Earlier this week, former President Donald Trump entered a Miami courthouse to respond to criminal charges made against him by the Office of Special Counsel of the Department of Justice that, among other things, he violated the Espionage Act by knowingly mishandling classified documents that he kept upon leaving office and obstructed the government’s efforts to reclaim them.
The 37-count indictment against the former president — which provides detail regarding the charges of willful retention of national defense secrets, conspiracy to obstruct justice and the making of false statements in response to inquiries about them — are serious criminal charges. A conviction on any one of them could have significant consequences. Trump pled not guilty.
We feel like we’ve seen this movie before, even though we haven’t. Trump, who loves to claim he is the first person in history to do one thing or another, now has the dubious honor of being the first former president to face federal criminal charges. But part of the reason we feel a sense of déjà vu is that the federal indictment comes about two months after local prosecutors in New York City filed more than 30 felony charges against Trump in a case arising from hush money payments made to a porn actress before the 2016 presidential election. Trump denied those charges.
And we have been regularly reminded about two other criminal investigations that are being pursued separately from the New York and Miami indictments: First, a Justice Department investigation of Trump’s wide-ranging efforts to stay in power after losing the 2020 election, and how those efforts led to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob. And second, an inquiry by the district attorney in Fulton County, Georgia, relating to possible election interference by Trump in the 2020 election.
Had anything of this magnitude happened to almost any other national politician a decade or more ago, the result would have been largely predictable. The politician would declare his innocence, bow out of public activity and pledge to devote his full time to support his family and to the necessary fight against the forces of evil that conspired to take him down. But that’s not how Donald Trump operates.
Trump’s approach is to confront his accusers, declare and repeat his own narrative of the facts that may or may not be grounded in truth, and ascribe improper motive to anything his opponents do or say. Trump is a master at playing the victim card. He has perfected an aggressive approach that enables him to strengthen support from his base and beyond notwithstanding accusations of serious malfeasance, and parlay that support into increased fundraising and higher poll numbers. We saw that result following the New York indictment and are seeing it again with the Miami charges.
But Trump’s multiple criminal indictments present an opportunity. Although the ever-expanding group challenging Trump for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination needs to walk a careful line, the stage is set for the emergence of a credible alternative to Trump’s narcissistic narrative in which he considers himself not merely above the law, but wholly unlimited by it.
The Miami indictment is serious. Trump would be well-advised to take it seriously. And so should his supporters.
Habonim Dror Camp Galil in Ottsville has restricted cellphones during summer camp for about a decade. | Photo by Liflander Photography
About 10 years ago, David Weiss, executive director of Habonim Dror Camp Galil in Ottsville, noticed a change in the camp’s bunks. Instead of the snickering and chatting he usually heard after lights out, there was silence. Kids were not cracking jokes or sharing secrets. They were scrolling on their phones.
Since then, Camp Galil has implemented a no-cellphone policy at camp.
“Summer camp, especially overnight summer camp, is a really intentional space that is apart from the rest of the world,” Weiss said. “It’s a space where you come together and for two weeks, four weeks, seven weeks, do things that really aren’t comfortable in any other setting. And part of that is being disconnected and away from the distractions of the outside world.”
Camp Galil isn’t the only Jewish summer camp following this philosophy. Many camps in the Greater Philadelphia area have banned cellphones and any technology with screens from camp premises. For the most part, the restrictions have been beneficial, camp management said.
“When we tell families this before the summer, parents always get very excited, and kids kind of roll their eyes,” said Rabbi Isaac Saposnik, executive director of Camp Havaya, a Reconstructionist sleepaway camp in Wyncote. “And when we talk about it with families and kids after the summer, we often hear kids talk about this being one of the highlights, that it really is the only time where they don’t have to be connected 24/7 like that.”
Saposnik has noticed that about a week in, campers stop the compulsive reach for their phone to snap a picture and start living in the moment. They look forward to writing letters to parents and friends back home.
Eliyah Eisenman, a 14-year-old from Plymouth Meeting, has spent summers at Camp Galil since 2018. There have been cellphone restrictions in place as long as she’s been a camper.
“I’ve never missed my phone,” Eliyah said.
“I mostly use my phone to communicate with friends and, because I’m constantly around my friends, there’s no need for it,” she added.
Though she finds it hard to fall asleep on the first night of camp without her phone, by the second night, she’s glad she’s phoneless.
When Eliyah comes home from camp, she finds it hard to text friends for about a month. She said she’d rather just call people. But by the end of the summer, she’s tethered to her phone once more.
Though cellphones are a relatively recent invention, there have always been distractions at summer camp. When Jordan Bravato, camp director at Camp Kef at the Kaiserman JCC, was a camper at the same camp he leads now, he brought his portable CD player to Camp Kef’s grounds.
“I remember being told by many, many counselors like, ‘Hey, you gotta put that away,’” Bravato said.
Distractions at camp aren’t just a 2023 issue. Whether it’s a CD player, Tamagotchi or iPhone, it’s always been the job of camps to regulate the presence of technology.
As smartphones and screens become more integral parts of daily life, camps are once again figuring out how to adapt.
“We know that this is getting harder and harder given how much kids are on their screens,” Saposnik said. “We know kids use devices for music, and they use it to read and they use it to take pictures.”
Camp Havaya recommended kids pack devices that don’t connect to the internet. For families who can’t afford these gadgets, the camp provides some.
