Nov. 12: International Briefs

Academic Giant Dies

PARIS — Claude Levi-Strauss, considered to be the father of modern anthropology, died Oct. 30 in Paris at age 100. He introduced the concept of structuralism, the finding of common patterns of thought and behaviour in different human societies and activities, to the field of anthropology. Born in Brussels to an artistic French-Jewish family, Levi-Strauss grew up near Versailles, where his grandfather was a rabbi. He studied in Paris but left France after the introduction of the Vichy regime’s anti-Jewish laws. He fought with the Free French Forces in World War II. Levi-Strauss went on to teach at universities in Paris, New York and Sao Paulo, and was the author of several significant books on anthropology.

Unionist Backs Israel

WASHINGTON — The new president of the AFL-CIO rejected boycotting Israel. The 11.5-million-member labour union is “proud to stand with the JLC to oppose boycotting Israel,” Richard Trumka told the Jewish Labor Committee at its annual Human Rights Dinner on Oct. 27. Trumka also spoke out against both anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism. “In America, we sometimes think that anti-Semitism is part of the past, but the truth is that it’s like a weed that can always grow back,” he said. “And that’s especially true during hard times. You know, sometimes it’s couched as ‘anti-Zionism.’ Other times there’s no effort to disguise it at all.” He added that “the Jewish community … has never had a stronger ally than the AFL-CIO,” and he expressed support for U.S. President Barack Obama’s Mideast “peace initiative.”

Nazi Imagery Decried

WASHINGTON — More than 300 Conservative rabbis signed a statement urging Americans to renounce the use of Nazi imagery in political discourse. The Conservative movement’s Rabbinical Assembly issued a statement noting recent examples of public figures using such rhetoric, including Southern Baptist Convention leader Rev. Dr. Richard Land calling U.S. health-care reform proposals “what the Nazis did” and U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) calling the current U.S. health-care system a “holocaust in America.” Such rhetoric has a “chilling effect on people of conscience who find the appropriation of such imagery to be disrespectful of the victims and reinforcing of the politics of personal attack that has damaged public discourse in the United States,” the rabbis said.

Jewish Club Closes

SYDNEY, Australia — The Hakoah Club, the social, cultural and sports hub of Sydney Jewry, has closed after more than 30 years. Facing mounting debts and dwindling membership, the four-storey institution shut down Nov. 5. Its president  said the club, an integral part of Jewish life in Sydney since it was built by Westfield Group chief Frank Lowy in 1975, was “bleeding to death.” In its heyday, it was where local Jews, many of them Holocaust survivors like Lowy, celebrated bar mitzvahs and weddings, danced and played games and sports.

Canada Starts Representing Israel

CARACAS — The Canadian Embassy in Caracas has begun representing Israel’s diplomatic and consular interests in Venezuela.
Venezuela expelled the Israeli ambassador and embassy staff, and severed relations with the Jewish state last January in protest of the war in Gaza.
In addition to relaying diplomatic communications between Israel and Venezuela, Canada will also provide consular services to Israeli citizens or travellers to Israel, the Canadian Embassy’s press office said Nov. 4.
Consular services include issuing visas for Venezuelan citizens seeking to travel to Israel and accepting passport and residency applications. Since January, Venezuelans Jews lacking Israeli passports had to travel to either Bogota, Colombia or Miami to request a visa.
Anecdotally, Venezuelan Jews said recently it seems Venezuela has stopped issuing visas for Israelis seeking to visit the South American nation.
President Hugo Chavez has adopted an unequivocally strident tone against Israel, often equating it with his other foe, the United States, while forging warm ties with countries such as Iran and Libya. Earlier this year, Chavez told Al-Jazeera there were no plans to resume direct ties with Israel until it reconsidered its “genocidal attitude.”
Venezuelan Foreign Ministry representatives were unavailable for comment to JTA.