People of the Pod

Author and Jewish historian Leah Garrett shares the powerful but little-known story at the heart of X Troop, her newest book, about a group of Jewish refugees from Eastern Europe, tapped to become clandestine commandos and counterintelligence agents for the British Army during World War II.  A professor and Director of Jewish Studies at Hunter College, Garrett also discusses her painful decision to resign from the trade union that represents the faculty of the City University of New York after it adopted a virulently antisemitic resolution denouncing Israel, the battle she continues to fight with the union, and how the experience has changed her Jewish identity. ___ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Listeners on #JewishAndProud (2:16) Leah Garrett ___ Show Notes: What does being Jewish mean to you? We want to know your answer. Call the People of the Pod hotline at 212-891-1336 and leave a message of a minute or less in our voicemail inbox. Don’t forget to include your name and city with your answer. You may hear your voice on a future episode! By Leah Garrett: X Troop: The Secret Jewish Commandos Who Helped Defeat the Nazis Young Lions: How Jewish Authors Reinvented the American War Novel I resigned from the CUNY union because of its antisemitism  Urge the White House to Combat Domestic Antisemitism Urge Congress to Stand with Israel AJC’s Emergency #StandWithUkraine Fund Urge Congress to Counter Russian Aggression Listen to our latest episode: Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch on How Support for Israel is Key to the Future of Reform Judaism Don’t forget to subscribe to People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, tag us on social media with #PeopleofthePod, and hop onto Apple Podcasts to rate us and write a review, to help more listeners find us.

As the senior rabbi of Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in New York City, Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch believes Zionism is a core value of Judaism. Rabbi Hirsch sat down with guest host Laura Shaw Frank, AJC's Director of Contemporary Jewish Life, to discuss the danger of a waning commitment to Israel among a portion of Reform Judaism, a recent delegation to the Poland-Ukraine border, and how being #JewishAndProud is as important to him as breathing.  ___ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Listeners on #JewishAndProud (2:59) Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch ___ Show Notes: What does being Jewish mean to you? We want to know your answer. Call the People of the Pod hotline at 212-891-1336 and leave a message of a minute or less in our voicemail inbox. Don’t forget to include your name and city with your answer. You may hear your voice on a future episode! Urge the White House to Combat Domestic Antisemitism Urge Congress to Stand with Israel AJC’s Emergency #StandWithUkraine Fund Urge Congress to Counter Russian Aggression Listen to our latest episode: How Do American Millennial Jews Feel About Israel? Don’t forget to subscribe to People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, tag us on social media with #PeopleofthePod, and hop onto Apple Podcasts to rate us and write a review, to help more listeners find us.  

What are American millennial Jews’ attitudes towards Israel and how has anti-Israel activism on U.S. college campuses changed that relationship? AJC surveyed American and Israeli millennial Jews to better understand their experiences, attitudes, and opinions about Jewish identity, connection to Israel, and attachment to one another. In a special live People of the Pod recording, AJC Director of Alexander Young Leadership Meggie Wyschogrod Fredman sits down with AJC ACCESS Global Director Dana Steiner, AJC ACCESS Israel Manager Lironne Koret, and Opinion, Analytics, and Communications Strategist Philippe Assouline, to unpack this data and discuss the implications for the Jewish community.  ___ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Naomi Ravick (2:23) Dana Steiner, Lironne Koret, and Philippe Assouline ___ Show Notes: As part of Jewish American Heritage Month, American Jewish Committee has named May as #JewishandProud Month to celebrate the Jewish people’s united bravery and resilience in the face of adversity. People of the Pod will take part in this month-long campaign with a special lineup of guests, and we would love for you to join us!  What does being Jewish mean to you? We want to know your answer. Call the People of the Pod hotline at 212-891-1336 and leave a message of a minute or less in our voicemail inbox. Don’t forget to include your name and city with your answer. You may hear your voice on a future episode!  Watch the full program "Bonds and Divides: Surveys of American and Israeli Millennial Jews" here Urge Congress to Stand with Israel AJC’s Emergency #StandWithUkraine Fund Urge Congress to Counter Russian Aggression Listen to our latest episode: How to Tell Fact from Fiction About the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Don’t forget to subscribe to People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, tag us on social media with #PeopleofthePod, and hop onto Apple Podcasts to rate us and write a review, to help more listeners find us.  