Day camps, such as JCC Camps at Medford, offer STEM, or science, technology, engineering and math, programming, where kids can use robotics, computer coding or 3-D printing.
“They’re going to the lake, and then they’re going to archery or they’re going to the ropes course,” JCC Camps at Medford Director Sara Sideman said. “So it’s not in the entirety of their day. It’s just infusing it into their experience.”
The JCC Camps at Medford and Camp Kef have both created apps to send parents camp updates and photos regularly, including protected folders for photos of their children.
Implementing regulations on phone and technology use at camps isn’t camp leadership being ignorant of adolescent life. It’s an attempt to preserve a decades-long Jewish tradition of camp joy and camaraderie in a rapidly changing world.
“It’s not about trying to create some vision of what Utopia looked like five years ago, 10 years, 20 years ago,” Saposnik said. “But figuring out what is Utopia for our kids right now.”
Jewish community leaders are interested in a nonprofit that would oversee both dignified burial and cemetery restoration, as well as maintenance efforts. | Courtesy of Rich Blumberg
Asimple, traditional Jewish funeral costs about $7,500-8,500, according to Joseph Levine & Sons Funeral Home partner Brian Levine. That’s with a plain, wooden casket and no limousines, flowers or death notice advertisements.
The burial and funeral process, a necessary part of the Jewish life cycle, is costly and, for the past 50 years in Philadelphia, the Jewish community has tried to lighten the burden for families who cannot afford it.
Today, the Dignified Burial Fund, run by the Female Hebrew Benevolent Society, is the foremost effort for the cause. The volunteer-led organization uses its emergency aid to assist in the burial of Jewish women and uses additional funding from the Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Greater Philadelphia’s critical needs fund to help friends to provide families in need with a modest Jewish funeral and burial. They use cemetery plots in Har Yehuda Cemetery, Har Nebo Cemetery, Montefiore Cemetery and six other area Jewish cemeteries, donated by families who do not need them. DBF also uses grant money from the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia.
Since September, DBF has reviewed 26 cases and assisted in 22. In its first year in 2018, it reviewed 17 cases and assisted in 11.
Though in demand, DBF has changed hands multiple times since its creation. Many of the Jewish leaders involved in the project, as well as in cemetery maintenance and cleanup, have additional jobs and responsibilities. To ensure DBF and cemetery restoration efforts continue and have consistent financial support, the project should be institutionalized, argued Eileen Sklaroff, president emerita of FHBS and DBF co-founder. She has worked to create a nonprofit that would oversee these efforts.
“If we had this overarching nonprofit, then it would incorporate all functions that were related to death and dying. Burials and funerals would be under the auspices of this nonprofit entity,” Sklaroff said. “That would make sense to me.”
Though Sklaroff is leading these efforts in the hopes of institutionalizing DBF, she’s not the only one interested. Friends of Jewish Cemeteries, a project of the Jewish Federation, has also expressed interest in a nonprofit that would support the cause.
The Jewish Federation, which previously operated DBF and has organized community cemetery clean-ups, is looking into nonprofit models to steward these efforts. In iterations around the country, Jewish Federations have incubated these nonprofits, which then became independent entities.
As of this month, the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia did not offer an update on the status of the nonprofit creation.
Sklaroff argues that a nonprofit would make the vetting and fund distribution process for DBF efficient and consistent.
She first came up with the idea for DBF in 2016, when the Jewish Federation and FHBS worked together to update a database of donated graves across various Jewish cemeteries. Working with Linda Roth from the Jewish Federation, Sklaroff cataloged the database, previously held by JFCS, which documented how and where cemetery plots were used. The Jewish Federation held the updated database.
Families of deceased relatives who no longer need space in a cemetery plot cannot sell back the land to cemeteries, but they can donate it, according to Levine. These plots are used for free or to subsidize burials for poor families. Before DBF, Levine & Sons, as well as other Jewish funeral homes, provided these services themselves, using money from JFCS, FHBS or the Fischer Memorial Burial Park.
“It’s an obligation that when needed or when called upon, we do what we can to help those who we need to help,” Levine said.
About 5% of the funerals Levine provides are free or subsidized, about one or two a month.
At the same time, Sklaroff began organizing meetings with leaders from Jewish Federation, JFCS and Jewish funeral homes, including Levine, on how to make the free and subsidized burial process more streamlined across the community.
Using the database, cemetery and funeral home owners, such as Levine, would have a standardized process to assist families in need. JFCS would conduct a needs assessment for families, and FHBS would identify costs and a burial plot.
Addie Lewis Klein, former senior director of community development at Jewish Federation, gave $10,000 in seed money to the cause, which then became DBF.
“When there are living people with unmet needs, it is sometimes hard to prioritize providing a dignified burial and caring for our cemeteries,” Klein said. “But I really think they are key parts of our legacy as a community and that we do have the responsibility to treat them as places of honor.”
When Klein left the Jewish Federation in 2022 to become the executive director of the Macks Center for Jewish Connections in Baltimore, DBF changed once more.
The Jewish Federation handed over DBF, and $20,000 in grant money, to JFCS to handle the project. Five months later, FHBS took over DBF, but JFCS still partners with FHBS and conducts the needs assessment for each case.
Though DBF continues to have a demand and operate successfully, there are still limited resources — both in people and monetarily — that prevents the project from having a greater impact, Sklaroff said, underlying the urgency of a nonprofit.
“I can’t see any organization in the community that will take this on,” she said. “It’s a huge amount of work.”
