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Jüdisches Leben:
Mias column: A Reflection on Hope and the American Presidential Election
Saturday, November 7th, 2020 was one of the best days of my life. Kamala Harris walked out on stage in Wilmington, Delaware. Wearing suffragette white, she credited all those who came before her, all those who made it possible to stand on that stage as Vice President-elect, including President-elect, Joe Biden, who chose her as his running mate. As I listened…
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Jüdisches Leben:
Germany is not your antiracist role model
Too many in the American left look to Germany as a role model for reckoning with a violent history, saying that Germany has somehow "dealt" with its past. By making uneducated comparisons and false claims about the experience of persecuted minorities in Germany, those who could be our allies across the pond end up making the continuing fight for liberation more difficult by erasing our present realities.
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Jüdisches Leben:
I am not alone: finding healing in another woman´s story
Something happened to me this month which changed my life: I discovered Deborah Feldman. Feldman is the author of the autobiographies "Unorthodox" and "Exodus: A Memoir", which detail her journey growing up in the Satmar Hasidic Jewish community in New York, her escape from this community, and later roots trip through Europe.
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Jüdisches Leben:
Remembering is more than the opposite of forgetting: a reflection on my personal relationship with the Holocaust by looking at the lost Jewish Life in Lvov
As the world took pause this week to remember the Holocaust, I read warnings from survivors that we "should never forget". Remembering, they said, is not achieved with a single moment of silence, prayer, or candle lit. Remembering is an active and ongoing process. Remembering is more than …
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Jüdisches Leben:
Mias column. The Magic of being Jewish
Being Jewish means being part of a group with a strong sense of shared identity, yet boundless and diverse traditions from throughout the world. The magic of being Jewish is feeling a sense of belonging no matter where you find yourself in the world, and discovering the world from your dinner table. As we approach the season of miracles, this is one I will be celebrating.
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Jüdisches Leben:
A German Christmas: Jewish Stars and almost no Jews
As the holiday season is approaching in Germany, and I am beginning to see yellow, six-sided stars adorning artisan´s stalls and on Christmas decorations, I am reminded of a piece I wrote two years ago, during my first Christmas season in Germany. The shock of seeing a yellow six-pointed star being celebrated as a German Christmas symbol is now dampened by the passage of time, but the absurdity of it remains.
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Jüdisches Leben:
Uncovering Jewish Venice. Reflections on Being Jewish by Mia Szarvas
The participation and contribution of Jews and Jewish culture in the history of Europe is often erased in common retelling. When it is remembered, it is often thought of as separate from the larger communities within which they lived. However, Jews were often integral to the prosperity of these communities, and their cultural legacies are still intertwined with the cultures from which they were purged. The loss of these cultural legacies is a loss so profound, it can be almost completely invisible.
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Jüdisches Leben:
Let´s Get Uncomfortable …. Reflections on Being Jewish in Germany by Mia Szarvas
When we witness racism or sexism, it is often our first instinct to avoid the discomfort of addressing the situation, leaving the victim to bear the burden of discomfort alone. The only way to change the world is to lift this burden from the victim - let´s make bigotry uncomfortable for everyone.
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Jüdisches Leben:
Yom HaShoah reflections by Mia Szarvas
There are times we find our voices in the most unexpected of places. Mia Szarvas, a jewish American immigrant to Germany, writes about finding power in a place that memorializes those who were powerless.
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Jüdisches Leben:
I Don´t Want Your Shame - reflections by Mia Szarvas
In the face of tragedy and trauma, the descendents of the perpetrators often become trapped by shame, causing them to distance themselves from any reminder of this trauma. Mia Szarvas, a jewish American living in Germany, makes an appeal to her German peers: don´t distance yourself from me and my jewishness. Give me your friendship, not your shame.
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