Awesome Jewish Role Model for Kids: Daniel Radcliffe

After pro-baseball player Sandy Koufax publicly refused to play on Yom Kippur, he was overwhelmed by parents' requests to speak at bat and bar mitzvahs. It's not hard to see why. Here was a famous Jewish guy choosing to honor his heritage in a predominantly Christian country. Who are the Jewish role models our kids look up to today?

Zac Efron from High School Musical? Israeli-American supermodel Bar Refaeli? People known for their good genes and little else?

Every now and then I want to use Jew World Order to highlight awesome Jewish role models who either demonstrate tikkun olam or a public committment to Judaism (or both.) The only catch is that it has to be substantive. I couldn't care less that Scarlett Johansonn uses cloth shopping bags or that Norah Jones drives a Prius.

My very first entry for this continuing series is none other than Harry Potter, or at least the guy who plays him in the blockbuster Warner Bros films.

Daniel Radcliffe, now 20, recently made a generous donation to The Trevor Project, a support group for suicidal teens. Not only that, but he expressed public devotion to gay people in the media, calling homophobes "disgusting and stupid."

"He is setting a meaningful example for millions of young people around the world by embracing diversity and demonstrating that he cares deeply about the well-being of LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer/questioning) youth," said the charity's chief executive Charles Robbins.

Radcliffe said, "It's extremely distressing to consider that in 2009 suicide is a top three killer of young people, and it's truly devastating to learn that LGBTQ youth are up to four times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers."

"It's vitally important that young people understand they are not alone and, perhaps even more important, that their young lives have real value," the actor added.

Just one question, Daniel: would you speak at my future daughter's bat mitzvah?

Gay Rights in Israel: Yarzheit for Nir Katz and Liz Trobishi

We mourn the loss of the Kedoshim--Nir Katz and Liz Trobishi--who were murdered by savages in a shooting at a weekly support group for gay Jewish youth in Tel-Aviv late last Saturday. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of this vicious attack, their families, friends and communities.

Today 70,000 Israelis came together in solidarity with the gay community.

President Shimon Peres said, "The bullets that hit the gay community at the beginning of the week struck us all as people, as Jews, as Israelis. All people were created in God's image," he added, "and all citizens have equal rights. All men are born equal, and every citizen has the right to be who he is -- to be free and proud."

Reform and Conservative leaders called on all Jews to take a moment last Sunday to dwell on those who have been murdered and wounded in this attack and to recite Tehillim on their behalf. We hope for some small comfort among the mourners of Israel and the entire world, as well as a speedy recovery, in body and in spirit, to all those injured in this attack. On Monday night at 8:30pm, Mt. Sinai Jewish Center recited Tehillim for those who were killed or hurt in the attack following Mincha/Ma'ariv services.

A small group of religious fanatics will never be able to convince Israel or its citizens that gays have no place in the Jewish state. I have visited Tel Aviv many times, and I am impressed by its gay-friendly atmosphere. Not only does the Israeli government not enforce savage religious laws against gay people the way Iran does, it is somewhat gay-friendly and on the verge of getting even better. Israel shows more humanity and enlightenment than America by allowing gays to openly serve in the military and by allowing same-sex marriages performed elsewhere to be recognized in the state.

This perceived acceptance of gays (I say perceived because any country that only allows straight marriage is homophobic) will always make anti-Zionist Orthodox Jews and extremist Muslims hate Israel with a passion, and it will always cause Zionist Orthodox Jews and Zionist Evangelicals to threaten to withdraw their support.