Rabbi Michel Yechel Teumin arrived on Ellis Island in 1922, having fled from the pervasive antisemitism in his hometown of Berezin in now-Belarus.
He was the last passenger to step off the boat and, upon doing so, was greeted by members of his village, whom he had helped gather funds to escape. Each villager placed a dollar in Teumin’s hand.
Joel Bolstein often heard this story from his grandmother, Teumin’s daughter, about his great-grandfather. Even amid pogroms and anti-Jewish violence, the rabbi found a way to help his community.
As chair of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, Bolstein, 62, tries to embody his great-grandfather daily.
“I think about it all the time — everything that they went through so I could live here, free from discrimination,” Bolstein said. “I don’t want anybody to be discriminated against because my family history is such that we know what it is. We know what discrimination feels like, what it looks like. I think it’s at the root of everything that I do.”
Bolstein has served as PHRC commissioner since 1999 when he was first appointed by then-Gov. Tom Ridge. The Doylestown resident is also a partner at Fox Rothschild. In the 24 years he’s been a part of the commission — which monitors and investigates complaints of bias, hate and discrimination and provides educational outreach — Bolstein has seen combating antisemitism go from inapplicable to central to his job.
To address rising anti-Jewish hate, Bolstein has worked with PHRC Executive Director Chad Dion Lassiter to fortify Black-Jewish relations in the commonwealth. He believes that forms of hate are connected, and to address antisemitism, you must confront all forms of hate and “speak with one voice.”
Bolstein comes from 22 generations of rabbis, and the Torah his great-grandfather brought from his village sits in the ark at the Chabad Lubavitch of Doylestown, where Bolstein is a member. Although he doesn’t speak behind a pulpit, Bolstein’s approach to his work is near-spiritual.
“Evil has been around since Adam and Eve, and part of me says that there’s evil in the world because God wants all of the good people to fight that,” he said. “That’s kind of the philosophy that I bring to this, which is that good people have to get together and address all the hatred — not just the antisemitism — but racism and everything else that’s affecting our society.”
Drawing from the Torah, Bolstein compares the obligation to address discrimination to the story of Noah: Following the flood that wiped out evil from the world, God insisted that Noah and his family finally leave the ark to begin the work of rebuilding society.
The trouble is, in Bolstein’s world, evil only appears to be mutating, not disappearing.
When he joined PHRC, Bolstein was still getting to know Pennsylvania. He grew up in the homogenous Scotch Plains township of New Jersey, where there were few minorities. Most of his work as commissioner was investigating employment and housing discrimination against mostly Black community members. The most helpful tool he had was simply to listen and learn.
“You do start to see that there is systemic racism. You can’t say it’s not there. It’s there. It goes back many decades, in terms of employment and housing and education, how we fund education, redlining in terms of housing,” Bolstein said.
But about a decade ago, Bolstein investigated a flyering incident in Central Pennsylvania, where hundreds of leaflets with antisemitic tropes were distributed on cars and around a movie theater, bringing antisemitism to the forefront of his mind.
“That’s probably when it really started to materialize for me,” Bolstein said.
After the Tree of Life synagogue complex shooting, Bolstein could tell that antisemitism would be a growing issue.
Partly because of social media, white supremacists are empowered through quickly growing online communities.
Hate groups used to lurk in people’s basements, finding secret meeting places. Today, Bolstein said, white supremacists can find an “electronic basement” online, where they can meet frequently and anonymously.
“That’s the worst part about it,” Bolstein said. “It’s out there; it’s under the surface. You can always see it, and then it pops up like it did with the Tree of Life synagogue shooting.”
It’s a bleak thought, and Bolstein once more turns to his Judaism to give him hope and energy to carry on: “I believe we’re here for a reason. … I’m here because God wants me where I am.”
I call dishes like these “Stone Soup” after the classic children’s tale where the whole town claims to have no food to prepare a proper meal.
In the book, a visiting stranger offers a recipe for stone soup that encourages each villager to contribute a little something. A carrot here, an onion there, some rice, some beans and, suddenly, the whole community is enjoying a bowl of goodness.
I have written about these types of dishes before — dinners that come together from seemingly bare cupboards that deliver tasty, simple, nourishing meals. I am calling these recipes the summer edition because they do not involve a long spell in the oven — both are quick, stove-top preparations, on the lighter side, although they can certainly be offered year-round.
Savory French Toast | Dairy Serves 1
We are all familiar with traditional French toast — past-its-prime bread dipped in a batter of egg and milk, usually seasoned with vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg, and fried in butter to a crisp exterior and a custardy middle.
Challah is a traditional choice, but any bread that is either neutral or sweet is used in such a preparation — no one is using rye or olive bread — so the recipe below allows for that. I had a bare cupboard at home and was heading for a deadline — this allowed no time for a trip to the market, but lunch approached. I had some leftover baguette from last night’s dinner, some eggs, a bit of milk and some Parmesan cheese.
The result is below and was quite tasty. This could be used as a bed for an arugula salad, sliced tomatoes or any type of savory salsa or sauce, and the flavor palate can change per preference. Curry powder for Indian flavors, cumin and cayenne for Mexican, za’atar for Israeli: You get the picture.
4 slices baguette or 2 slices
larger-sized bread
1 egg
⅓ cup milk
½ teaspoon mustard
Sprinkle of salt and pepper
1 tablespoon ground Parmesan cheese
Butter/oil for pan
Snipped chives or fresh herbs to garnish, if desired
In a shallow bowl, mix the egg, milk, mustard, salt, pepper and cheese. Soak the bread in the mixture, turning it over once or twice to ensure that all batter is absorbed.
