1. On the eaterchicago update a week ago, the headline blared: Chicago First Vegan Jewish Deli Is Coming to Uptown with Bagels and Plant-Based Lox. I don't know which is more oxymoronic -- "Vegan Jewish Deli" or "Plant-Based Lox," the latter striking me as a particularly disgusting idea. And, no doubt, there will be no tongue on the menu. Is nothing sacred? A corned beef sandwich constructed out of some tofu derivative? I will not tell my daughter or daughter-in-law or, for that matter, my sons of the existence of this place...though I wish the "Deli" well, of course.
2. You may recall that a few years ago HIAS -- then the "Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society" -- withdrew "Hebrew" from everything and became but an acronym. Yes, it morphed into just an acronym -- HIAS. Its leadership determined that henceforth it would offer ecumenical, non-denominational immigrant assistance; one fund-raising mass mailing I received at the time of the chagim, as I recall, asked me to support aid to Syrian refugees.
That was then. Now, HIAS has sought funding for that which it calls HIAS v. Trump. "On behalf of refugees we're taking this fight to court." Donate Now with a link. And a hashtag. Maybe this is just an opportunistic strategy, with some perceived gain short-term. But, long-term? I don't think so.
I recognize our historic responsibility to aid the stranger, the other. HIAS has carried this too far -- best I can tell, it now duplicates the work of so many other refugee assistance organizations. I'll wait to learn from you why HIAS deserves Jewish communal financial support.
Rwexler
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3 comments:
Interesting
And UJA-NY continues to give HIAS hundreds of thousands of dollars
How does that qualify as Jewish giving to the community and community building
Even more so, if HIAS has virtually none of its clientele in UJA NY’s territory (which is too expensive for a refugee)
My condolences on the loss of deli’s in Chicago.
Are any true deli’s left?
Will you send us a review of the veggie lox?
I am sure they use something far more creative than tofu
As to HIAS, the employees are mostly Jewish and they hire lots of rabbis.
Doesn’t that make it deserving of our communal support?
Though, going after the President by name, regardless of your political beliefs, does seem a bit tacky
T Anon @ 2:22 --HIAS v Trump is a real thing.
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