Daily Archives: September 29, 2023

(JTA) Israeli, observant Jews living in the United States, and especially here on the West Coast, are aware of the time difference between them and Israel at the beginnings and endings of holidays. While Israel celebrates or commemorates meaningful days, Im behind, still preparing. So unlike my family and friends in Israel who observe Yom Kippur and found out only after their sundown what transpired on Monday in Tel Aviv, I read reports and watched videos of the clash between secular and religious Jews in Dizengoff Square as it unfolded.

Feeling both devastated by the ruining of Yom Kippur prayers and angry at the provocation and manipulation by those who organized the Tel Aviv services, I entered Judaisms holiest day with a heavy heart and teary eyes.

And yet, in the days since, I also found some reason for hope that this painful moment was a watershed in Israels path, in which secular Israeli liberals may claim Judaism on their own terms, despite a religious establishment that sees Orthodoxy as its only legitimate expression.

In brief, Rosh Yehudi (translated Jewish head), an organization whose goal is to spread Orthodox Judaism in secular Israel, received approval from the Tel Aviv municipality to conduct Yom Kippur services in Dizengoff Square. These services have been taking place since the early days of the pandemic, and many people observant and secular alike attend them. This year the municipality approved the services so long as they would not include a mechitza, a physical divider separating men and women, a decision that the courts supported. The context of the citys decision was the ongoing assault by the government and its followers (in the name of religion) on the core values of Israeli liberals specifically gender equality.

Rosh Yehudi declared it would abide by this condition and many people who just wanted to pray came to its services. Yet right after Yom Kippur started, religious activists supported by the police on site created a makeshift divider out of Israeli flags. In response, secular protesters, many of them affiliated with the mass movement to protest the governments efforts to weaken Israels judiciary, interrupted the services by whistling, chanting Shame! and removing the makeshift divider, ultimately stopping the services. Similar protests of public Orthodox Yom Kippur services took place at other sites throughout Tel Aviv and other predominantly secular cities within Israel.

For decades, Yom Kippur in Israel has been a unique day. Despite a lack of laws regulating the day, no cars are seen on the roads. Praying, biking, walking and talking, observant and secular Jews mix in the streets and synagogues across Israel. But the events of the last nine months in Israel destroyed that fragile harmony.

Israel is once again caught in a war of narratives. Is it a story of Orthodox activists defying the courts decision and intentionally causing provocation, forcing gender segregation in the bastion of Israeli secularism? Or is it a story about how Israeli liberals, protesters and the left hate religion and religious Jews?

Setting aside the blame game, the events of Yom Kippur raise two sets of questions for Israels future. The first is the nature of the Israeli public square as it relates to Israels Jewish character. What should be the boundaries of tolerance to illiberal practices such as gender separation when they are a part of a religious practice? Was the city right to limit the traditional form of Orthodox prayer due to the public nature of the space? Were the protesters wrong in not respecting this tradition? Should attempts at the religionization of the public sphere and political climate be ignored or taken into consideration?

The more profound question and the one that is much harder to answer revolves around the nature of Judaism itself. Who claims what in the name of Judaism will have lasting repercussions for the future of Israel long after the particulars of this years Yom Kippur are forgotten? And to that end, I want to suggest that a possible change is afoot in how secular Israeli liberals see Judaism.

For decades, Israel has been caught in a social dichotomy: right-wingers are seen as conservative and religious or traditional, whereas left-wingers are seen as liberal and secular. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu embraced this dichotomy as early as 1997 when he claimed that the Israeli left had forgotten what it means to be Jewish. He doubled down on this view at the end of Yom Kippur this year when he stated, The leftists had rioted against Jews.

This dichotomy is also promoted by the Israeli left. About a week ago, former Meretz leader Zehava Galon shared the following post on X: The problem with Israeli society is the assumption that there is wisdom in Judaism even though it is a manifest of Orthodox Jewish men who werent particularly smart. Its time for us to realize that their cart is full of inciting and dangerous nonsense, and its time we left it on the side of the road. Galon represents the view of many in the Israeli liberal camp today who say they are ready to abandon Judaism, which they equate with Orthodoxy interpreted in the most extreme way.

Indeed, for decades haredi and Religious Zionist rabbis and politicians in Israel have sought to dictate only one option for Judaism: an uncompromising religious Orthodoxy. This conception profoundly contradicts the values of Israeli liberals, and therefore many like Galon say they reject Judaism in any form. But in doing this, Israeli liberals also allow the most extreme elements within Israeli Judaism to deepen their grip and shape Judaism as they see fit.

