BITTON’S “BEST OF THE WEEK”
August 22, 2024
Cantor Eyal Bitton curates top podcasts, articles, and videos of the week, focusing on Israel, Jewish identity, and Jewish pride.
1. Tackling Antisemitism at Harvard & Beyond – with Shabbos Kestenbaum
In this podcast episode, I speak with Shabbos Kestenbaum, who is suing Harvard for allowing and perpetuating antisemitism on campus. He also was a featured speaker at the Republican National Convention this summer.
Shabbos shares his unexpected journey from being a student to being a Jewish advocate on the national stage. The conversation delves into the challenges Jewish students encounter on campus, the backlash from peers, and the painful silence—or worse, hostility—from former allies. Shabbos reflects on how the tragic events of October 7th reshaped his understanding of Israel’s existential reality and the responsibility he now feels to speak out.
2. Eve Barlow Tweet
Tweet by Eve Barlow 08/15/2024
The Nature of the Current War
Eve Barlow, a journalist and Jewish activist, makes an extremely important point about the nature of the Hamas-Israel war. It isn’t just a military war. This is an attack on the very legitimacy of the Jewish state as well as an attack on the Jewish connection to our ancestral homeland. The battle has spread all over the world, and certainly all across the US. There’s a litmus test for Jewish acceptance in larger society: disavow your connection to the Jewish state and you’ll be accepted. This is a war on Jewish identity.
3. “The Palestinian ‘Traitor’ Risks Everything to Speak Out”
Honestly Podcast with Bari Weiss
This episode tells the story of a young Palestinian man from a small village in the West Bank who, despite growing up with limited resources and many of his peers dropping out of school, pursued education abroad and earned three degrees in three different countries. He eventually landed a tech job with an Israeli company, a rare achievement for a Palestinian from the West Bank. His life, marked by hard work and perseverance, took a devastating turn after he expressed his horror on social media about the October 7 massacre in Israel, condemning the violence and praying for the safety of those affected. His posts led to widespread social rejection, with hundreds unfriending him, calling him a traitor, and making his life unsafe. Now, unable to commute to Israel for work due to closed crossings and suspended permits, he stays home, feeling isolated and fearing for his and his family’s safety. This episode explores his courage to speak out despite the severe risks, highlighting the strength required to stand up for one’s beliefs even when it could cost everything.
Also available on Apple Podcasts.
4. “Why Do You Care About the Palestinians?”
Oren is a tour guide who has been providing fantastic videos on Israel for years. Usually, they’re about tourism. However, he occasionally addresses larger issues. In this YouTube short, he exposes people’s obsession on the Palestinians as racism or hypocrisy given that there are conflicts with far worse death tolls or atrocities.