On the anti-semitic, anti-Zionist right, people like "God Hates Fags" preacher Fred Phelps see gay rights as being part of the "Zionist agenda" and routinely protest Israel for being relatively gay-friendly, and they protest Judaism for being genuinely gay-friendly. His "church" recently picketed a Kansas City synagogue with racist signs showing disgust with the "Fag-filled IDF" and "Fag-infested synagogues." And a gay synagogue in NYC was earlier this year greeted with picket signs saying "Jews Stole The Land" and "God Hates Fags."

http://www.kcjc.com/200906058517/news/phelps-clan-plans-synagogue-picket.html

This diparaging linking of gay rights with Israel finds suprising resonance among hateful right wing anti-Zionist Orthodox Jews (many of whom reject Israel even though they live there) and predictable agreement among extremist Muslims and the small anti-Israel Christian right. And many Zionist evangelicals and Zionist Orthodox Jews couple their enthusiasm for immoral Israeli military actions with disdain and disgust for moral Israeli policies like tolerance for gays. Just as Pat Robertson famously declared that God gave Ariel Sharon a stroke because he conceded some territory to Palestinans, many others like Robertson predict divine punishment for the Jewish state if its leaders fail to end the gay civil rights progress.

In the coming days and weeks and months, there will be an antisemitic backlash from the right because Peres made those pro-gay comments today. Some of that backlash will inevitably spring from those who claim to be Israel's friends.

But as Reform leader Eric Yoffie asked, what sort of friendship is conditional? You either support Israel for the right reasons or you do not. There is no reason to think things will get better. Many extremist Muslims use Israel's relative gay-friendliness--as well as sexy images of Tel Aviv residents having fun and enjoying the night life and beaches--as a wedge between the country and its anti-gay evangelical supporters. In fact, the annual gay Pride party in Jerusalem is a constant reminder that all the religions who find connection with the holy land have extremists who want to stop people from living life. A few years ago, a Muslim leader from the Knesset, Ibrahim Sarsur (United Arab List-Ta'al) "warned gays that 'if they dare to approach the Temple Mount during the World Pride 2006 parade in Jerusalem they will do so over our dead bodies' ("Gay Leader Not Daunted by Muslim Threat.")

Strange bedfellows indeed. People who hate Jews will always, always, always hold Israel to different standards and find some reason to detest/boycott the Jewish state. Fuck those people. But what about those Zionists who threaten to end their support if Israel does not start treating its gay population the way Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Palestine do? Well, we should not be intimidated by them. That's why it was so wrong for Benjamin Netanyahu to make his speech about tolerance of gays so low-key. It's not okay to appease bigots. And that's why it was so important for President Peres to make his speech clear throughout the world, as he did. All decent Zionists must stand strong and send a clear message that truly supporting Israel means supporting all its citizens, including gays and Arabs.

And speaking of Arabs, what about gay Palestinians seeking refuge from their savagely anti-gay environment? Kathleen Peratis writes in The Forward that, "the international movement for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people hardly exists inside the Muslim world" and that "if the sexuality of a gay man in Palestine is exposed, his family might torture or kill him and the police will turn a blind eye. . . The only country in the Middle East in which gay people may safely leave the closet is Israel."

But seeking asylum in the only remotely decent Middle Eastern country poses a problem because of Israel's policies regarding Palestinians. Israel ended its practice of granting asylum to Palestinian nationals because, "in 2002, Palestinians with Israeli identity cards issued under family reunification laws allegedly used that status to aid suicide bombers."

Sadly, the only hope for gay Palestinians seeking refuge from their awful existence in Palestine is to "make their desperate way to Israel" and "hope to disappear into the gay subculture of Tel Aviv or Haifa;" of course this simply means they are buying time until their lack of money and Hebrew gets them caught and subsequently arrested ("For Gay Palestinians, Tel Aviv is Mecca.")

Efforts to challenge this harsh anti-immigrant law must be stepped up. Palestinians who have just cause for fear of persecution in their former country should feel safe in Israel, if only in Israel. And conditions will improve only when Israeli politicians realize they earn no points for not being Iran. No one deserves a humanitarian award for not hanging gay people. No world leader should be lauded for not telling a student body that his country has no homosexuals. Not acting like animals should be expected, not praised. Enforce harsh laws against anti-social behavior from the ultra-religious. Spend money building Reform temples and Conservative (Masorti in Israel) synagogues; court those Jews who have felt alienated from their own anscestral homeland. Grant asylum to gay Palistinians who seek a better way of life in Israel.

