North Star with Ellin Bessner

Eight years ago this week, Dan Markel was killed in his car as he was pulling into his driveway in Tallahassee, Florida. Markel, 41, was a well-regarded professor whose then-recent divorce lies at the centre of this whole saga: his ex-wife wanted to move their two sons to Miami, but the courts sided with Markel. Days after his murder, the children were moved. A messy, complex series of arrests and court cases unfolded, in which the arrested murderers and conspirators confessed to receiving $100,000 to perform the job on behalf of Markel's former in-laws. Despite this, that family has always denied any involvement. The process has been a brutal experience for Markel's parents, Ruth and Phil. The Toronto residents have struggled with the death of their son, a drawn-out legal battle and the inability to see their own grandchildren. But they haven't been sitting still. Later this year, Simon and Schuster will be publishing Ruth Markel's book, The Unveiling, which documents her struggle and grief, as well as her fights—both political and legal—to win some kind of justice for her son. Ruth joins today to discuss the last eight years and give a glimpse into her new book. What we talked about: Read about Dan Markel's death in The CJN Pre-order The Unveiling Learn more about the "Justice For Dan" movement Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Production assistance by Gabrielle Nadler and YuZhu Mou. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

Rick Karp and his fellow Jewish Yukoners have spent the past week carefully monitoring the ongoing wildfires that are raging through their territory. There have been more than 240 forest fires in the Yukon this year, including 182 burning right now—the most in a generation, and five times more than last year—all because of lighting strikes and abnormally hot weather. There were evacuation notices and even advisories from the government last week asking people not to travel in or to the Yukon. Major highways have been closed, which also means trucks can't deliver food on their usual schedules. It's a significant danger for those choosing to live in the North. In that time, Karp, the longtime head of the Yukon's Jewish Cultural Society, has been working on community projects for the territory's 38 Jews. In addition to building a new website, one of his biggest challenges is getting Whitehorse to host the city's first-ever Jewish Heritage Month. On today's episode of The CJN Daily, Karp joins to share his plans to make that happen—and what the future of the Yukon's small Jewish community looks like. What we talked about: Visit the Jewish Cultural Society of Yukon at jcsy.org Watch the opening ceremony of the Maccabiah Games Learn more about Rick Karp at his website Read "The pioneering Jews who went north to find riches in the Klondike" at thecjn.ca Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Production assistance by Gabrielle Nadler and YuZhu Mou. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

Closing arguments have recently begun for the trial of Gabriel Sohier Chaput, a 35-year-old neo-Nazi who's been charged in Montreal with willfully inciting hatred against Jews. But last week, the trial took an odd turn: the judge and lawyers began arguing over whether it was inherent to Nazi ideology to murder six million Jews. The defence lawyer said that, in school, she was taught that Nazis only killed Jews with gas because it was cheaper than housing them in camps. The judge called that a step too far—but he nonetheles admonished the prosecutor for not bringing in experts to prove there was a clear link between Nazism and the defining genocide of modern history. To discuss what's at stake, we're joined by Sam Goldstein, B'nai Brith's director of legal affairs, who breaks down the trial and why Jewish organizations are outraged at the direction of this case. What we talked about: Read the full article, "The trial of this accused Jew-hater in Montreal has turned into a debate over the link between Nazism and the Holocaust" Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

Ruth Cooperstock had just turned 80 years old when she became the oldest Canadian woman to ever have a bat miztvah. The celebration wasn't common for girls in 1950s Winnipeg, where Cooperstock grew up; but this year, she was determined to make up for lost time. Cooperstock first studied on her own, then with an adult b'nai mitzvah class class at Congregation Dorshei Emet, as part of the Reconstructionist movement’s program marking the 100th anniversary of the first bat mitzvah in North America. Despite losing her voice for four months and working with a speech therapist to get it back, not to mention the trials of living through the pandemic, Cooperstock is finally answering the call—68 years late. She joins to share her story of inspiration and perseverance. What we talked about: Watch Ruth Cooperstock's bat mitzvah Learn about Dorshei Emet's adult b'nai mitzvah program Listen to The CJN Daily episode about Holocaust denial being debated in Parliament Read about Mickey Heller in The CJN Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

One of Canada's most acclaimed Holocaust survivors, Max Eisen, died Thursday of cancer at the age of 93. A Holocaust educator and author, Eisen was a prolific speaker who appeared in documentaries and toured the country to spread messages of tolerance and confronting evil. He earned four honorary doctorate degrees, went on 18 March of the Living trips, was one of 25 survivors to be recorded for holographic posterity by the USC Shoah Foundation and, last year, was named to the Order of Canada. Today you'll hear from Eisen himself, in a never-before-released clip he shot for the documentary The Accountant of Auschwitz, as well as from several of his colleagues and friends: Ziya Tong, who championed his book during the CBC's Canada Reads competition in 2019, and Ric Esther Bienstock, who produced The Accountant of Auschwitz. What we talked about: Watch Max Eisen's funeral on YouTube Watch The Accountant of Auschwitz on CBC Gem (free) Hear Max Eisen discuss the effectiveness of mandatory Holocaust education on Bonjour Chai Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

