(Fort Worth., May 26, 2020)--The Isadore Garsek Lodge of B'nai B'rith brought a homemade Italian meal, including beef jerky, to Fort Worth firefighters on May 24, along with 30 reusable facemasks. About 25 B'nai B'rith volunteers were joined by Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price and Mayor Pro Tem Jungas Jordan at Fire Station #26.
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Price expressed her appreciation for the first responders' efforts during this pandemic and commended the Garsek Lodge. "Whenever I need to get something done in the community, I can always count on B'nai B'rith," the mayor told the gathering.

Alex Nason, president of the lodge and Texarkoma Region president, said the lodge's Italian menu was most welcome and enough was prepared to take care of all three shifts at the station.

"You go about protecting our community in so many ways," Nason said. "You are again on the front line, helping and giving comfort to the people who are calling for your help. Your station is also the first to respond to the Mollie and Max Barnett B'nai B'rith senior housing development, and we are very grateful for the help you provide for the residents."
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Among the B'nai B'rith participants were Dan Sturman, Ben Herman, Dr. Barry Schneider, Foster Owen, Marvin Beleck, Ebby Lavy, Robert Chicotsky, Rich Hollander, Joe Mintz, Dr. Evgeny Ostrinsky and Michael Kuptsin. Entire B’nai B’rith families pitched in.
 
B’nai B’rith International has advocated for global Jewry and championed the cause of human rights since 1843. B’nai B’rith is recognized as a vital voice in promoting Jewish unity and continuity, a staunch defender of the State of Israel, a tireless advocate on behalf of senior citizens and a leader in disaster relief. With a presence around the world, we are the Global Voice of the Jewish Community. Visit www.bnaibrith.org

B’nai B’rith International and the World Zionist Organization Will Host a Live Broadcast from Major Sites in Israel’s Capital in Honor of Jerusalem Day, Thursday, May 21st

(Jerusalem, May 20, 2020)--In light of the coronavirus pandemic, this year's Jerusalem Day will be celebrated differently from past years. Thousands of people from all over the world who would have visited  the Western Wall, the Old City, the Shuk  and the old neighborhoods of Jerusalem on this festive day are unable to attend this year due to restrictions imposed by Israel's Ministry of Health on assemblies and tourist travel.

To fill this gap, the World Zionist Organization and the B'nai B'rith World Center-Jerusalem will provide a unique opportunity to visit some of the major sites associated with Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day) from the comfort of your home through a live internet broadcast.

The two-hour program will feature special sites in Jerusalem, along with history, heritage and interviews with those who fought in the Six Day War of June 1967 when the city was reunited.

The event will be broadcast on the Facebook pages and YouTube of the World Zionist Organization, Yaakov Hagoel and B'nai B'rith International on Thursday, May 21st from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Israel time (7 a.m. – 9 a.m. ET).

Two expert guides will lead the virtual tour in English, beginning at the courtyard of the National Institutions in Jerusalem and concluding at the Western Wall. Yaakov Hagoel, vice and acting chairman of the World Zionist Organization and Alan Schneider, director of the B'nai B'rith World Center-Jerusalem who initiated this event, will deliver greetings.

The virtual tour will continue in the neighborhood of Rehavia, Tzahal (IDF) Square, Mamilla, Jaffa Gate, The Jewish Quarter, Mount of Olives, Golden Gate, the Monument of the Injured Bird, Lions Gate, the Photographer's House Observation Point and the Little Kotel, among other sites. The tour will conclude with singing and the blowing of the shofar in the courtyard of the Western Wall.

Hagoel said: "As is written in the Talmud, 'Ten cubits of beauty fell upon the world, nine of them on Jerusalem' and on Jerusalem Day we see the beauty of the city in all its glory. In order for those in the diaspora who are unable to feel Jerusalem physically on this special day, in the re-establishment of the State of Israel, we have designed a unique live tour that will make available to our viewers, if not to smell Jerusalem and its fragrances and pure air, then at least to see the pastoral views and stories of the heritage of Jerusalem our eternal Capital, on this day that we mark the reunification of Jerusalem for eternity as the Capital of the Jewish People and those in the diaspora."

