, to NGOs, to private business,” he said. “In legal cases, the Justice Department generally does not represent private individuals who are victims of antisemitism, but ADL along with our partners in firms have the ability to bring those cases to the forefront.”

The ADL is not the only Jewish group also ratcheting up litigation. 

The Brandeis Center, a Washington, D.C.–based nonprofit dedicated to advancing “civil and human rights of the Jewish people” on Monday announced five new hires. The group is led by Kenneth Marcus, who is credited with pioneering the use of federal civil rights law — especially Title VI — to address antisemitism in education. 

The pro-Israel group StandWithUs reports that its legal team has tripled in since the Oct. 7 attacks and has been publishing semiannual reports detailing new cases.

The increase in legal activity comes amid a broader debate about how to balance civil rights enforcement with free-speech protections. As part of settlement negotiations, the ADL has demanded that school districts and universities formally adopt what’s known as the IHRA definition of antisemitism. 

But civil liberties groups and Palestinian-rights advocates have criticized the use of Title VI complaints tied to the IHRA definition because they say aggressive enforcement can stifle political discussions about Israel. The ADL and its partners counter that the cases target conduct — harassment, threats, discrimination — not viewpoints, and that filings have already yielded concrete changes on campuses and in districts.

In explaining how he selects what cases to pursue, Pasch said the criteria include whether a filing would disrupt harmful activity, strengthen or establish law, and give victims a full voice. 

“We can’t heal the injured and we can’t bring people back from the dead,” he said. “But we can provide a voice and some semblance of relief for victims, whether that be policy change or monetary relief.”


The post ADL enlists major law firms to launch pro bono network for antisemitism cases appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

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