As Tony Kushner says, "the world only spins forward." Look at those masses of good, moral Israelis marching in solidarity with their gay brothers and sisters. There is no stopping the gay civil rights progress in Israel. Already better than the U.S., the Jewish state will someday be an absolute haven for gays and lesbians. Any Israeli who has a problem with that should leave. And when Israeli leaders begin to embrace the values of mainstream Judiasm--the two branches of Judaism overwhelmingly chosen by the world's Jews--the Jewish state will actually become more Jewish.

Yes We Can, But No We Won't

This video shows the hanging in Iran of two young boys, Ayaz Marhon and Mahmoud Asgari. Their only "crime" was being gay.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gARvwzFWSr4

Pride Month is coming to an end, and those of us gay people who are fortunate enough to not live in a savage theocracy have a lot to be proud of. But for gay Americans, that pride is mixed with anxiety. Many European countries made the lack of marriage equality in the United States the subject of their Pride festivities. Why should they be surprised? Look at our fearless leader.

That brutal double-murder of Ayaz and Mahmoud is a routine occurence in Iran, and yet Presidnet Obama did not once pressure Iran (or any other Islamic country for that matter) to end its oppression of gays in his massive "apology" on behalf of the United States to "the Muslim world." Under the law of the Islamic Republic, the penalty for lesbian sex is one hundred lashes, with the death penalty enforced after the fourth offense. The death penalty is due on the first offense for male-on-male sex.

A young gay Iranian seeking refuge in Britain tells The New Internationalists,"It’s because of the Islamic revolution that people like me are here [in the U.K.]. . . The revolution is a really bad memory for gay and lesbian people. Before, they were free but now they can’t live in Iran and have to escape (Webster, Anna. "An Auspicious Anniversary.")

http://www.newint.org/features/special/2009/03/30/an-inauspicious-anniversary/

In the disastrous aftermath of the recent Iranian elections, in which scores of Iranians protested the re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Obama decided not to put any U.S. pressure on the ayatollahs to listen to the will of the people.

Obama even remained silent (until it was much too little, far too late) as the brutal regime killed innocent protesters. This would have been the perfect time to speak out for not just gay Iranians, but all Iranians. Oddly, Obama has spent the first one hundred days of his presidency paying more respect to the religion of Islam than to human beings.

After more than one hundred days in office, Obama's record on gay rights is dismal, despite his campaign promises and his effort to energize the gay community into voting for him. He invited anti-gay Rick Warren to his inauguration. He has effectively pushed both marriage equality and "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" into whenever "the sun sets on his administration." And that's if he gets re-elected. If the next president is a Republican, gay people might as well leave for Europe.

But the most shocking aspect of Obama's first hundred days is the blatant, vitriolic bigotry. Most of us have become used to Democrats paying lip service to gay rights but offering a winking, "Sorry, guys, I have to do this" approach to marriage equality. Not so with Obama. His Justice Department's defense of DOMA (which is anti-equality) is a sickening read: it equates gay sex with incest and same-sex couples with inbreeding rapists.

Joe Solomonese of the Human Rights Campaign says in a predictably tepid open letter to Obama, "As an American, a civil rights activist, and a human being, I hold this administration to a higher standard than this brief. . . I realize that although I and other LGBT rights leaders have introduced ourselves to you, clearly we have not been heard, and seen, as what we also are: human beings whose lives, loves, and families are equal to yours."