Schneider noted: "B'nai B'rith began its activities in Eretz Israel in Jerusalem in 1888 with the purpose of creating a union to promote the concept of Jewish nationalism and countering missionary activities. It is still active and is among the international Zionist organizations that are members of the World Zionist Organization. Jerusalem Day is a significant watershed that signals the return of the Jewish people to ancestral places and that is celebrated in the shadow of the continuing struggle over Israeli sovereignty in its capital city. By way of the tour we wish to provide an opportunity for members of B'nai B'rith around the world and to our brothers and sisters in Jewish communities to experience this exciting city that the Jewish people have prayed for and have shown loyalty to for so many generations."

For further information please contact:
Alan Schneider, B’nai B’rith World Center-Jerusalem Director: +972-52-5536441
Liron Yehezkel, WZO Spokesman: +972-52-8259892
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B’nai B’rith International has advocated for global Jewry and championed the cause of human rights since 1843. B’nai B’rith is recognized as a vital voice in promoting Jewish unity and continuity, a staunch defender of the State of Israel, a tireless advocate on behalf of senior citizens and a leader in disaster relief. With a presence around the world, we are the Global Voice of the Jewish Community. Visit www.bnaibrith.org

(Washington, D.C., May 19, 2020)--B’nai B’rith International President Charles O. Kaufman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have issued the following statement:  
 
We commend the government’s decision in the Spanish region of Valencia to revoke its sponsorship of a seminar organized by BDS País Valencia, a local branch of the international anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement.
 
B’nai B’rith called for this action last week.
 
The seminar, entitled “Solidarity and human rights: learning to teach against hatred and racism (Judeophobia, Islamophobia and Palestine-Israel)” purported to be against discrimination directed toward all religious groups. However, the group’s obsessive anti-Israel focus disproves this claim. The BDS movement’s goal is the delegitimization of Israel, and it is best-known for orchestrating a pressure campaign against American Jewish singer Matisyahu that demanded he endorse Palestinian statehood or be disinvited from a music festival; ultimately, he was disinvited.
 
According to a Fundamental Rights Agency Survey conducted in 2018, 78 percent of the respondents in Spain consider anti-Semitism to be a big problem with 73 percent finding that anti-Semitism had increased over the previous five years. A higher percentage, 84 percent, said the Arab-Israeli conflict impacts their feeling of safety in Spain.
 
B’nai B’rith International has advocated for global Jewry and championed the cause of human rights since 1843. B’nai B’rith is recognized as a vital voice in promoting Jewish unity and continuity, a staunch defender of the State of Israel, a tireless advocate on behalf of senior citizens and a leader in disaster relief. With a presence around the world, we are the Global Voice of the Jewish Community. Visit www.bnaibrith.org
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(Washington, D.C., May 18, 2020)--​B’nai B’rith International is encouraged by the House of Representatives’ passage of the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act (HEROES Act) to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic.  While we are still analyzing this legislation, we believe this bill could bring badly needed relief to Section 202 affordable housing for seniors.
 
As the largest national Jewish sponsor of low-income, nonsectarian housing for seniors in the United States, B’nai B’rith hears directly from our sponsored buildings on the challenges brought on by this crisis.  We hope that additional funding will be used for increasing staffing, rental assistance, personal protective equipment, cleaning supplies and expanded WiFi to bolster telemedicine as a viable option for residents. Lastly, we are pleased by the additional $300 million dollars appropriated for service coordination. Service coordinators, who are an integral cog to Section 202 communities, by connecting older Americans with critical services in the community. We believe this additional funding could expand service coordination access and consequently allow Section 202 properties to better meet the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
We strongly urge the Senate to reach a bipartisan compromise with the House of Representatives on stimulus legislation. Legislation like the HEROES Act is another important step to ensure that affordable senior housing communities throughout our country are being protected the best they can, from this terrible crisis.

B’nai B’rith International President Charles O. Kaufman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have issued the following statement:  
 
We congratulate the members of Israel’s 35th government on being sworn in today. For the first 18 months of the new government’s existence, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will remain at the helm. Afterwards, Speaker of the Knesset Benny Gantz will become prime minister.

In a letter to Netanyahu, we noted that the “the challenges Israel faces are always immense, but perhaps never more than today. Yet, as we have witnessed through the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, Israelis have always risen to challenges and threats with determination, creativity, and courage,” and assured the prime minister that he “can count on B’nai B’rith as a reliable partner in advocating for a strong and secure Israel, today and always.”

