Stories about U.S.A. from July, 2009
Israel: Jewish American or American Jew?
Aliza Hausman, better known by her blogging handle “La Jewminicana” is the winner of a contest sponsored by the Jewlicious blog that asks readers to respond to the question: “Are you an American Jew or Jewish American?” (The complete responses can be read here.)
Israel: First African American Woman Ordained Rabbi
Rabbi Alysa Stanton was recently ordained as the first female African American rabbi. “The media frenzy around Alysa Stanton’s ordination has opened the possibility of improved coverage of Jews from a variety of ethnic backgrounds,” writes JVoices.
Israel: Expecting “Hannah Montana's” Arrival
The Disney Channel will soon arrive in Israel in Hebrew. “Hannah Montana Changes Her Name to Chani Golani,” My Jewish Learning's Mixed Multitudes blog jests.
Bahrain: The Michael Jackson Phenomenon
In Bahrain, Ashish Gorde comments: “I really don't know Michael Jackson and, for that matter, neither does any of the scribes who have written loud commentaries on his life, his career, his legacy. What I know of him is what the media presented to the world. And now it is...
Belarus: President Pardons Emanuel Zeltser
On June 30, a U.S. Congress delegation visited Minsk to meet with Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko. During this meeting, members of the U.S. delegation asked the president to pardon Emanuel Zeltser, an American lawyer who, in August 2008, was "sentenced to three years in prison on charges of 'attempted industrial espionage' and the use of fake documents." Lukashenko said he could do it and signed the pardon later that day.
Caribbean: On the Honduran Coup
Writing at Havana Times, Guillermo Fernandez Ampie examines the Honduran coup d’état, while Repeating Islands reports that “heads of state throughout the Caribbean region have expresses their condemnation of the military coup in Honduras that has removed President Manuel Zelaya from office.”