As a result, secular Israeli liberals reduce themselves to a marginalized minority within Israeli society, the majority of whose members seek a connection to tradition and Judaism and distance themselves from values that run counter to it. Surveys show that only a minority of the general Israeli public supports the protesters actions on Yom Kippur, regardless of the motivations or provocations of the services organizers. If faced with an either/or choice between a discriminatory version of Judaism and universalist liberalism, the Israeli majority will choose the former.

For a long time, only a minority of Israelis actively worked against this dichotomy. Liberal Religious Zionist, Conservative and Reform Jews, as well as Jewish Renewal activists, mostly stood alone in trying to create and defend a liberal Israeli Judaism. But in the aftermath of Yom Kippur, this might be changing.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid shared on X that his neighbor didnt fast on Yom Kippur for the first time in 30 years to spite the other camp. His response was telling: You lost. You gave them ownership of your Judaism. He went on to offer the following observation:

We dont have anything to prove. And we dont need anyones approval that we are good Jews. We have our own version, no less whole. The version that says that we chose to live in this country because we have roots here. That the Bible is our book, that the Hebrew of Ezekiel and Isaiah is the language of our dreams, that we are part of a community that has memories and commitments. We are the flag bearers of a Judaism that is not messianic, not racist, not arrogant and not violent.

Unlike Galons view that implicitly rejects all Judaisms because of how Orthodox Judaism is interpreted today by the government and its followers, Lapid offers an alternative vision by laying claim to a more expansive version of Judaism, whether based on beliefs, culture and/or a shared history.

A nascent but growing chorus of voices in Israel is creating just such an alternative. At nearby HaBima Square in Tel Aviv, a Conservative, egalitarian service took place at the end of Yom Kippur. The Neilah prayer that closes Yom Kippur started with 20 participants and ended with 300. Secular neighborhoods in northern Tel Aviv have plans to build a public secular sukkah and conduct egalitarian Hakafot (dancing with the Torah) on Simchat Torah. And as a response to Police Minister Itamar Ben-Gvirs ultimately abandoned plans for a prayer/provocation on Dizengoff Square, the protest movement offered public, egalitarian prayer on HaBima Square Thursday night, which hundreds attended.

Two days after Yom Kippur, Magi Otsri, a writer and legal scholar and one of the protest movements leading online figures, posted a short video that went viral. In it, Otsri notes that Israeli Orthodoxys unwillingness to change the halacha of separating men and women during prayer is based on sexist, power-based notions of women created by men. She asserts that in the past biblical rules were easily changed when it suited religious decision-makers. Whats fascinating is that the secular, Tel Aviv-based Otsri uses arguments that were until now only employed by people internal to Orthodoxy (such as religious feminists). Referring to religious mechanisms for bypassing the prohibition on making loans with interest and the religious rules of war, Otsri is not making her argument on strictly liberal grounds but employing the language of Judaism.

Today, more than ever, Israeli liberals are at a crossroads. In the past nine months, they have articulated a Zionism they have embraced and claimed as their own. Will they leave Judaism behind, or will they claim it too?

Given the rate of shocking events in Israel, discerning social trends in Israel from afar can be overwhelming. But amid the conflicting narratives and deafening discourse, I want to encourage those who care about Israel to listen for and encourage the softer and more subtle sounds of Judaism in the words and deeds of Israeli liberals.

The events on Yom Kippur might lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy of a religious war, where Israeli Judaism will be lost to the hands of religious extremists and Israeli liberalism will disconnect entirely from Judaism. Such an outcome is desired by some in both the Orthodox and liberal camps, not to mention the government. But this is not a foregone conclusion, as the words and deeds of Israeli liberals after Yom Kippur reveal. There is an alternative: a more humanistic and pluralist vision of Judaism that Israeli liberals ought to embrace and nurture if they want to win over Israeli society to their vision of the future.

In Jewish tradition, the High Holidays are days of judgment for the past year and a time for resolutions for the coming year. According to tradition, divine judgment starts on Rosh Hashanah, but the verdict is only submitted for enforcement on the last day of Sukkot, or Hoshana Rabbah to give people every last chance to set a new course.