Insultingly, Obama responded to criticism that he has done little for gay rights by declaring June Pride Month, something he was expected to do anyway as a Democrat. Not to mention the fact that Bill Clinton had first done this in 1996; how depressing that Obama's one substantive stand on gay rights takes us no further than the 90's. Other than that, Jason Linkins of the Huffington Post points out that Obama's federal extension of gay rights benefits--part of his supposed turnaround on gay rights--is only partial; plus, it's a memorandum instead of an executive order. ("HRC's Joe Solomonese Tells Olbermann Obama Went 'Way Over the Line.' ")

Is there any reason to believe the author of The Audacity of Hope will improve? Will he change his priorities and start showing more concern for gay people than for Iranian ayatollahs? It's hard to say. Obama invited gay rights activists to the White House for a gala celeberating "LGBT pride" and commemorating Stonewall. Sadly, the White House barely advertised it until the media called out his administration on its hypocrisy.

And even if Obama's little gay party had been out and proud, how does that help the female couple who wants their union recognized as something more than shacking-up-with-medical benefits? How does it help gay kids like Ayaz and Mahmoud, who live under the brutal rule of a theocracy that's protected at all costs by political correctness?

For gay people in 2009, hope really is audacious.




CapeCodKwassa, Copyright 2009

Judaism Does Not Equal Legalism

A common misconception regarding Judaism is that it is legalistic--that Judaism is a series of laws. This idea has been used by antisemites who try to paint "the Jewish God" as vengeful and demanding and their own God as loving and forgiving. But antisemites aside, the notion that Judaism equals legalism is also a staple of many Orthodox Jews, who are under the misguided impression that obeying halakha to a precise degree is Judaism in a nutshell.

This is wrong.

"Judaism is not another word for legalism," says Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel. "The translators of the Septaugint committed a fatal and momentous error when, for lack of a Greek equivalent, they rendered Torah with nomos, which means "law", giving rise to a huge and chronic misconception of Judaism and supplying an effective weapon to those who sought to attack the teachings of Judaism. That the Jews considered Scripture as teaching is evidenced by the fact that in the Aramaic translations Torah is rendered with "oraita" which can only mean teaching, never law."

"The rules of observance are law in form and love in substance," Heschel says. "The Torah contains both law and love. Man created in the likeness of God is called upon to re-create the world in the likeness of the vision of God. Halacha is neither the ultimate nor the all-embracing term for Jewish learning and living."

Heschel goes on to talk about agada, a term meaning all non-halackic parts of rabbinic literature. He says, "The Torah is more than a system of laws; only a small portion of the Pentateuch deals with law. The prophets, the Psalms, agadic midrashim, are not a part of halacha. The Torah contains both halacha and agada. Like body and soul, they are mutually dependent, and each is a dimension of its own." The good rabbi says that according to a later decision by an authority, a Jewish person is expected to devote a third of her studies to the field of agada.

This means we are expected to follow halakha with our hearts and intellects fully engaged. We are not to blindly accept rigid, often heartless and immoral interpretations of those laws, and we are also not to make obeying the laws our main means of worshipping God and living a Jewish life. Those authorities and "experts" who shut their ears and eyes and steadfastly refuse to even consider more progressive interpretations of halakha--even when civil rights and decency are at stake--are guilty of worshiping halakha instead of worshipping God.

The most important decree in Judaism is this one: "There is nothing more important, according to the Torah, than to preserve human life. . . Even when there is the slightest possibility that a life may be at stake one may disregard every prohibition of the law." As Heschel says, this means "one must sacrifice mitzvot for the sake of man, rather than sacrifice man for the sake of mitzvot."

I hope everyone had a great Shavuot.

Biblical Illiteracy in a (Supposedly) Devout Society?

I asked off at work for both my family's seder and also a more laid-back seder my boyfriend was hosting at his cool new house in a swanky neighborhood. I had so much fun at both of them; it was the best Passover of my young adult life. And those two seders amounted to two Pesach-related time-off requests at my job, which caused more of a stir than I ever would have dreamed.

My manager asked what a Passover seder is. My unintentionally funny, uber-redneck department lead asked me what a Passover seder is. My peer and co-worker asked me what a Passover seder is, and also what Passover itself is. Shockingly, a health-and-wealth evangelical co-worker who says Obama is the anti-Christ claimed to have never heard the word "Passover" in her life.

