​Presses On Priorities Including Iran’s Global Terror and the Rise of Anti-Semitism
 
(Washington, D.C., Sept. 26, 2019)--B’nai B’rith International leaders met with numerous heads of state and other top government officials on the sidelines of the opening of the 74th United Nations General Assembly session in New York this week.
 
During these high-level meetings, B’nai B’rith President Charles O. Kaufman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin, along with other B’nai B’rith leaders and staff, discussed Iran’s malign policies, Palestinian terrorism and the rise in global anti-Semitism, among other issues. The B’nai B’rith delegation has met with leaders including those from Argentina, Egypt, Greece, India, Italy, Jordan, Paraguay, Poland, Spain, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates and the Vatican.
 
During these meetings, the delegation discussed the singularly unfair treatment Israel often faces within different U.N. forums. B’nai B’rith has had an exceptionally active presence at the U.N. since the body’s founding, and is committed to holding the U.N. accountable to its essential founding values and aspirations.
 
In addition to Kaufman and Mariaschin, the delegation included: Millie Magid, U.N. affairs chair; Sheila Mostyn, B’nai B’rith Center for Jewish Identity chair; Ira Bartfield, B’nai B’rith Center for Community Action chair; Andrew Borans, B’nai B’rith International Executive Board of Directors member and CEO of the Alpha Epsilon Pi Foundation; Stephen Stern, Executive Board of Directors member; Larry Magid, member of the International Center for Human Rights and Public Policy board; Stewart Cahn, member of the International Council of B’nai B’rith; François Moyse, member of the International Council of B’nai B’rith; Jared Hakimi, co-chair of B’nai B’rith Connect-New York; George Blank of New York; David Michaels, director of U.N. and intercommunal affairs; and Rebecca Rose, associate director, young leadership and development. Alpha Epsilon Pi also sent student leaders to join the B’nai B’rith delegation.
 
Michaels and Program Officer for U.N. Affairs Oren Drori coordinated the meetings.
 
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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​Fall issue also focuses on Torah-Themed Quilts and the revival of the Ladino language  
 
(Washington, D.C., Sept. 17, 2019)-- Israeli Olympic hopeful Beatie Deutsch, also known as “Speedy Beatie,” isn’t your typical runner – and not only because she has five children. Deutsch, 29, is also the first ultra-Orthodox woman to become a competitive marathon runner. In the fall issue of B’nai B’rith Magazine,  “‘Speedy Beatie,’ Ultra-Orthodox Runner, is Off to the Races,” readers will learn about this extraordinary woman’s extraordinary achievements.
 
And from one type of racetrack to another, we also focus on an Israeli racecar driver. When 27-year-old Alon Day was growing up, motorsports were illegal in Israel. Day defied the odds to participate in racecar competitions around the world. In 2017, he became the first-ever Israeli to participate in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.
 
Ladino, the language of the Sephardic Diaspora, is undergoing an academic and cultural revival. Modern Ladino enthusiasts are promoting the language with Ladino-language newspapers, digital versions of musical recordings and even a newly established International Ladino Day in New York City.
 
Anita Rabinoff-Goldman spent a year studying every Torah portion and accompanying commentaries to create a 54-piece contemporary quilt collection, “Seeing Torah.” You can view some of the intricate quilt illustrations in our cover story, “Seeing Torah: A Visual Exploration.”
 
In his President’s Column, Charles O. Kaufman details some of the mitzvot that members and supporters of B’nai B’rith perform around the world every day. At the International Council conference in Portugal, attendees learned about locals who performed righteous deeds, including Aristides de Sousa Mendes, a Portuguese diplomat responsible for saving the lives of thousands of Jews fleeing the Holocaust.
 
B’nai B’rith International CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin devotes this issue’s column to the modern fight against anti-Semitism in all its forms. Mariaschin showcases B’nai B’rith’s successful call for the appointment of a U.S. State Department envoy for monitoring and combatting anti-Semitism and its participation in the “Summit on Combatting Anti-Semitism” convened by the Justice Department.
 
In our About Seniors column, we focus on the bricks, mortar, volunteers and professionals – a combination vital to ensuring safe and affordable housing.
 