The events on Yom Kippur were undoubtedly heartbreaking, but we are still only halfway through the High Holidays. There is no better time in the Jewish calendar for Israeli liberals to change the trajectory of Israeli Judaism. As a member of the protest movement posted the day after Yom Kippur, The protest movement should do for Judaism what it did for the flag. Embrace [it]. Hard. Instead of blaming the people or groups responsible for the old dichotomy, we just might be witnessing Israeli liberals taking responsibility for a Judaism they believe in.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of JTA or its parent company, 70 Faces Media.

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Street fights over prayer offer liberal Israelis a chance to define a Judaism they can believe in - JTA News - Jewish Telegraphic Agency

The media often uses freedom of expression to set an unsettling trend. However, the latest stunt by the Liberal Media cannot be ignored. The Hinduphobic cartoon related to the Ujjain Rape Case has far deeper implications than what can be observed on the surface. Such cartoons, often found in liberal media outlets, raise concerns about the boundaries of freedom of speech, unequal treatment of religions, and the propagation of Hinduphobia under the pretext of minority appeasement and equality. Lets discuss the reality of this mindset and shed light on the persistent Liberal Medias Double Standards.

The recent Hinduphobic cartoon in the Times of India has caused a surge of angst in the hearts of Sanatana Dharma followers. The cartoon despicably presented Sanatanis as cow worshippers who ignored the pleas of a bleeding girl. However, this was far from the truth. The girl was rescued by a Brahmin Pandit. She was given solace at the ashram. Contrary to the depiction of Sanatanis in the cartoon, the girl was helped by them. Thus, the question arises why does a Hindu cartoonist want to showcase his own religion in such a questionable light?

In the liberal media, the creation and dissemination of cartoons and caricatures targeting Hinduism and its symbols is a matter of pride. The cartoonists that portray Hindu deities, practices, rituals, or people in a derogatory and offensive manner are given center stage. However, while satire and humor have their place in society, its crucial to question whether these depictions cross the line into bigotry and discrimination.

Is the latest cartoon not Hinduphobic? Does it not send a subliminal message against Sanatana Dharma as a blind faith? Is this not propaganda?

There is no doubt in the minds of any sane human being that the Ujjain Rape of a Minor Girl is a shameful reflection of our society. But why does the cartoonist need to portray cow worshippers as the ignorant group that turned a blind eye to the suffering of a victim? Why would the media platform use this heinous crime and link it with Hindus? And can they get away by using the theme of Namaz worshippers ignoring human plight? Will they be able to print Islamophobic cartoons without repercussions?

Thus, we now step into the zone of unequal treatment of religions when it comes to media portrayals. Hinduphobic cartoons are widely circulated, even encouraged. The cartoons and the cartoonist are celebrated and often escape any scrutiny. Contrarily, the fear of reprisals from minority communities is so high that the media would never provoke their sentiments. The media houses steer clear of similar depictions of other religions that would spark outrage or protests. This raises the question of why the media has a double standard. Are Hindus to be vilified in their own nation? Moreover, are Sanatanis to be betrayed by their own people who chose personal profit over religious pride?

Satire and humor are a required part of any dialogue between media and its followers. However, we must reflect upon the implications of cartoons that descend into Hinduphobia:

Is the media truly as secular as they project? The recent antics by the Times of India cartoonist have led many to ask this question. What are the motivations behind the proliferation of Hinduphobic content in liberal media? Most of the media treat Hindus and Sanatan Dharma as a free game for ridicule. They play with Hindu sentiments and repeatedly try to test the bottom line of Sanatani followers. Every few days there would be a cartoon or tagline that sends the message of or about Sanatana Dharma. Is it truly a quest for equality and justice that the media walks the path of this insidious agenda?

In a world that strives for equality and harmony, consistently applied universal standards are essential when it comes to religious tolerance. Hinduphobic cartoons should be condemned just as vehemently as any form of religious discrimination. Thus, freedom of speech should be exercised responsibly by all media outlets, without inciting hatred or prejudice against Sanatanis.

The bigotry and double standards that exist in the liberal media must be held responsible for the rise of Hinduphobia. They must answer to the majority of the Bharat with the same vigor that they would to any other religious minority. Therefore, Bharat must foster a society where this millennia-old religion is treated with the respect and dignity it deserves. However, are the Liberals, Leftists, and Sickularists up to the task or not is a question for another day.