This upset me. Not as a Jew, mind you. I don't expect non-Jews to know anything about Judaism. I know very little about Hinduism or Buddhist monks, and I cannot for the life of me figure out the holy trinity. The only time I get angry about peoples' lack of knowledge regarding Judaism is when they are speaking with authority about something they know little about, like when some Christians claim the "Jewish G-d" is mean and judgmental.

So I usually do not care when people do not understand Passover or any Jewish custom. No, I was upset not as a Jewish person but as a gay person. I was upset because all those people I mentioned are Christians. My peer is not homophobic, but both my manager and my redneck lead are against gay peoples' right to marry because of what the Bible says about homosexuality and what the Bibile supposedly says about marriage.

So if the Bible is so important to you as to be the deciding factor in your anti-gay bigotry, how on earth do you not know what Passover means? The Passover story of G-d delivering the Jews from slavery to liberation is the second biggest event of the Christian Bible, second only to the Gospel account of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. It is a thematic parallel that supposedly binds the two books into one. G-d delivered the Hebrews from phsycical slavery in Part One; in Part Two G-d supposedly delivered Hebrew and gentile alike from spiritual slavery. First G-d delivered His law; then He delivered grace. Jesus' last meal was a PASSOVER SEDER. Even if that were not painfully obvious in the actual scripture, most Bibles helpfully explain those facts in the notes.

In my experience--and I have much experience with right wing Christians--, the only conservative evangelicals I know who are knowledgeable about Passover and the seder are those who are studying a Christian field at school or those whose churches host seders to show how Jesus is the Passover lamb and how Christianity supposedly supercedes Judaism as the true faith. (To their enormous credit, some more progressive churches like the Christ the King parish near my apartment host annual seders supervised by actual rabbis, and there is no offensive motive at all.)

It isn't just Passover. It seems Bible-believing America is not quite the same as Bible-reading America. According to USA Today, 60% of Americans can't name five of the Ten Commandments. 50% of high school seniors say Sodom and Gomorrah were married ("Americans Get an 'F' in Religion", Cathy Lynn Grossman.)

It really is infuriating. The Bible is the main excuse for anti-gay bigotry (just as it was the main excuse for slavery and anti-Semitism) and yet most of those bigots do not even read it. If you're against straight/gay equality because of the Bible, you should curl up the "Good Book" every night. You should know what it says like the back of your hand. Because if you do do not, you're hypocritical in addition to prejudiced.

In my thinking, that's two sins for the price of one.

Hateful New Oklahoma Bill Targets Muslim Americans

First gays. Then Hispanic immigrants. Now Muslims. Oklahoma lawmakers are at it again.

Oklahoma House members just approved HB 1645, a new bill making it mandatory for religious people to remove their traditional head coverings both while taking driver's license photos and also whenever a law enforcement officer demands it for identification purposes. While it's true that a few people from other religions will be slightly affected, there is no question that Muslims and Sikhs are the true targets of this bill.

The creator of the bill all but admits it. Republican Rep. Rex Duncan says he wrote the legislation after reading about how a Muslim woman from Norman, Oklahoma--Monique Barrett--recieved an apology from the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety when she complained that she was asked to removed her hijab (traditional Islamic head scarf) for her new driver's license photo.

Many Muslim women only reveal their hair to their husbands and male family members, and it is against Barrett's particular brand of Islamic faith to not wear her head scarf in public.

Barrett was issued an apology, and she was allowed to take a new photo with her hijab. The ODPS said it was happy to resolve the issue as quickly as possible and that the organization would educate its employees on religious issues related to dress and photos. As of last year, the employee telling Barrett she had to remove the hijab was in violation of anti-discrimination laws.

How quickly the world takes a turn for the worse. House members approved the legislation 88-8. Duncan tells Micheal McNutt of The Daily Oklahoman, "If we're going to allow people to cover their hair and parts of their face, then it's going to be difficult for the law enforcement folks to confirm who they're actually looking at" ("Groups Oppose Oklahoma Driver's License Photo Bill.")

