Read this article, bubala!

Published on May 15, 2013

Back in the 1970s, when I attended the freshly integrated Fairfax High School, black and Chicano gangs would spar in the lunch yard. I used to joke that we Jews should also form a gang.

A voter's-eye view of the city election

By Raphael J. Sonenshein
Published on May 14, 2013

This year, for the first time, the Pat Brown Institute at CSU Los Angeles went into the polling field.

AJC survey of Latinos finds positive views, limited contact with Jews

Published on April 20, 2012

A survey commissioned by the American Jewish Committee found that Latinos held positive views about Jews, but have had limited contact with them.

Jewish, Latino leaders gather for summit

By Ryan Torok
Published on October 5, 2011

Local Jewish and Latino community leaders convened at UCLA on Sept. 22 for “Common History, Shared Future: A Summit for Leaders of the Latino and Jewish Communities in Los Angeles,” a meeting that featured closed-door discussions on topics such as “Israel,” “The Impact of Global Anti-Semitism,” “Empowerment and Engagement in Economy, Media and Politics” and “Comprehensive Immigration Reform.”

AJC launches Latino-Jewish congressional caucus

By Jonah Lowenfeld
Published on June 14, 2011

The ongoing development of ties between the Latino and Jewish communities took a new turn this week with the American Jewish Committee’s (AJC) establishment of a new Latino-Jewish Congressional Caucus. At press time, a group of mostly Latino and Jewish lawmakers were set to meet at an event in Washington, D.C., on June 14, in the hopes of furthering collaborative relationships.

Poll: Latinos believe U.S. too supportive of Israel

By Jonah Lowenfeld
Published on March 30, 2011

A new poll by the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding (FFEU) finds that nearly half of U.S. Latinos feel that their country is too supportive of Israel. The findings also suggest high levels of anti-Semitism exist in the U.S. Latino community.

Letters to the Editor: Gibson Scale, Glenn Beck, Aaron Liberman and Latino-Jewish Coalition

Published on March 15, 2011

The best reasons that I read The Jewish Journal are because of great Americans like Dennis Prager and David Suissa. It is nauseating to see columns by leftist slimebags like Marty Kaplan and Rachel Roberts (the doctoral student — OMG) (“Muslim Criminals, Jewish Activists,” Feb. 18). Maybe the two of them can get together and hate Israel and America together!

The new power of a Latino-Jewish coalition in L.A.

By Jonah Lowenfeld
Published on March 9, 2011

On a Shabbat afternoon in February, state Sen. Alex Padilla spoke on a panel at Young Israel of Century City (YICC), a large Modern Orthodox synagogue in Pico-Robertson. The event was co-organized by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), and Padilla knew what message he was expected to deliver. The panel’s trilingual title — “Israel at lo levad! Israel ¡No estas solo! Israel, you are not alone!” — made that clear.

Latinos, Jews to Join in Historic Boyle Heights Celebration

By Tom Tugend
Published on May 12, 2009

Latino Radio Show Stirs Concern Over Views on Jews

By Roberto Loiederman
Published on March 18, 2009

On a Los Angeles FM radio talk show, the following aired recently:

A caller identifying himself as Mohammed said, “I believe that so-called Israel should be annihilated totally, wiped off the map ... I hope that Iran has the gall to nuke and exterminate them so they go back to Europe.

¡Ask a Mexican! Gustavo Arellano gets it right—Aztlan != Israel

By The Web Guy
Published on November 13, 2008

Latino clergy get firsthand look at Israel

By Brad A. Greenberg
Published on June 19, 2008

Tony Solorzano had dreamed of seeing Israel. At 54, he'd spent countless Sundays at the pulpit and weekdays on Radio Zion talking about the land of Abraham and Jacob and David -- and Jesus

City Voice: Yaroslavsky takes on developers in push for affordable housing

By Bill Boyarsky
Published on April 24, 2008

In defending middle-class neighborhoods, Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky is taking on an issue that reaches to the heart of Los Angeles' ethnic, political and class divide

Immigration: Time to share the heavy lifting

By Rob Eshman
Published on January 31, 2008

Three years ago I was unloading some 50-pound bags of landscape pebbles from the trunk of my car when I felt a four-inch blade of molten steel jab into my lower back. Middle age had officially arrived, and my doctor ordered the permanent closure of Eshman Lifting and Schlepping, Inc. It was time to find younger men with stronger backs to do my dirty work.

That's how I met Luis.

Rep. Berman in line to chair House foreign affairs panel

By Tom Tugend
Published on January 10, 2007

Rep. Howard L. Berman recalls that when he first ran for Congress in 1982, "one major reason was to strengthen our relationship with Israel and oppose the threat of radical Islam."