B’nai B’rith International President Charles O. Kaufman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have issued the following statement:  
 
We are deeply troubled by the decision of the Regional Government of Valencia to sponsor a teacher training course organized by the local branch of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement, BDS Pais Valencià, titled “Solidarity and Human Rights: Judeophobia, Islamophobia, Palestina-Israel.”
 
This comes only days after a motion introduced in 2018 by the far-left Podemos party declaring a boycott of Israel in Valencia was deemed unconstitutional.
 
Purportedly, the course by BDS Valencia aims to “promote values of peace, solidarity and human rights among students.” However, the BDS Pais Valencia group often uses inciteful anti-Jewish language and tactics and is most notably known for the 2015 pressure campaign demanding that American Jewish artist Matisyahu endorse Palestinian statehood or be disinvited from a music festival – which is what eventually happened.
 
According to a Fundamental Rights Agency Survey conducted in 2018, 78 percent of the respondents in Spain consider anti-Semitism to be a big problem with 73 percent finding that anti-Semitism had increased over the previous five years. A higher percentage, 84 percent said the Arab-Israeli conflict impacts their feeling of safety in Spain.
 
In this context, it is particularly egregious that the Valencian government would support an organization whose record is tainted with anti-Semitism and whose stated goal is the delegitimization of Israel.
 
We urge the regional government of Valencia to withdraw support of the course.

(Washington, D.C., May 15, 2020)—B’nai B’rith International President Charles O. Kaufman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have issued the following statement:  

We condemn in the strongest terms the arson attack at the Tomb of Esther and Mordechai in Hamedan, Iran Thursday afternoon. There is a direct path from Tehran’s sinister embrace of anti-Semitism to the desecration of this important religious site. 

We call for an investigation by the United Nations into the desecration of the tomb. Ahmed Shaheed, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, authored a report on anti-Semitism in the fall and is familiar with Iran’s deeply entrenched anti-Semitism. We ask that he pursue this matter with great urgency.

The international community must pressure Iran to protect Jewish holy sites.

B’nai B’rith International has advocated for global Jewry and championed the cause of human rights since 1843. B’nai B’rith is recognized as a vital voice in promoting Jewish unity and continuity, a staunch defender of the State of Israel, a tireless advocate on behalf of senior citizens and a leader in disaster relief. With a presence around the world, we are the Global Voice of the Jewish Community. Visit www.bnaibrith.org.

(Washington, D.C., May 15, 2020)-- B’nai B’rith President Charles O. Kaufman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have sent a letter to Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert Wilkie expressing outrage that several gravestones belonging to German prisoners of war are adorned with Nazi imagery.
 
The German graves display swastikas, iron crosses and quotes glorifying Adolf Hitler. The prisoners of war are buried at Fort Sam Houston and Fort Douglas military cemeteries.  Some of the American soldiers interred alongside them fought the Nazis during World War II.
 
We live in a time where anti-Semitism is increasing, knowledge of the Holocaust is declining and swastikas are displayed at hate rallies. Especially in this global context, it is unacceptable for Nazi imagery to remain displayed on these graves.
 
You can read the full letter here.
 
B’nai B’rith International has advocated for global Jewry and championed the cause of human rights since 1843. B’nai B’rith is recognized as a vital voice in promoting Jewish unity and continuity, a staunch defender of the State of Israel, a tireless advocate on behalf of senior citizens and a leader in disaster relief. With a presence around the world, we are the Global Voice of the Jewish Community. Visit www.bnaibrith.org
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(Washington, D.C., May 14, 2020)-- B´nai B´rith Uruguay donated one thousand baskets of food to the National Emergency System of Uruguay this week. It is the second time in one month that B’nai B’rith has given this amount of food baskets to the governmental agency, which will distribute them all over the country to homes for the needy.
 
The donation was received by Under Director of the Agency Colonel Antonio Nuñez and Director of Distribution Captain Luis Traba.
 
Vice President of B´nai B´rith Uruguay Andrés Yusupoff made the delivery.
 
B’nai B’rith International has advocated for global Jewry and championed the cause of human rights since 1843. B’nai B’rith is recognized as a vital voice in promoting Jewish unity and continuity, a staunch defender of the State of Israel, a tireless advocate on behalf of senior citizens and a leader in disaster relief. With a presence around the world, we are the Global Voice of the Jewish Community. Visit www.bnaibrith.org.