In a skillet, heat the butter or oil over medium. Place the bread into the pan and cook it until golden on one side, approximately 3 minutes. (Be careful that it doesn’t stick — the Parmesan can be sticky — add butter or oil if needed). Turn over the toasts and cook the second side until golden brown.
Serve immediately, topped with snipped chives or fresh herbs.
Spicy Thai Noodles | Pareve Serves 4
This dish is simple, tasty and can be served as is or topped with chicken, fish, tofu, vegetables or a combination. It is a synergistic recipe, meaning the end is far greater than the sum of its parts.
If you have ramen or any other type of Asian noodle (soba, rice, mung bean, jop chae) feel free to use it, but good old spaghetti will also work.
In keeping with the pantry dinner theme, the recipe here offers the simplest version, but if you have fresh ginger to grate into the sauce, do so. Ditto topping it with a handful of chopped fresh cilantro, sesame seeds, chopped peanuts or a spritz of fresh lime juice. It can be served warm or cold.
1 pound long noodles (ramen or spaghetti)
½ cup creamy peanut butter
¼ cup warm water
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
1-2 tablespoons Sriracha, to taste
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
(white vinegar works, too)
2 cloves garlic, minced
Optional additions: any combination of shredded veggies such as cucumbers, bell peppers, cabbage, scallions, etc.
Cook the noodles according to the package directions. While the noodles cook, make the sauce. Combine all of the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and mix until smooth. If using veggies, toss them into the mixture. Top as desired and serve hot, at room temp or chilled.
Lucy the Elephant. Courtesy of the Save Lucy Committee, Inc.
Stephen Silver
If it’s summer, it means that many Philadelphia-area Jews are headed “down the shore” at some point and, as usual, the local calendar is full.
This year, the Jersey Shore’s most iconic attraction, Lucy the Elephant in Margate, is celebrating its first summer since the completion of its 15-month renovation in 2022. The “new” Lucy was unveiled in December.
As Rich Helfant of the Save Lucy Committee told the Exponent last year, the famed six-story elephant on Atlantic Avenue received “a whole-body lift,” which required scaffolding that covered up Lucy last summer. Lucy’s 142nd birthday party is set for July 22, featuring “The Multi-Million Dollar Makeover.” In addition, “An Intimate Evening of Art,” featuring work by Jon Baker, is scheduled for June 17.
“Yes, the exterior work is completed, and Lucy looks amazing,” Helfant said.
The next phase, starting in the fall, will include replacing Lucy’s gift shop building.
Meantime, for those whose visits to the shore include time in Atlantic City, there’s going to be a new hotel there. Sort of. Nobu Atlantic City is a restaurant and “distinct hotel experience” on the top three floors of the Caesars Centurion Tower, part of Caesars in Atlantic City. It’s scheduled to open sometime this summer.
Michael Solomonov. Courtesy of Steve Legato
Also in Atlantic City, the Las Vegas-based Spiegelworld this June will open The Hook, a theater-and-restaurant concept that’s also part of Caesars. It features a live show — which the company describes as “Atlantic City’s first-ever permanent entertainment residency” — and a restaurant and bars. The Hook is on the former site of the 1929-built Warner Theatre and has recreated part of its famed exterior.
And further up on the Boardwalk, the Showboat Resort hotel in Atlantic City will open a new indoor waterpark called Island Waterpark this summer. It will feature attractions for both kids (waterslides, a lazy river) and adults (multiple swim-up bars, a nightlife destination at night).
Farther to the north, the husband-and-wife Broadway star tandem of Jeremy Jordan and Ashley Spencer is set for a concert on June 17, at the Axelrod Performing Arts Center in Deal, New Jersey. Jordan, Jewish on his mother’s side, has played numerous prominent Jewish roles on stage and screen, most recently in the movie “Spinning Gold.”
The following month, at the Milton & Betty Katz Jewish Community Center in Margate, the renowned Israeli-American chef Michael Solomonov of Zahav and other restaurants will appear for “An Evening with Michael Solomonov” on July 6. Solomonov will discuss his book “Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking,” and raise money for Camp By The Sea.
Sunrise reflection over the ocean. Atlantic City, New Jersey. AUDREY SCRIPP / iStock / Getty Images Plus
And on July 20, the Katz JCC will host an event with Philadelphia’s most beloved modern-day Jewish sports figure (at least for the moment): Eagles General Manager Howie Roseman. Roseman is the guest of honor at the Eighth Annual Jackie & Hank Herskowitz Sports Night, ahead of the team’s training camp.
On June 29, Chabad in Ventnor will host a screening of the new film “Myron Sugerman: The Last Jewish Gangster,” with Sugerman himself in attendance, where the one-time associate of Meyer Lansky will “tell the story of the Jewish Mob and their contributions to the betterment of the Jewish people.”
The Jewish Federation of Ocean County will host an event to celebrate Israel’s 75th anniversary on June 8, including a visit by the Tzofim Friendship Caravan. The event will feature “delicious Israeli food.”
The Philadelphia-based “Word Mavens,” Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, are appearing at Beth El Synagogue in Margate on June 28 to share funny stories about Jewish words. The two are authors of the book “The Whole Spiel: Funny Essays About Digital Nudniks, Seder Selfies and Chicken Soup Memories.”
