Articles

As America awaits next year’s Presidential election, various studies are already seeking to capture the political pulse of this nation. Just last week, a new poll focusing on Jewish voters was released.[1] While this survey provided a broad range of data concerning Jewish political behavior, the following findings are introduced here: 70% disapproved of the President’s...

Jewish communities are directly affected by external trends. While all of the data introduced here is generic to the future of California, these findings will significantly and directly impact the quality and well being of Golden State Jews. Recent studies point to significant demographic, economic and social changes taking place within this state. As an outcome, we are likely to see an aging California Jewish community, with fewer younger families and singles to support the charitable interests of the community, its institutions and synagogues. Over the next quarter century, these six areas of research will be of particular importance to California and...

By Marylin E. Kingston, Ph.D. and Steven Windmueller, Ph.D. In attending community gatherings, including such activities as lectures, rallies, films, fund raising events and community dinners, we seem to see the “same folks” everywhere. Why is that the case? This assertion led us to explore group behavior patterns. Indeed, almost every study concerning how groups function, be they involving individual organizational behavior or larger social movements, social psychologists remind us that there are a series of concentric circles that define human performance and participation...

As we are set to observe Yom HaShoah, we are confronted with a new political reality. In this state of social madness, commentators and writers link all forms of hate and all acts of violence as a singular expression about our contemporary society. Why is anti-Semitism different? If one looks carefully at the websites of the alt-right, the white supremacists and the neo-Nazis, their unique and particular focus on Jews is striking, if not scary. Hatred of everyone that is non-white represents their generic mantra. Jews are seen as distinctive for

At this season of our moving from the narrow places that shaped our past to the possibilities of a new tomorrow, we find a Jewish community that is at a significant crossroads in its American journey. Today, external forces are undermining the political standing and status of America’s Jews, just as internal trends point to significant demographic and structural changes impacting our institutions and the welfare of our community. Passover reminds us of the special opportunity to take stock of our current condition, along with the possibilities of creating new beginnings! Lurking outside of our community is...

Steven Windmueller, PhD professor emeritus at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Los Angeles, spoke with Sputnik about voting patterns among American Jews, as well as the influence of lobbying groups such as AIPAC amid anti-Semitic scandals, involving the Democratic party. Sputnik: Since 1948 more Jews have voted for Democrat candidates than Republicans despite the fact that during this 70-year period both parties have gone through transformation. Would you call the Jewish voting bloc one of the most stable in US politics? Steven Windmueller: Voting patterns among groups within the United States actually do not generally radically change! In fact...

The landscape for the Los Angeles is changing, and so is its Jewish community. There are many factors contributing to these structural changes, including such external issues as the cost of living, traffic congestion and high taxes. When we add the changing lifestyle choices of Millennials and Generation Z to the existing economic realities, we have a confluence of forces contributing to the remaking of Jewish Los Angeles. No doubt, the impact of these forces on quality of life issues is influencing the choices families and individuals are making in connection with remaining in Los Angeles or leaving.

In recent years, much has been written about Purim with its distinctive political themes and leadership insights. Through their actions, the story’s principal characters, Esther and Mordecai, dramatically offer us a model of active intervention. Over the past several years, this writer has offered two earlier “takes” on the Purim saga.[1] In this piece, five additional themes are being introduced, adding to the quality and depth of this book’s powerful imagery and its timeless messaging...

Two years ago, I addressed the unsettled state of America’s Jews in the aftermath of the 2016 presidential election. At that time I noted:[1] The Trump Presidency has resulted in a fundamentally disruptive moment in this nation’s political culture. Not only are we experiencing strikingly different policy options and directions, but the cultural artifacts of politics, namely how this President operates dramatically challenges the existing norms of political behavior and action. As we have shifted from a period of American liberalism to a time of political populism...

The Jewish community is currently bereft and preoccupied by a series of political wars, involving the current administrations both in Washington and Jerusalem. They include issues of Israeli settlements, annexation, and human rights practices, and the broader issues of American foreign policy in the Middle East and elsewhere. What is needed now is a collective effort to grow the...