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Unmasking Hinduphobic Cartoons: The Liberal Media's Double Standard - The Jaipur Dialogues

Twittys work lives at the intersection of traditionsAfrican, southern, and Jewish cultures. Through the lens of culinary arts, he explores history, heritage, faith, identity, social justice, and the human condition in his memoirs and award-winning blog Afroculinaria, and his writings have earned him a Fifty People Who Are Changing the South designation by Southern Living magazine.

His memoir The Cooking Gene received a James Beard Award, and this year his memoir KosherSoul: The Faith and Food Journey of an African American Jew received a National Jewish Book Award.

An autodidact with a ferocious appetite for learning, Twitty is a disciple of the liberal arts. His life and work have had him crisscross the countryand the globeexploring culture and heritage through his unique culinary lens.

Michael Twitty is such an amazing and unique blend of elements of the liberal arts, and because he learned so much outside the university, he is really a great ambassador for how these disciplines exist in the real world and why they matter, says Jennifer Caplan, author and Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati Chair in Judaic Studies at UC.

He is an anthropologist, a botanist and biologist, a cultural historian, a writer, and a thinker. He lives at the intersection of so many different cultures and groups, and he speaks and writes eloquently and brilliantly about them all. He is the liberal arts!

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UC presents lecture on liberal arts featuring Michael W. Twitty - University of Cincinnati

Curtiss Hall (left) and the Campanile (right) on the Iowa State University campus in Ames in July 2015. (The Gazette)

As part of Iowa State Universitys goal to trim $15 million from its College of Liberal Arts and Sciences by 2025 in response to waning enrollment, swelling expenses, and other higher education headwinds the campus last year offered a retirement incentive that has persuaded 17 participants to leave.

In an update to the Board of Regents, which meets in Iowa City this week, Iowa State reported total net savings from the retirement incentive through 2026 of $7.8 million subtracting the cost of the incentive from the salary and benefits that would have been paid to retiring employees.

Those savings average out to $2.6 million a year for the current budget year through fiscal 2026 given the vast majority of the 17 employees approved for the incentive program chose the first of two retirement options.

The first, offering two years of retirement contributions plus health and dental coverage, is estimated to cost the university $22,200 a year per person. The second, offering three years of retirement contributions, is expected to cost $12,700 a year per person.

The average salary and benefit cost for the 127 tenured faculty who were eligible for the program was $127,166 and $33,445, respectively, according to board documents. To be eligible, faculty had to achieve a score of 70 calculated by adding a persons age to his or her continuous length of service, with a minimum age of 60.

Iowa State rolled out the retirement incentive two months after announcing in February 2022 a reimagining liberal arts and sciences initiative aimed at transforming the struggling college into a financially sustainable, student-centered home for learning and research.

Due to declining enrollment, rising expenses in the form of salary increases and building costs, and shifting course demand like from freshmen who fulfilled general education requirements through college-credit offerings in high school Iowa States liberal arts and sciences college in fiscal 2022 had an annual deficit of $11.4 million, relative to a $105 million operating budget.

Based on the most-current data and projection factors, the (liberal arts and sciences college) deficit is expected to grow, according to a summary of the reimagining initiative, characterizing a realistic estimate as growing from the current-year level of $11.4 million to approximately $15 million in FY2025.

Department-specific budget-reduction targets issued at that time calculating in outstanding debt per department tasked the history department with cutting the most at more than $955,000, followed by the department of physics and astronomy and then economics, charged with cutting nearly $800,000 and more than $660,000, respectively.

In response to several of the reimagining proposals, some faculty drafted a petition against defunding arts, humanities, and social science departments.

This reorganization will impair the universitys capacity to give students a well-rounded education, according to the petition. For example, to meet its demanded cut of $900,000 annually, slightly more than one-third of its annual budget of $2.7 million, the Department of History will discontinue its graduate programs, the Master of Arts in history and the doctorate in rural, agricultural, technological, and environmental history.

The ISU college in August gave an update on its $15 million reduction goal reporting about $7.5 million has been trimmed to date thanks to work from department chairs, who drafted individual plans that would enable them to meet the colleges realignment goals and their departmental budget targets.

Faculty retirements contributed to many departments cuts with 24 faculty retiring in the 2023 budget year, including 17 who took advantage of the retirement program.

"I really appreciate the hard work and thoughtful deliberation that department chairs, faculty and staff have invested, ISU College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Dean Beate Schmittmann said in a statement. "It's been an incredibly challenging process, but an important one that will prepare the college for a sustainable future."