The Shirat Hayam congregation in Ventnor will host its “Devotion by the Ocean” Kabbalat Shabbat services on the beach on five Fridays this summer, on the beach behind the Ventnor Library. Conservative-led services on June 30, Aug. 4 and Aug. 18, with Reform-led services set for July 28 and Aug. 11.
On June 24, Margate will host Beachstock, described as “the planet’s biggest beach party.” New this year is an “anti-surf contest surf contest” called the Red Bull Foam Wreckers Soft Board Surf Classic. The event is free, and several area businesses, such as Margate Dairy Bar and Burger, Tony Baloney and Vagabond Kitchen and Taphouse, will provide food.
And the biannual Ventnor City Garden Tour, presented by the Ventnor Beautification Committee, is set for July 15, with a rain date the following day. The tour will visit around two dozen locations around Ventnor City.
The “OY/YO” sculpture was first installed outside the Weitzman on May 2, 2022. Courtesy of the Weitzman
Stephen Silver
Although plenty of area residents will head down the shore or to other vacation destinations this summer, there’s plenty to do if you stick around.
Here’s a sampling, including a couple of events that may have already passed, depending on when you read this:
On June 15, the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History will host a live event on “Pink Triangle Legacies: Coming Out in the Shadow of the Holocaust,” named for the book of the same name by W. Jake Newsome. Newsome will moderate a panel featuring Galia Godel of J.Proud Philly, Jazmyn Henderson of ACT UP Philadelphia and Mark Segal of Philadelphia Gay News.
Also on June 15, the Dead and Co. — featuring several former members of the Grateful Dead — hits Citizens Bank Park for what’s billed as the band’s final tour. A lot of Jews have attended shows by different incarnations of the Dead since the band formed in 1965, but this appears to be the end of the (Golden) road.
Bring your bottle of red (and bottle of white) because the following night is another big stadium concert, as Billy Joel (a Jew!) and Stevie Nicks co-headline Lincoln Financial Field on June 16.
Perhaps no artist was more popular around Jewish summer camp campfires of a certain vintage than the Indigo Girls. That folk duo is having a bit of a moment, with both a new documentary and their song “Closer to Fine” being featured in the trailer for the upcoming “Barbie” movie. The Indigo Girls will appear on June 16 at Parx Casino in Bensalem.
Jake Tapper. Courtesy of Gratz College
Jewish comedian Rachel Feinstein, a veteran of three Comedy Central specials, brings her stand-up stylings to the Punchline Philly on June 20.
The Phillies will host the 14th annual Jewish Heritage Celebration on June 21, as the team takes on the Atlanta Braves at Citizens Bank Park. In past years, the Phillie Phanatic has danced the hora, donned a kippah, waved an Israeli flag and was lifted in a chair bar mitzvah-style.
Artist Jonathan Horowitz will visit the Weitzman on June 25 for a “Meet the Artist” event, in connection with his continuing exhibit “The Future Will Follow the Past: An Exhibition by Jonathan Horowitz.”
The Katz JCC in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, will host a Cherry Hill Comedy Night on June 28 featuring comics Gianmarco Soresi and Ariel Elias. Elias is the comedian who, last October, had a beer can thrown at her during a set at the shore, then picked up the beer and chugged it. Hey Alma called her “the Jewish Comedian Going Viral for Beautifully Handling a Heckler.”
Another Jewish campfire perennial, James Taylor, comes to TD Pavilion at the Mann Center, along with All-Star Band, on July 1.
The annual Wawa Welcome America festival is set for the days leading to July 4, with this year’s concert on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway headlined by Demi Lovato and Ludacris.
On July 8, the Jewish actor and comedian Ben Schwartz — best known as Jean-Ralphio from “Parks & Recreation,” will host his Ben Schwartz & Friends show at the Xcite Center at Parx Casino in Bensalem.
Jennifer Weiner. Photo by Andrea Cipriani Mecchi
CNN anchor Jake Tapper, the Jewish Philadelphia native, returns to his hometown on July 11 for an author event at the Free Library of Philadelphia’s Parkway Center Library. Promoting his new novel “All the Demons Are Here: A Thriller,” Tapper will speak with one of the only Philadelphians more famous than he is: retired Action News anchor Jim Gardner.
Also on July 11, the one and only Kenny G will appear for a concert at the Keswick Theater. Despite appearing on a recent album with Kanye West, the saxophonist (real name Kenny Gorelick) is, in fact, Jewish.
In what’s probably the biggest concert of the summer, at least now that Taylor Swift has left town, Beyonce brings her Renaissance World Tour to Lincoln Financial Field on July 12.
Another group with a huge Jewish following, Phish, heads to the Mann Center on July 25 and 26.
Regina Spektor, described as a “Russian-Jewish-American singer,” brings her latest tour to the Keswick Theater in Glenside on Aug. 2.
Baylen Levine, the young social media star, is bringing his live show to the TLA on South Street on Aug. 8.
Phillies kiddush cup. Photo by Brad Maule
The Boss is coming to town, with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band headed to Citizens Bank Park on Aug. 16 and 18.
Another bestselling author who is Jewish and from Philadelphia, Jennifer Weiner, will appear at the Free Library on Aug. 30 for a talk on her latest novel, “The Breakaway.”
And finally, the Made in America festival, also on the Parkway, is set for Sept. 2 and 3, although headliners have yet to be announced.
No challah on Shabbat for those with celiac disease or wheat allergies. No cheesecake for Shavuot for those with dairy allergies. No mishloach manot gift packages on Purim for kids with severe allergies to the treats inside.