Amid rising tensions in Israel, Canadian-Israeli journalist Matti Friedman shares candid advice for all who are trying to understand the complex situation that is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Friedman takes listeners behind the scenes of media reporting on Israel to demonstrate the sometimes corrosive impact that news outlets have when they attempt to oversimplify the conflict. ___ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Matti Friedman ___ Show Notes: Register here for a live People of the Pod recording on April 26th Bonds and Divides: American and Israeli Millennial Jews  Eight Tips for Reading About Israel by Matti Friedman  Pumpkinflowers by Matti Friedman Urge Congress to Stand with Israel AJC’s Emergency #StandWithUkraine Fund Urge Congress to Counter Russian Aggression Listen to our latest episode: France’s Presidential Elections: Implications for French Jews and U.S. Politics Don’t forget to subscribe to People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, tag us on social media with #PeopleofthePod, and hop onto Apple Podcasts to rate us and write a review, to help more listeners find us.

AJC Chief Field Operations Officer and guest host Melanie Maron Pell sits down with AJC Europe Managing Director Simone Rodan-Benzaquen to break down the results from the first round of the French presidential election, why both the far right and far left are a danger to French society and Jews in particular, and why France may be a barometer for the U.S. political landscape. Then, AJC's Director of the Alexander Young Leadership Department Meggie Wyschogrod Fredman joins us to discuss the unprecedented increase in antisemitic activity on campus, which was the focus of this week’s University Presidents Summit hosted by AJC, Hillel International, and the American Council on Education (ACE), where college and university leaders gathered from across the United States. ___ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Simone Rodan Benzaquen (16:34) Melanie Maron Pell and Meggie Wyschogrod Fredman  ___ Show Notes: Urge Congress to Stand with Israel AJC’s Emergency #StandWithUkraine Fund Urge Congress to Counter Russian Aggression Listen to our latest episode: Solving the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: A New Perspective Don’t forget to subscribe to People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, tag us on social media with #PeopleofthePod, and hop onto Apple Podcasts to rate us and write a review, to help more listeners find us.

When it comes to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the pathway to peace has typically been presented as a choice between a one-state or a two-state solution. Guest host Jason Isaacson, AJC’s Chief Policy and Political Affairs Officer, speaks with Avi Melamed, Israeli intelligence and strategic affairs analyst and author of Inside the Middle East: Entering a New Era, about possible other solutions, the impact of the Abraham Accords on the region, and why the story of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not separate from the story of the Middle East. Then, Natalia Mahmud, AJC Associate Director of U.S. Muslim-Jewish Relations and Program Director of the Muslim-Jewish Advisory Council, joins us to share the traditions she practices with her family during the month of Ramadan. ___ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Avi Melamed (17:03) Manya Brachear Pashman and Natalia Mahmud  ___ Show Notes: Signup here to attend a Muslim-Jewish Advisory Council Iftar on April 22, 2022 near Dallas, Texas  Urge Congress to Stand with Israel AJC’s Emergency #StandWithUkraine Fund Urge Congress to Counter Russian Aggression Listen to our latest episode: “We Lost a Lot of Leverage”: Freed Iranian Hostage Speaks Out on Iran Negotiations Don’t forget to subscribe to People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, tag us on social media with #PeopleofthePod, and hop onto Apple Podcasts to rate us and write a review, to help more listeners find us.