In evaluating course and degree offerings for maximum efficiency and student interest Iowa State is in the process of sunsetting its bachelors degrees in speech communication and biophysics and also its history graduate program.

The ISU Department of History website currently alerts prospective students that it is not accepting applications at this time for its Master of Arts in history and doctoral program in rural, agricultural, technological, and environmental history.

On the Board of Regents agenda this week is a proposal to terminate Iowa States bachelors in speech communication, noting interest in the major has been dropping for at least five years. Its 2022 enrollment was 10, with 16 applications, down from an enrollment of 20 in 2018.

The department is expected to save $75,780 by eliminating the 10 courses affiliated with the major, according to board documents. No reductions in staffing are anticipated as a result of this change.

The college simultaneously is innovating with new courses and degree offerings in an attempt to reignite interest. By collaborating with other colleges across campus, ISU liberal arts is creating degrees in integrated health sciences, game design, and financial technology which have been proposed and are pending regent approval.

Iowa States Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication is eyeing a new digital media degree and sports media program both of which remain under development.

Iowa States liberal arts struggle isnt unique with the University of Iowa in 2021 conducting a self-study that documented enrollment losses and unprecedented challenges and transitions. The Chronicle of Higher Education simultaneously issued a report highlighting the dour outlook for liberal arts colleges and ways to navigate the road ahead.

Even as the challenges posed by the pandemic begin to recede, liberal-arts colleges face a long list of difficulties, including a loss of public trust in higher education, a decline in the number of traditional-age freshmen, increasing questions about whether a high-cost college degree is worth the money, and growing competition from lower-cost alternatives, according to the Chronicle report.

Forbes earlier this year reported on new challenges emerging across the liberal arts realm including artificial intelligence in the form of ChatGPT and the like. The Chronicle, in its piece, suggested recruiting a more diverse student body, developing more career-liberal arts connections, and creating niche programs.

At this weeks regents meeting, the University of Iowa is asking to terminate two liberal arts programs: its Master of Arts in Asian civilizations, which enrolled two students last year, and its masters in German, which has had no students enrolled for more than a decade since 2009.

Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.

Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com

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ISU makes progress on liberal arts cuts through incentivized ... - The Gazette

For the first time, Harpur College of Arts and Sciences has awarded graduate- student support from the new Harpur Deans Graduate Investment Initiative, made possible thanks to Mitchell J. Lieberman 80 and Susan G. Lieberman.

The couple established the fund to enhance graduate education in Harpur at the student and programmatic levels. The support empowers Harpur to focus on immediate initiatives and those that will shape the future of the college.

Dozens of graduate students received essential funding this past spring to advance their work. Fourteen of them have projects dedicated to the arts and received approximately $11,000 in total funding; other projects are focused on activities outside the arts, with 24 students each receiving $1,000. Here are just some of the recipients:

The primary documents needed to advance pathbreaking research can sometimes be a world away.

Fourteen graduate students in the arts received a total of about $11,000 to advance their projects.

Twenty-four graduate students received $1,000 each to propel their non-arts research.

Elizabethan court records, probate lists, letters, glass fragments and orders for window glass and repairs are just some of the items he pored over in museums, archives and libraries. Most of the materials can be viewed only in person.

Such documents are crucial for understanding the decline and resurgence of the English glass industry and the transparent window glass introduced in England during the mid-16th century, he says.

I argue that the introduction of transparent window glass sparked a glass mania that altered how Elizabethans perceived themselves and their surroundings, he says. Ultimately, my research aims to accomplish several overarching goals: encourage people to pause and take note of ubiquitous materials around us, consider how material innovations change our experiences in the world and prompt readers to not just peer through the glass but also look upon the glass.

Olorunshola, an international student from Nigeria, received crucial funding to investigate the role of biofilm bacteria in the progression of atherosclerosis, a chronic disease that leads to extreme narrowing of arteries, reduced blood flow and increased risk of heart attack and stroke.

A research project of this scale demands more than just intellectual commitment and dedication; it also requires substantial financial support to effectively convert innovative ideas into verifiable scientific outcomes, she says. Without this funding, I wont be able to complete important experiments that will advance me in completing my PhD.

Enzyme assay kits are just some of the necessary supplies she was able to buy to carry out her research.