But that is not true. Barrett--like most Muslim women--was not covering her face, not even part of it. And anyone of any background can change her hair color or wear a wig, so how does showing one's hair help police identify people? Aside from that, there is clearly no widespread problem being addressed here anyway. It is simply a hateful piece of legislation targeting a religious minority.

So how does an anti-Muslim law relate to Jews?

Rajdeep Singh Jolly, legal director for the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, says, "'We also call upon all religious communities, civil rights organizations, and concerned citizens throughout the nation to demand that the government of Oklahoma clarifies its commitment to protecting civil rights in the 21st century."

We as Jews know what discrimination feels like, and our most sacred text reminds us to be kind to the stranger because we were once strangers. Everyone should speak out, but our voice should be the loudest.

Nick and Norah and Jewish/Gay Identity

Last night I rewatched Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (Sony Pictures/2008). It's not There Will Be Blood, but it's a light-hearted, well-acted tribute to those nights in every young person's life that seem to last forever--those nights where it actually seems possible that similar musical taste can bond two people for life.

Nick (Michael Cera) is sensitive, smart, and funny, and the love of his life does not appreciate him or the mix tape CD's he puts together for her. Nora (Kat Dunning) is his "musical soul mate" and desperately wants to meet the stranger who makes all the amazing CDs his ex-girlfriend throws in the trash at school. When Nora finally meets Nick, it's at a club where Nick is performing with his band as the lone straight guy in a "Queercore" band called The Jerkoffs. It takes a while for the two to warm up to each other, but they eventually bond over music and--of course--a great big adventure in NYC.

While not as funny as it should be, it is engaging and good-hearted, and it shows an interesting evolution of pop culture depictions of Jews and gays, who--despite heavy repesentation of both groups in the entertainment industry--are often marginalized and stereotyped in movies and TV shows.

In some ways, Nora's character fits popular Gossip Girl stereotypes. She is the rich daughter of a famous music mogul, and because of this fact, the red carpet is rolled out for her. But to her credit she constantly downplays her status because she says her dad's position in society has nothing to do with who she is. She wants people to see her true self. That's why it's hurtful when Nick angrily calls Nora a spoiled "JAP" (Jewish-American princess); it simply does not ring true.

Even more impressively, the film is not content with establishing Nora as a Jew in a typical shallow movie way, with a handful of references to Hanukkah or JAPs. Nora is--to borrow from another minority's lingo--out. She is actually proud to be Jewish, and she even shares with Nick one of her "favorite things about Judaism," the concept of tikkun olam. She explains it as the world being broken and humans having the task of putting the pieces back together. "Maybe we're the pieces," Nick offers.

Just as Nora resembles Jewish girls we know in real life more than most other movie Jews, the same can be said for the gay characters. Nick's gay friends/bandmates are not limp-wristed, lisping stereotypes. They're certainly not murderers (like Hollywood used to make them) and they're not martyrs (like Hollywood currently makes them.) Thankfully, they are NOT in love with Nick or with any other straight guy. In fact, they do everything they can to ensure that Nick and Nora get together.

The best thing about the young gay men in this film is that they are not sanitized, neutered, asexual versions of themselves. They are comfortable in their own skins, and their presence here is by no means meant to make homophobic (or homonervous) audiences feel less threatened.

And that's one of the things I like about Nick and Norah's. Nora, Nick, and their gay friends are not used as "propaganda" for positive media images. They are all imperfect people, just as characters in any movie should be, and they have all the potential in the world to be stereotypes--they just fight against it. Nora is privelaged and well-off, but she would rather be seen as a spiritually grounded Jewish girl than as a rich JAP. Nick's friends are sexy, hot, and very sexual, but they're also really nice guys more concerned with helping their friends than getting off.

It almost makes up for the fact that we're supposed to believe these charcters can instantly find parking places at every NYC club and business they attend. Almost.