The Washington Post’s Jason Rezaian, who was held hostage by Iran for nearly two years and was released in a prisoner swap the day the 2015 Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA) went into effect, joins us to share his unique perspective on the reported nuclear deal emerging in negotiations between Tehran and world powers. Rezaian weighs in on what’s at stake in the talks and discusses the potential impact of the lifting of a number of sanctions and the removal of America’s terrorist designation of the Iranian regime’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).  Then, we hear from AJC Abu Dhabi Program Director Reva Gorelick, who just returned from Israel where she accompanied AJC Project Interchange's first delegation of Middle East and North African (MENA) leaders. ___ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Jason Rezaian (24:19) Manya Brachear Pashman and Reva Gorelick ___ Show Notes: What is Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Why is it Designated a Terror Group by the United States? Learn about AJC’s Project Interchange  Urge Congress to Stand with Israel AJC’s Emergency #StandWithUkraine Fund Urge Congress to Counter Russian Aggression Listen to our latest episode: Setting the Record Straight on Israel’s Support for Ukraine Don’t forget to subscribe to People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, tag us on social media with #PeopleofthePod, and hop onto Apple Podcasts to rate us and write a review, to help more listeners find us.

A false narrative has emerged about Israel’s alleged neutrality over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Lahav Harkov, senior diplomatic correspondent for The Jerusalem Post and co-host of their weekly podcast, joins us to set the record straight. Harkov explains how Israel is supporting Ukraine and the Ukrainian people, while avoiding provoking Syrian-based Russian troops on the democratic nation’s northern border.  Then, AJC Jerusalem Director Avital Leibovich shares a touching account of the AJC-sponsored plane that brought 101 Jewish Ukrainians to Israel and how Israel is welcoming Ukrainian refugees. ___ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Lahav Harkov (15:26) Manya Brachear Pashman and Avital Leibovich ___ Show Notes: AJC’s Emergency #StandWithUkraine Fund Urge Congress to Counter Russian Aggression Watch: Ukrainian Refugees Arrive in Israel! Listen to our latest episode: Clouded Futures and Big Hearts: What Life is Really Like for Ukrainian Refugees Don’t forget to subscribe to People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, tag us on social media with #PeopleofthePod, and hop onto Apple Podcasts to rate us and write a review, to help more listeners find us.

A mother and her son in need of help. The extraordinary decision of the great-granddaughter of a Polish Resistance Movement fighter. Go behind the scenes of American Jewish Committee’s humanitarian mission to the Ukraine-Poland border crossings and refugee reception centers and discover what it’s really like to be a Ukrainian fleeing Russia’s invasion and find out how Poland and its citizens are giving a masterclass in welcoming refugees. Aldona Zawada of AJC’s Warsaw-based Shapiro Silverberg Central Europe Office shares the emotional story of how the AJC delegation helped a mother and son who were fleeing Ukraine, and how her great-grandfather’s experience in the Polish Resistance Movement in World War II informed her own family’s decision to open their home to refugees.  Then, AJC Director of Social Media Julie Lenarz recounts what images have stayed with her from her time at the border, and how AJC is using social media to assist refugees and hold Russia accountable.  ___ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Aldona Zawada (15:40) Manya Brachear Pashman and Julie Lenarz ___ Show Notes: AJC’s Emergency #StandWithUkraine Fund Urge Congress to Counter Russian Aggression Listen to our latest episode: The Historical Irony of Jews Fleeing into Poland Don’t forget to subscribe to People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, tag us on social media with #PeopleofthePod, and hop onto Apple Podcasts to rate us and write a review, to help more listeners find us.

Among the 1.2 million Ukrainians that have crossed the border into Poland over the last two weeks are many Ukrainian Jews. This week, guest host Laura Shaw Frank, AJC's Director of Contemporary Jewish Life, speaks to the Chief Rabbi of Poland Michael Schudrich, who has been coordinating a Jewish relief effort on the ground. Rabbi Schudrich speaks about the most pressing needs that Jews fleeing Ukraine have right now and how he has been inspired by the Jewish community’s unity during this crisis.  ___ Episode Lineup: (0:40) Rabbi Michael Schudrich (11:18) Manya Brachear Pashman and Laura Shaw Frank ___ Show Notes: AJC’s Emergency #StandWithUkraine Fund Urge Congress to Counter Russian Aggression Listen to our latest episode: AJC CEO David Harris on Putin, Babyn Yar, and “Denazification" Don’t forget to subscribe to People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, tag us on social media with #PeopleofthePod, and hop onto Apple Podcasts to rate us and write a review, to help more listeners find us.