I aim to investigate if the bacterial biofilm of interest has the potential to produce and release the degradative enzymes that can further weaken cardiovascular tissues, she says. The findings will contribute immensely toward finding a long-lasting solution to the worlds leading causes of death: heart attack and stroke.

What fuels her work and pursuit of a doctorate in biological sciences? Olorunshola says its her passion for medical research, advancing knowledge about microorganisms and their impact on human health, and her drive to contribute to a better understanding of our world.

Jacobs, a masters student in vocal performance, was finally able to say yes to attending the two-week Midsummer Music Dream Festival in Quebec last summer.

The funds present our students with amazing opportunities, contributing to our graduate students artistic and professional growth, and helping them to create new knowledge and hone their artistic skills. The funding will help to ensure that these opportunities are available to all of our students, regardless of their financial means. This generous gift addresses such an important goal in Harpur College. We are so grateful to the Liebermans for helping us give students a stellar education!

Harpur College Dean Celia M. Klin

I was offered a place at the festival [the previous summer], but I had to turn it down because I couldnt afford to go, she says. I am very grateful to have this opportunity!

With support for expenses, Jacobs gained more vocal training, made recordings to prepare for a busy audition season this fall and established vital connections in the opera world.

Her goal? A performance contract or acceptance into an artist diploma (AD) program to continue her vocal growth, she says.

There is nothing like being on stage, she says. I could not live my life without it.

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Investing in the future of the liberal arts | Binghamton News - Binghamton

MOSCOW, Idaho How a rise in autocratic governments has replaced international cooperation and the global spread of democracy will be among topics discussed during the 76th annual UniversityofIdaho Borah Symposium, Monday through Wednesday, Sept. 25-27, in Moscow. The symposium is free and open to the public. A full list of events and times is below.

In her keynote, speaker Fiona Hill, a Brookings Institution distinguished senior fellow and a former deputy assistant on Russian affairs to President Donald Trump, will address the challenges to democracy on the world stage.

The Renfrew Colloquium, Updating Senator Borah: A Nuclear Kellogg-Briand Pact, will be presented by David Koplow, professor at Georgetown University Law Center. The original pact, signed in 1928, outlawed war as an instrument of national policy. Koplow will present a proposal to outlaw the threat of nuclear weapons as an instrument of national policy. Former Gov. Dirk Kempthorne will give the closing address.

As we find ourselves approaching the second winter of Russia's war against Ukraine, it is clear that there is no more pertinent a subject for the Borah Symposium, said Borah committee member Dakota Roberson, associate professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and member of the Council on Foreign Relations. The initial shockwaves of the invasion reverberated through global foreign policy and national defense circles, challenging long-held assumptions that open warfare against a large economy aspiring to align itself with the Western bloc was nearly unthinkable. Alongside a distinguished assembly of speakers, we will examine the conditions that precipitated this crisis, inviting a critical reevaluation of our preconceptions while endeavoring to understand how international cooperation can be improved to prevent such war in the future.

7 p.m. Monday, Sept. 25, International Ballroom, Bruce M. Pitman Center

12:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 26, Vandal Ballroom, Bruce M. Pitman Center

7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 26, Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre, 508 S Main St.

7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 27, International Ballroom, Bruce M. Pitman Center

The Borah Symposium honors the legacy of former U.S. Senator from Idaho William Edgar Borah (1864-1940) by considering the causes of war and the conditions necessary for peace in an international context. Held every year since 1948, this University of Idaho event offers new ideas for overcoming the obstacles to world peace and introduces audiences to the most contemporary global problem solvers of our time. Themes and speakers for the annual events are selected by the faculty-student Borah Foundation committee, with administrative and fiscal support provided by the staff of the Martin Institute.

Romuald Afatchao Associate Director of the Martin Institute 208-885-5735 afatchao@uidaho.edu

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Challenges to Liberal Democracy on Global Scale Is Topic of 2023 ... - University of Idaho

The Liberal Democrats have promised to introduce free personal care for all adults if they win power at the next general election, although there are question-marks over key details of their pledge.

Party members this week approved a 5 billion-a-year plan to offer free personal care, which a party spokesperson said would cover everybody and not just older people.

The party also claims (PDF) that the net cost of the policy to be introduced throughout the UK would be only 3 billion a year because it would cut NHS costs by 2 billion a year.