Now the veteran legislator will be in an even stronger position to pursue his agenda as the likely future chairman of the powerful House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Better late than never, Theodor Herzl, children reunited in death; Ex-N.J. Governor McGreevey’s Isra

Published on September 28, 2006

Briefs courtesy Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

More West Los Angeles Shootings Leave Residents Outraged

By Lisa Hirschmann
Published on July 19, 2006

Dotted by temples, community centers and parks, the largely Orthodox Jewish Crestview neighborhood and its adjacent areas in West L.A. don't seem to be a typical battleground for gang bangers. But residents say that is exactly what it's become.

‘Little Flower’ Could Help Antonio Bloom

By Joel Kotkin
Published on May 26, 2005

I imagine you are enjoying the hoopla surrounding your election. As the first Latino chief executive in more than 130 years, it may be tempting to bask in the warmth of a great ethnic triumph.

But don't enjoy it too much. Los Angeles does not need a symbol or an icon; it needs a mayor, one who can be both decisive and effective. We need less rah-rah and more Fiorello La Guardia.

Back to Breed Street

By Gaby Wenig
Published on August 26, 2004

"Boyle Heights was the Ellis Island of Los Angeles," said City Councilman Antonio Villaraigosa at the Breed Street Shul Open Day on Sunday, Aug. 22. "And this shul was the mother of all synagogues."

But the "mother of all synagogues," which opened in 1923, was abandoned by its few remaining congregants in 1996, and left to molder away -- unused and unprotected from the elements -- in Boyle Heights, a primarily Latino neighborhood.

Until now.

Latino Group Sues Over District Lines

By Mike Levy
Published on November 1, 2001

Television Jews: How Jewish Is Too Jewish?

By Sally Ogle Davis
Published on September 6, 2001

The new television season is upon us. African American and Latino groups are making the expected protests about the lack of people who look like them before and aft of the camera, and the Jews are -- as usual -- adding up their TV IQ on the fingers of one hand.

If there aren't many "brothers" out there, there are even fewer "Members of the Tribe," and those that are there are not particularly Jewish Jews, if you know what I mean.

Buenos Di­as and Shalom

By Michael Aushenker
Published on May 17, 2001

The moment Naomi Rodriguez entered Caffe Latte on Monday morning, she encountered a woman in distress -- an elderly Jewish woman overwhelmed by the realization that she had missed a doctor's appointment. A concerned Rodriguez took a moment to reassure her.

"It's going to be okay," said Rodriguez, in a soothing tone that put the woman at ease.

Diversity of Dizzying Dimensions

By Tom Tugend
Published on April 5, 2001

When voters cast their ballots for mayor in next week's primary, they may be electing to that office the first Jew, the first Latino or the first woman.

Building Bonds

By Sharon Samber
Published on March 15, 2001

Think of the American Jewish and Latino communities as two longtime friends who have just decided to get more serious.

Protest for Labor Rights

By Orit Arfa
Published on July 29, 1999

For the past four years, the predominantly Latino hospitality and housing employees at the University of Southern California have been fighting for a written guarantee of job security. Now, union leaders representing the workers have turned to Jewish leaders to support what they consider a call for justice.

Forging a Common Future

By Wendy J. Madnick
Published on October 29, 1998

Allies or adversaries? That is the question confronting Jewish and Latino political leaders as they assess the current and future relations of their communities.

Heartbreak Hotel?

By Naomi Pfefferman
Published on October 2, 1997

The Miramar Sheraton Hotel is one of the jewels of Santa Monica.It sits astride a full block on Ocean Avenue and looks west, over thePalisades and the blue Pacific. Inside, there are lush gardens, aluxurious swimming pool and tanned guests who look as if they areemblems of Southern California.

The hotel is where President Clinton has often stayed duringvisits to Los Angeles.

And the Miramar Sheraton is the only Santa Monica hotel that isunionized.

Revitalizing Our Past and Future in Pico-Union

By Joel Kotkin
Published on August 21, 1997

Among these earlier settlers were many Jewish families, who, notinterested in joining the growing ersatz shtetl up in Boyle Heights,built their graceful homes in the tony new district.

Disney, Boycotts and the Hollywood Elite

By Joel Kotkin
Published on July 24, 1997

It's hard to feel sorry for the Walt Disney Company, a multi billion-dollar mouse-forged empire that seems to own a part of most children's hearts, including that of my own 2 1/2-year-old. Yet, in recent weeks, the venerable Burbank entertainment giant has been subjected to two major boycotts, one from the right-leaning Southern Baptists and the other from Latino media activists.