Synagogues and other Jewish organizations are seeing a rise in the number of children and teens who suffer from food allergies and are adjusting to make sure that no one is endangered or feels left out – from nut-free policies to separate gluten-free kitchens.
For some, however, such accommodations aren’t enough to make them feel part of the mainstream.
“I try not to let it get the best of me, but in the back of my mind I’m like, ‘Wow, I really wish I could try what everyone else is trying,’” said Micah Pierandri, 17, from Tulsa, Oklahoma, who often feels disconnected from others during community events involving food.
More children and teens are being diagnosed with food allergies than ever. In 2007, only about 4% of children in the United States under 18 reported food allergies, but last year the number more than doubled. A 2020 review of hospital admissions data showed a global increase in hospitalizations for anaphylaxis, a severe and potentially life-threatening allergic reaction. One study found that 37% of children in an Orthodox Jewish community had food allergies.
Food allergies can have a significant impact on a person’s mental health. Up to 40% of parents of children with allergies said that they would associate the word “isolating” with their child’s allergy, according to a study by Allergy UK. And while many synagogues are taking steps to become more allergy-friendly, holidays and religious events involving food can be a struggle for many children and teens with food allergies.
“I’m that allergy kid that has to sit out or bring their own dessert or their own food to events,” Pierandri said.
Pierandri, who has an airborne allergy to peanuts and severe allergies to pecans, walnuts, soy and eggs, often brings food to synagogue events. This can make her feel separated from the rest of the Jewish community during the holidays, even if her food is similar to her peers.
From left: Josephine Schizer at dinner with a friend. Courtesy of Josephine Schizer via JTA.org
Tu Bishvat and Yom Ha’atzmaut, Israeli Independence Day, are especially difficult to celebrate because of the foods that are involved. On Tu Bishvat, the springtime New Year of the Trees, it’s customary for people to eat nuts and try fruits that they haven’t tasted before. For Pierandri, who has oral allergy syndrome, eating most fruits could cause an allergic reaction. Many Israeli dishes contain sesame or nuts, and her mild sesame allergy and severe nut allergies mean that she struggles to find foods that are safe for her to eat on Yom Ha’atzmaut, forcing her to choose between bringing her food or eating before she goes.
By listing the ingredients in all food dishes at events, Beth El Temple Center in Belmont, Massachusetts, makes it easier for people with food allergies to be included. Around 10% of students at their religious school have allergies. Though the number hasn’t changed much over the past few years, it is high enough that all teachers are notified about students’ allergies, said Joan Perlman, its director of education.
“It’s important to accommodate people with food allergies because it aligns with our core value of being an inclusive community,” said Debbie Ezrin, executive director of Temple Beth Ami in Rockville, Maryland. To her, inclusivity means making sure that everyone feels like they belong. Their congregation is a nut-free facility and works to accommodate people with food allergies during any event involving food.
“While the synagogue adheres to traditional Jewish dietary laws, we always ask people to share their dietary needs and do our best to accommodate them,” said Rabbi Daniel Kaiman of Congregation B’nai Emunah, the synagogue that Pierandri attends.
She also feels like her food allergies have stunted her BBYO experience. “Part of me feels like it’s not really having food allergies, it’s more like people not being cautious,” Pierandri said. She’s been to multiple chapter and regional events where there have been peanuts even though people are aware that she has an airborne allergy.
“This is one of the areas where we really try to make sure that we’re accommodating our teens, and I think it’s a small step we can take towards creating a supportive, inclusive, welcoming environment,” said Drew Fidler, director of BBYO’s Center for Adolescent Wellness.
Like many other organizations, BBYO has seen an increase in the number of teens with allergies over the past decade. All of BBYO’s conventions are peanut and tree nut-free to accommodate teens with nut allergies, and the organization also offers vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and dairy-free meals by request.
“They just want to participate and feel normal and be a part of what’s going on,” she said about members who might feel excluded. At its international convention and summer programs, BBYO has a dedicated area for special meals so that teens with dietary restrictions can eat during meals.
Many Jewish summer camps are taking similar steps toward inclusion. “We always tell families that food should never be a reason that campers cannot be at camp or participate in Jewish life,” said Rabbi Ami Hersh, director of Ramah Day Camp in Nyack, New York.
Around 10% of the 800 campers that attend each session have food allergies, a larger percentage than in past years. The camp has a dietary specialist who works with each family to find alternative meals for campers. It’s important that the alternative meals closely mirror what the other campers are eating “so that no one’s feeling left out or excluded based on food needs,” Hersh said.
“I think that sometimes food needs and allergies are misunderstood as something that people are just being difficult about,” he said. “No one wakes up in the morning and says, ‘I really wish I had a food allergy.’”
After noticing an increasing number of campers with celiac disease, NJY Camps, an organization that runs five Jewish summer camps in eastern Pennsylvania, opened a dedicated gluten-free kitchen in 2011.
Taking care of children with food allergies costs US families more than $25 billion each year. When parents have to provide food for their children, it can be expensive and isolate the child even further. In a study by Dalhousie Medical School, all 56 gluten-free products tested were more expensive when compared to their regular counterparts.
At NJY Camps, the camp charges the same for the gluten-free meal plan as for the regular meal plan. “We don’t charge families extra despite the additional cost, it is simply a courtesy provided to those who need it,” said Carrie Youngs, director of Camp Nah-Jee-Wah, its camp for younger kids. Within the last five years, they’ve had as few as 30 and as many as 60 gluten-free campers register for each session.