The Maccabiah Games—sometimes called the Jewish Olympics, since they also happen every four years—are due to start July 12 in Israel. Organizers estimate 10,000 Jewish athletes from around the world will travel to Israel to compete in arenas across Jerusalem, Haifa and Netanya. Among that massive crowd will be a sizable delegation of 600 Canadians, competing in badminton and baseball, karate and cricket, and, yes, of course hockey. Three flagbearers will march in the opening ceremony, all of whom join us today. Brothers Conaire and Nick Taub of Calgary are both playing on the under-18 men's volleyball team, and Molly Tissenbaum, a Toronto native now working in Boston, will be playing goalie for the women's ice hockey team—a sport that's making it's Maccabiah debut this year. What we talked about: Learn about the Maccabiah Games and see the results at maccabiah.com See Team Canada's rosters at maccabicanada.com Listen to the Maccabiah theme song Watch Bell's Remembrance Day commercial from 2015 starring Norman Cash Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

On today's episode of The CJN Daily, we're taking a look at the life of Irving Abella, the acclaimed historian who died on July 3, 2022, at 82, after battling a long illness. His funeral was held two days later at Beth Tzedec synagogue in Toronto. Abella was a history professor who taught for decades at York University, though he may best be remembered for co-authoring None Is Too Many with Harold Troper in 1983. In the book, they proved how Canada’s government during the Second World War deliberately turned away desperate Jews fleeing Nazi Germany—a narrative that was kept secret for decades afterward. He later headed up the Canadian Jewish Congress during the 1990s. He pushed Canada to pursue and penalize Nazi war criminals, and his advocacy work led Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to issue an apology to Canadian Jews for Canada turning away the hundreds of European refugees aboard the MS St. Louis in 1939. Today you'll hear clips of Abella's funeral, including eulogies from his children Zachary and Jacob (JJ) and Rabbi Baruch Frydman-Kohl, who share heartfelt, intimate, laudatory stories of a private man who ran things at home while his wife, Rosalie Abella, served for 17 years as the first Jewish woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. What we talked about: Watch the funeral for Irving Abella on YouTube Read The CJN's obituary Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

For decades, Jewish philanthropy has been sustained by wealthy donors who believed in supporting the community with their dollars. But some of those philanthropists worry their children and grandchildren won't feel the same commitment to supporting Jewish institutions—that's how American businessman Mike Leven felt, and it's the reason he started the Jewish Future Pledge in 2020. The initiative, inspired by Bill Gates's and Warren Buffett's Giving Pledge, encourages wealthy Jews to commit to giving at least half the money designated for charities in their wills to Jewish causes. Thousands of Americans have signed on, and Leven expects as much as $600 billion could soon be promised to sustain American Jewish life. But in Canada? The uptake hasn't been as swift. A small group of Canadian Jewish philanthropists recently introduced the Jewish Future Pledge north of the border, and so far, 500 people have signed on. That's no small number—but it's a far cry from organizers' expectations. They're hoping the Canadian Jewish community can pledge up to $10 billion to keep the lights on for Jewish communal institutions, ranging from Birthright trips to summer camps and Jewish advocacy. Canadian philanthropists Wendy Switzer Myles and Warren Kimmel join to discuss their reasons for signing the pledge and why they're urging others to do the same. What we talked about: Learn about the original Jewish Future Pledge Learn about the Canadian version of the Jewish Future Pledge Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

Camp Kadimah was founded in the 1940s to give Jewish kids from small, disparate Maritime communities the chance to meet each other. Its creation resulted in many lifelong friendships and even a few marriages—including the Conters, who have just sent a fourth-generation family member to the camp. On July 3, Karen Conter saw off her six-year-old grandson for his first summer at the historic Jewish summer camp. Conter attended in 1970s, even meeting her husband there; her mother and children attended as well. She believes they might be the only family in Kadimah's history to reach that milestone. This summer's camp season is historic for another reason, too: it's the first time since 2019 that the camp opened, due to the pandemic. And even still, campers will show up to find numerous anomalies: no visiting day, for example, due to COVID, and more health and safety protocols around the dining room. Members from all four generations of the Conter-Abramsky family join to talk about what the camp means to them, recall their favourite memories and explain how they feel sending Reuben off with the pandemic not quite behind us. What we talked about: Visit Camp Kadimah's website at campkadimah.com Watch The Kadimah Movie at thekadimahmovie.com Read about the 70 toppled gravestones in Winnipeg Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

El Al customers received emails this week confirming what we reported earlier: Israel's flagship carrier is halting direct service between Tel Aviv and Toronto this fall. According to the airline, it's readjusting its schedule to handle demand after COVID-19 threw the entire travel industry into turmoil. But this may not be the end of El Al in Canada. Fred Lazar is an aviation expert who teaches at the Schulich School of Business at York University in Toronto. He has some insight into why El Al made the decision, what it means for Israeli-bound ticket fares on Air Canada (spoiler: they'll likely go up 10 to 20%), and why he believes El Al's executives will realize their error—and return next spring. None of that, however, helps those who relied on El Al for trips to the Holy Land. On today's episode, you'll also hear from affected travellers about why they preferred to fly with El Al and how this abrupt ending has thrown their travel plans into disarray. What we talked about: Read The CJN's coverage of El Al closing shop in Canada See the full list of the Order of Canada Listen to our interview with the Canadian manager and players of Israel’s national women's hockey team Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.