The pledge appears to cover support with nursing care, getting dressed, washing, bathing, and at mealtimes, but not other support such as housework, shopping, laundry and engaging with the local community.

It is not clear whether there would be any limit to the free personal care for those supported to live in their own homes, and it is likely that it would apply only to those assessed as having substantial and critical needs under the Care Act, although the party declined to clarify these details this week.

The Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey (pictured) said the plans would mean everyone can live independently and with dignity.

But there were no further details in the conference speech made by the partys health and social care spokesperson, Daisy Cooper.

And Daveys conference speech also failed to offer any details about the free personal care promise.

He spoke instead of rescuing our NHS and care system, of better social care, with many more care professionals, better paid and more support for family carers.

Although the party declined to explain this week why it apparently did not intend to extend the policy to cover all council-funded care and support, it still puts the Liberal Democrats ahead of the Conservatives and Labour on dealing with the care charging crisis.

Only last week, Labour was accused of caving in to powerful vested interests after failing to include any reference to scrapping care charges in documents that will form the basis of the partys next general election manifesto.

Meanwhile, the Conservatives have failed to take action to deal with a charging crisis that has left tens of thousands of disabled people every year facing debt collection action by their local authorities over unpaid care charges.

Successive Conservative governments have repeatedly promised and then failed to solve the social care crisis.

A note from the editor:

Please consider making a voluntary financial contribution to support the work of DNS and allow it to continue producing independent, carefully-researched news stories that focus on the lives and rights of disabled people and their user-led organisations.

Please do not contribute if you cannot afford to do so, and please note that DNS is not a charity. It is run and owned by disabled journalist John Pring and has been from its launch in April 2009.

Thank you for anything you can do to support the work of DNS

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Liberal Democrats edge ahead of Labour on charging, with free ... - Disability News Service

Distinguished alumna Kerry Washington, B.A. 98, HON 13, has established the Earl and Valerie Washington Endowed Scholarship Fund to honor her parents and support need-based undergraduate study at the George Washington University. President Ellen M. Granberg announced the scholarship at a Wednesday evening event on GWs Foggy Bottom campus celebrating her new memoir, Thicker than Water, chronicling Washingtons life and career.

The memoir includes Washingtons journey to GW from the Bronx, New York, as an undergraduate, supported by a prestigious Presidential Performing Arts Scholarship. With my scholarship, I was being paid not just to act, but to learn how to act; I was given a toolbox to access and harness the magic, Washington notes in her book.

At GW Washington engaged in the work of theater in the costume and scene shop, in auditions and performances and through intensive coursework. It was at GW that Washington fell more deeply in love with the craft and decided to pursue acting as a profession.

The scholarship fund, named for her mother, an educator, and her father, a real estate broker, will support undergraduate students in need of financial support pursuing liberal arts degrees at GWs Columbian College of Arts and Sciences (CCAS). As an endowed fund, this generous support will endure in perpetuity, offering scholarships to many future generations of GW students.

Kerry is a remarkable example of the determination and success so many GW alumni achieve in their chosen fields. We are so proud of what she has accomplished in her life and career and the grace and generosity she continues to model, said Granberg. We are so grateful that she has chosen to honor her parents in this very special way, and that she continues to be an active part of the GW community.

In addition to a noted career in television, film and civic life, Washington has been an active supporter of her alma mater. Her service as a trustee, a commencement speaker and through numerous moments she has offered insight to GW students earned her the honor of Monumental Alumna in 2021.

Kerry is a remarkable example of the way many GW alumni walk the talk, said Donna Arbide, GWs vice president of development and alumni relations. She is committed to her career and to making a meaningful difference through her philanthropy and her activism. It is particularly moving that she has chosen to honor her parents by supporting future generations.

Washington is heavily involved with social and political causes, embodying a commitment to a better world common to many GW alumni. An activist since her teens, she now uses her platform to support grassroots efforts to promote democracy, women entrepreneurs, and other causes.

CCAS Dean Paul Wahlbeck expressed gratitude on behalf of the Columbian College and the talented students these scholarships will attract. Solving the complex problems facing humanity requires us to bring together people and ideas from diverse disciplines and cultures in innovative ways, he said. Our graduates are known for thoughtful deliberation, creative innovation and agile collaboration. Those are skills our world desperately needs, and that Kerry, in her many roles, embodies.

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Kerry Washington Creates $1 Million Earl and Valerie Washington ... - GW Today