The gluten-free kitchen has separate staff, equipment and serving area to avoid cross-contamination. Like Ramah Day Camp, NJY Camps try to make the gluten-free meals match the regular meals being served that day so that campers with dietary restrictions won’t feel left out.
“Because we’re a kosher camp, some allergies are just a good fit,” she said. The camp doesn’t have to make accommodations for allergies like shellfish because shellfish aren’t kosher. Camp Nah-Jee-Wah is also completely peanut free to accommodate campers who have airborne peanut allergies.
Before arriving at camp, families can meet with an allergy liaison who ensures that all of their needs are met. “We just feel that accommodating campers and giving them the most incredible camp experience is important for their upbringing,” Youngs said.
Eating away from home can be scary for people with food allergies, especially when those allergies are life-threatening. “My house is the space where I feel most comfortable when it comes to food,” said Josephine Schizer, 21, a sophomore at Harvard University. She’s allergic to eggs, dairy, sesame seeds, chickpeas, kiwi, lentils and peas, but thanks to her school’s Hillel, she’s been able to eat safely while she’s away from home. She’s developed a relationship with the Hillel’s dining hall staff and made them aware of her food allergies. They’ll often make special meals for her so that she’s able to eat.
Her allergies don’t usually make eating a problem during Jewish holidays, but on Passover, a holiday that imposes additional dietary restrictions, she struggles to find nutritious meals because there are fewer options. “Many of the options that I could normally eat are out of the question during Passover because of the holiday or have egg in them because flour gets replaced with egg,” Schizer said. Nearly everyone in her family has allergies, making it easier for her to celebrate Jewish holidays at home.
“I think it’s harder when I’m in places that aren’t my own home,” she said. “It’s harder, but it’s still doable.”
Spring has sprung, and markets are bursting with local, seasonal produce. This means fresh asparagus, peas, herbs, ramps, fiddleheads, baby greens and gloriously juicy berries.
In the last week, I celebrated spring’s bounty with both sweet and savory, once at breakfast and once at dinner in delicious presentations.
The savory dinner option was an offering from my neighbor “I,” who has bestowed her culinary gifts upon me in the past. I am truly fortunate to live next to a culinary-obsessed individual who happily shares her creations with me when she has a surplus. Her risotto showcased asparagus, peas and basil to great advantage.
The sweet breakfast option came via my daughter, who returned from a morning power walk craving pancakes. But ever healthy and fitness oriented, she was not going to dive into the carb bomb offered by traditional pancakes. No, instead she concocted a wholesome blend of oats, banana, peanut butter and various seeds to create the flapjacks and topped them with fresh berries. I was impressed by how tasty, fluffy and flavorful they were and planned to file them in my “breakfast for a crowd” stack of recipes.
Neighborly Risotto | Dairy Serves 4
Note: My neighbor recommends blanching the asparagus and cooking the peas then adding them to the risotto near the end of the cooking process; this ensures that the vegetables are cooked to perfection and not mushy.
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped, or ½ teaspoon dried
1 cup arborio rice
½ cup dry white wine
3 cups vegetable broth
8 ounces asparagus, trimmed, chopped into 1-inch pieces and steamed for 2 minutes
1 cup frozen peas, cooked
2 cups spinach (chopped if large leaves)
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Handful of fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
In a small saucepan, heat the broth and wine to a simmer.
In a large saucepan, heat the oil with the onions and thyme. Sauté over medium until fragrant. Add the rice and stir until it’s coated. Add one cup of simmering broth and stir constantly until it is absorbed. Add another cup and stir until it’s absorbed. Add ½ cup, add the spinach and continue stirring and adding hot broth in ½ cup increments until all but ½ cup of broth is used.
Add the asparagus and peas and the final bit of broth. Stir until absorbed.
Taste to ensure the rice is cooked; it should be cooked through, soft but not mushy, with a teeny bit of firmness at the very center — think al dente pasta. If it is not cooked to your liking, add another ¼ cup of hot broth or water and stir until absorbed.
Remove it from the heat, add the lemon zest, juice, Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste, then add the basil and stir. Serve immediately.
Healthy oat-banana pancakes. Photo by Keri White
Healthy Oat-Banana Pancakes | Pareve Serves 2-3
My daughter used soy milk, but any non-dairy milk can be substituted.
1½ cups rolled oats
½ teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons chia seeds
2 tablespoons flaxseeds
2 very ripe bananas
2 eggs
½ cup soy milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
Oil for cooking
2 cups fresh berries
Maple syrup, honey or agave, if desired
In a blender, mix the oats, cinnamon and seeds. Blend until the ingredients are finely ground into a coarse, flour-like texture. Add the bananas, eggs, soy milk and vanilla; blend again until the texture is consistent.
Heat a large skillet over medium/medium-low and add the oil.
When the oil is heated, ladle ½ cup portions of batter into the pan. When bubbles appear on top of the pancakes, flip (this takes 3-4 minutes). Cook the other side for another few minutes and, when done, remove it from the pan.
Repeat the process with the remaining batter and serve the pancakes with fresh berries and maple syrup, if desired.
Kevin “Kasper” Cole temporarily succeeded T’challa, the original Black Panther. (Marvel Comics via JTA.org)
Eric Schulmiller
Like some Jewish baseball fans, many dedicated Jewish comic book readers keep a running roster of Jewish heroes that have appeared in the “major leagues” of the comic world: Marvel, DC and some independent publishers’ titles.