Read those stories and so much more in the fall issue of B’nai B’rith Magazine, available 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
 

(Washington, D.C., Sept. 10, 2019)--Delegates elected a new set of officers, saluting new president David Samuels and commending the past six years led by Morris Tobias.
 
International president Charles Kaufman installed the new officers and delivered a stirring address about surging anti-Semitism around the world, including recent events in Australia. He suggested an annual Seder-like event that would tell the story of blood libels and lies that have promoted millennia of anti-Semitism.
 
“We retell the story of the Exodus every year at Passover,” he said. “We know how it begins and ends. We must educate and remind our community and society about anti-Semitism. A Seder-like event would be an important tradition.”
 
Courage to Care is a program that fights hatred in any form through schools. Holocaust survivors and rescuers augment the work of specially trained educators.
 
Click to Connect is a program that connects B’nai B’rith members to help underprivileged youth in Israel to improve English skills through engaging conversations and online videoconferencing.
 
David Southwick, a member of Parliament in Australia, addressed the district and presented a Heroes of Caulfield Award to Tonia Tobias.
 
Stephane Teicher of Paris, a senior vice president of B’nai B’rith International, discussed anti-Semitism in France and other parts of Europe. He also discussed his work as B’nai B’rith’s UNESCO Representative.
 
The triennial convention was held from Sept. 6 to Sept. 9.
 
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., Sept. 9, 2019)—B’nai B’rith International President Charles O. Kaufman and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have issued the following statement:  
 
As an accredited nongovernmental organization at the United Nations, we deplore U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet’s biased statements today before the U.N. Human Rights Council. In remarks purportedly about global human rights, Bachelet devoted two paragraphs to denouncing Israel’s housing and security policies in the “occupied Palestinian territory.” Specifically, she baselessly alleged “very high levels of settler violence,” and “unlawful killings and injuries of Palestinians by Israeli security forces across the entire occupied territory,” without so much as referencing Palestinian terrorists’ ongoing attacks against innocent Israelis. Syria, which is in its eighth year of a bloody civil war and whose dictator has used chemical weapons against his own people, was mentioned once.
 
Later, Bachelet delivered a further “update” devoted entirely to Israel. Once again ignoring both Hamas’s rockets and terror tunnels and the glorification of violence by the Palestinian Authority, Bachelet denounced Israel’s treatment of Palestinian rioters during what she referred to benignly as the Palestinian “Great March of Return.” Although she acknowledged that “a number of demonstrators” have hurled bombs into Israel and overrun Israel’s security fence, most of the statement’s text was devoted to attacking Israel for defending itself against the aggressors. The statement falsely described the “protests,” not at all peaceful in explicit purpose or in conduct, as “largely peaceful.”
 
The U.N. Human Rights Council’s obsession with anti-Israel denunciations has gone far enough. Bachelet should retract her statements condemning the Middle East’s only liberal democracy for defending itself, and instead focus on the most urgent human rights crises around the world. 
 
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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B’nai B’rith International Director of Latin American Affairs Eduardo Kohn spoke at the World Zionist Organization’s (WZO) Latin American Conference on Anti-Semitism in Santiago, Chile. The conference was held from Sept. 6 to Sept. 8.
 
Kohn delivered a presentation on “Anti-Semitism in Latin America and the Contexts Around It.” Some 150 Jewish professional and lay leaders from around the region also participated, including leaders affiliated with the Simon Wiesenthal Center.
 
The conference was convened by WZO Vice President Yaakov Hagoel, who arrived from Israel to host the event.

 
(Washington, D.C., Sept. 6, 2019)--A small group of B’nai B’rith International leaders met privately with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. In the meeting at U.N. Headquarters, which took place in advance of the arrival in New York of international leaders for the opening of the U.N. General Assembly session this month, the B'nai B'rith delegation thanked Guterres for his positive personal efforts while raising priority concerns regarding the world body and current global affairs, particularly in the Middle East.
 
Guterres, who had previously saluted B'nai B'rith on the occasion of its 175th anniversary, has denounced anti-Semitism, including as manifested by the delegitimization of Israel, and he has now launched initiatives against hate speech and the targeting of places of worship. He also recently met with the parents of Hadar Goldin, the Israeli soldier who was slain by Hamas and whose body has been held hostage for years by the terrorist organization that controls the Gaza Strip.
 