Many know the handful of often-discussed Jewish characters: The Thing, whose adult bar mitzvah and Jewish wedding were major storylines; the Jewish star-wearing X-Men character Kitty Pryde; one-time Batwoman Kate Kane; and the popular supervillain Harley Quinn, to name a few. Moon Knight recently became the first overtly Jewish character to appear in the so-called Marvel Cinematic Universe, with his own show on Disney+ starring Oscar Isaac.
But not many readers are aware that, for a brief period exactly 20 years ago, the most overtly Jewish of all mainstream superheroes was the Black Panther.
Marvel’s original Black Panther character debuted in the summer of 1966, coincidentally just months before the launch of Bobby Seale and Huey Newton’s political party of the same name. Like Superman, Batman, Spider-Man and Captain America, the first mainstream Black superhero was created by Jewish comic book legends, in this case, the dynamic duo of Jack Kirby (born Jacob Kurtzberg) and Stan Lee (born Stanley Lieber).
The Black Panther first appeared in a “Fantastic Four” issue and is also known as T’Challa, the king and protector of the fictional African nation of Wakanda, a technologically advanced society hidden from the world. T’Challa possessed superhuman abilities, advanced technology and unmatched combat skills, and was considered one of the most brilliant men alive. The character and his storylines explored themes of identity, heritage and the responsibilities that come with power.
At the time of its creation, a strong, positive portrayal of an African superhero that defied stereotypes was a significant milestone in representation and diversity in the comic book industry.
Cole was the son of a non-Jewish African father and Jewish-American mother. (Marvel Comics via JTA.org)
Flash forward several decades after the character’s debut, and comics creator Christopher Priest was nearing the end of a transformative 60-issue run at the helm of the Black Panther title. Priest was the first Black writer to work full time at either of the big two studios, and his trailblazing reinvention of the character served as the primary inspiration for the two blockbuster movies that have earned acclaim in recent years.
In the final dozen issues of Priest’s “Black Panther” series, the story took a surprising turn. T’challa had vanished and was presumed dead. In his stead, a new Black Panther appears mysteriously on the scene: Kevin “Kasper” Cole, a narcotics officer in the NYPD’s Organized Crime Control Bureau.
Cole’s father was born in Uganda, but Kevin lives in a tiny apartment in Harlem with his Korean girlfriend, Gwen, and his Jewish mother, Ruth. Kevin is known as “Kasper” — after the well-known Casper the Friendly Ghost cartoon.
Cole originally “borrows” the Black Panther costume from the home of his boss, Sgt. Tork, an ally of T’challa who had held on to the costume for safekeeping. Cole’s motives were hardly altruistic, as Priest wrote on his blog at the time: “Kasper’s motive is to wear the costume so he won’t be recognized by the good guys or the bad guys as he goes about cleaning up his precinct so he can get a promotion to Detective so he can make enough money to marry his pregnant girlfriend and move them all out of Harlem.”
But what starts out as a side hustle for Cole soon evolves into a hero’s journey. When Cole is discovered by T’challa’s longtime adversary and half-brother, Hunter — AKA The White Wolf — he provides Cole with training, equipment and mentorship to use Cole as a proxy to hurt T’challa, who has resurfaced in New York City. The story soon becomes, in Priest’s words, “a war between The Black Panther (T’Challa) and the ‘white panther’ (Hunter) over the soul of this young kid.”
The story doesn’t end there: Cole decides to pursue official Wakandan acceptance as Black Panther by enduring rigorous initiation trials, and he soon receives support from none other than Erik Killmonger (the villain in the first “Black Panther” movie). Killmonger offers Cole a synthetic version of a heart-shaped herb, giving him T’challa-level powers. The series ends when Cole agrees to become an acolyte of the Panther god, Bast, instead of living as an imitator. He assumes a new title, The White Tiger (thereby becoming the second Jewish Marvel hero after Moon Knight to dress all in white).
Throughout the series, Cole’s Judaism is not a mere aside. Priest provides numerous examples of a strong Jewish identity: He dreams of his unborn son having a bar mitzvah. He dons a kippah and recites a Hebrew prayer at the grave of his slain friend and boss, Sgt. Tork. Even Erik Killmonger refers to Cole’s Jewish identity as a reason why Cole would identify with the underdog. Cole also proudly mentions his Jewish identity to several other characters in both Black Panther and in Priest’s short-lived follow-up series, “The Crew.”
One reason why Priest decided to make Cole Jewish could have been his familiarity with Jews. Priest went to a primary school in a Jewish neighborhood in New York City, where, he writes, “I had absolutely no sense of racism being directed at me … If I had a beef with another boy, it was about whatever it was about — race played absolutely no role … At least half of my friends were white. Right up through middle school, my girlfriend was a little Jewish girl.”
Fabrice Sapolsky, CEO and founder of FairSquare Comics — which aims to “promote and give more exposure to immigrants, minorities and under-represented creators of the word” — hopes that Cole will not be the last comic character to represent an understanding of Jewish ethnicity beyond the “Ashke-narrative trope.”
“It is the right time for these kinds of stories to emerge,” Sapolsky said.
Earlier this week, former President Donald Trump entered a Miami courthouse to respond to criminal charges made against him by the Office of Special Counsel of the Department of Justice that, among other things, he violated the Espionage Act by knowingly mishandling classified documents that he kept upon leaving office and obstructed the government’s efforts to reclaim them.