In the wake of new violence and threats by Hezbollah, the massively militarized proxy of Iran based in Lebanon, as well as Palestinian terrorists, B'nai B'rith reiterated the urgency of serious action by the international community to address these gravely dangerous realities. Guterres also heard B'nai B'rith's dismay over the ongoing weaponization of U.N. bodies as propaganda tools against Israel by Palestinians, who continue to reject direct dialogue with Israel and American-led peace efforts.
 
Additionally, B’nai B’rith urged the secretary-general to dedicate staff to combating the scourge of global anti-Semitism – and to pursue the long-overdue inclusion of Israelis at a management level within the U.N. secretariat.
 
At the conclusion of the meeting, B’nai B’rith’s delegation presented Guterres with a display of stamps commemorating Portugal's Jewish heritage and an international B'nai B'rith leadership meeting in the country this past summer. Guterres is a former prime minister of Portugal and his wife, Catarina Vaz Pinto, councillor of culture in the Portuguese capital and a past Portuguese state secretary of culture, addressed the B'nai B'rith conference.

Led by CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin, the B'nai B'rith delegation also included Millie Magid, B'nai B'rith chair of U.N. affairs; Stewart Cahn, of New York; Brian Kaufman, of New York; and David Michaels, director of U.N. and intercommunal affairs.
  
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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Protecting Global Jewish Communities Against Anti-Semitism Is A Top Priority
 
(Washington, D.C., Sept. 4, 2019)--The U.S. prioritizes fighting global anti-Semitism through the bipartisan-created State Department post of the U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat anti-Semitism. On the latest episode of the B’nai B’rith podcast, CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin talks with Elan Carr, who ascended to the post in February, about the vital need for this position.  
 
What’s truly unique about the role is that it has a proactive side, the “to combat” part of the description.  
 
Carr emphasizes that he sees his first priority as ensuring the day-to-day safety of Jews around the world. “If a community cannot feel safe; if you can’t leave the house and know that you’re going to come back in one piece, or send your kids to school and know that they’re safe, there is no quality of life. It is intolerable to live in such a place,” says Carr. “So what we’re looking at is to make sure Jewish assets are protected. In countries, especially where Jews are being attacked on the streets, and there are no shortages of examples of that, protecting Jewish assets and making sure that Jews are safe and protected is number one.”
 
Carr views part of his job as promoting the view that anti-Zionism is anti-Semitism. “Part of this whole fight is to carry the message [that anti-Zionism is anti-Semitism] to every capital and to every campus…to make sure that everyone understands what anti-Semitism is and what the stakes are, and what the enormous costs can be if we don’t fight it,” says Carr.  
 
Prior to his appointment as the special envoy, Carr served in the United States military and in the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office as a deputy district attorney.
 
Click here for Episode 55 of the B’nai B’rith Podcast.
 
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., Sept. 3, 2019)--B’nai B’rith International is accepting donations to its Disaster Relief Fund to assist those impacted by Hurricane Dorian, a powerful Category 3 storm currently pummeling the Bahamas and expected to hit the southeastern United States in the coming days. Dorian already has a death toll of five and has caused extensive damage in the Bahamas. Parts of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina have already been evacuated.
 
Our Disaster Relief Fund is part of our longstanding tradition of helping communities in distress. Since 1865 when we raised funds in pre-state Israel to aid victims of a cholera outbreak, B’nai B’rith has helped countless people across the globe who have faced adversity after natural and man-made disasters. Recent donations to our Disaster Relief Fund have helped victims of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, community rebuilding after California wildfires and flood victims in Tennessee.
 
B’nai B’rith will work with local recovery and rebuilding teams when the storm has passed to assess unmet needs.
 
If you would like to help us help communities in need, donate here to our Disaster Relief Fund: https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/bbi-disaster-relief
 
Donors can also call 800-573-9057 to make a credit card contribution over the phone. Or can send a check payable to the B’nai B’rith Disaster Relief Fund to:
 
​B’nai B’rith International
Disaster Relief Fund
1120 20th Street NW, Suite 300N
Washington, D.C. 20036
 
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
​