Florida's Don't Say Gay law is is emboldening LGBTQIA+ hate, leading to a Jacksonville high school play centering a queer Jewish love story being banned. Beyond The Pale hosts the renowned playwright and the heroic students fighting together to bring it back.

Pulitzer prize winning playwright Paula Vogel is joined by actors Madeline Scotti and Brennan Mitchell from the Jacksonville, Florida high school production of their (now censored) play, Indecent. 

Special interview by original Beyond The Pale contributor, journalist, theater critic & scholar Alisa Solomon. 

Rafael Shimunov interviews workers' rights attorney Hugh Baran who joined 100+ lawyers drawing from their Jewish & American values to say #NoToLaSalle.

Share this page on IG with bit.ly/queerjewishlove

Beyond The Pale: Queer Jewish Love Banned in Florida & The Battle Against Justice LaSalle

In our 2nd segment Friday we spoke with workers' rights attorney Hugh Baran who joined 100+ lawyers drawing from their Jewish values to say #NoToLaSalle, Justice Hector LaSalle who is NY Governor Kathy Hochul's pick for Chief Judge of New York.

https://thecourtnydeserves.com

https://forward.com/fast-forward/530991/jewish-lawyers-opposition-hector-lasalle-hochul-nys-highest-court

https://www.jfrej.org/news/2023/01/sign-on-letter-jewish-attorneys-against-lasalle

Over 100 Jewish Lawyers Oppose Justice LaSalle

Did you know the Hebrew Bible was rewritten to reverse genders of characters? We're joined by groundbreaking artist Yael Kanarek who talks about how she regendered the Torah into 𝘉𝘦𝘪𝘵 𝘛𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘢𝘩 with your cohosts Shoshana Brown and Rafael Shimunov. Today is also Shoshana's first show as official, weekly co-host.

Yael Kanarek is an artist who's practice focuses on the relationship between language and form. She works in various media such as internet art, large-scale sculpture, and fine jewelry. Kanarek became known in the mid 90s for her Internet art trilogy, "World of Awe." She exhibited at the Whitney Biennial, SFMoMA, Jewish Museum, EMST Museum, and more. She’s a recipient of fellowships with the Rockefeller New Media grant, Eyebeam, and NYFA, among others. 

Learn more

Beit Toratah http://beittoratah.org
Yael Kanarek https://yaelkanarek.com
Shoshana Brown https://shoshanaakua.com
JFREJ Events https://jfrej.org/events

Follow BeyondThePaleFM on Soundcloud, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Please support the show and WBAI by becoming a BAI Buddy at https://wbai.org/program.php?program=461

Yael photos by Gili Getz

Beyond The Pale: Regendering The Torah with Yael Kanarek

Our guest Beatrice Weber, the Executive Director of Young Advocates for Fair Education. YAFFED is a nonprofit organization founded by individuals raised within Hasidic and Haredi communities, and is committed to improving secular education in Hasidic and Haredi schools.

Beatrice is an Ordained Interspiritual Minister, author, and speaker Beatrice Weber. She was raised in a Hasidic Jewish community and was married off to a Rabbi in an arranged marriage before graduating high school. Despite harsh opposition from the community and her family, she left her marriage several years ago and currently lives in Brooklyn with the two youngest of her ten children. She was recently featured on the front page of the New York Times for winning a lawsuit against NYC and NYS.

Yeshiva Interrupted: The Fight for Hasidic Kids' Education

We were joined by Rabbi Alissa Wise and Rabbi Ari Lev Fornari of Rabbis for Ceasefire.

Rabbi Alissa Wise is Lead Organizer of Rabbis for Ceasefire, and former Deputy Director at Jewish Voice for Peace and co-found of the JVP Rabbinical Council. Also former Education Director at Jews for Racial & Economic Justice! 

Rabbi Ari Lev Fornari is the Senior Rabbi at Kol Tzedek Synagogue in West Philly He is a White, queer, trans person, of Ashkenazi and Italian descent. He was ordained from the Rabbinical School of Hebrew College and worked as a Jewish educator, Hebrew School director, and prison chaplain.

Rabbis for Ceasefire is an ad-hoc group of Rabbis and Rabbinical students across political affiliations and denominations. They are Rabbis from Conservative, Reform, Modern Orthodox, Reconstructionist, and Renewal communities who hail from Israel/Palestine, North America and Europe. 

"At this moment of great moral reckoning, we are speaking out with one voice to fulfill the most sacred obligation in Jewish tradition – pikuach nefesh, saving a life."

rabbis4ceasefire.com
instagram.com/rabbis4ceasefire
kol-tzedek.org (West Philadelphia)
instagram.com/alissashira

Opening track was Rabbi Mrian Levia Grossman of Kolot Chayeinu in Brooklyn who joined Rashida Tlaib, AOC, Jamaal Bowman, and other Congress members in front of the Senate weeks ago with the group.

Rabbis for Ceasefire

Just fifty favorite records of mine that I happen to own in vinyl in no particular order. Mostly 90s "backpacker" type stuff - it's a reflection of when I was collecting at the time, and doesn't necessarily represent all my favorite artists or favorite songs, many of which never were released on vinyl. I've never made a mix this long, and admittedly I ended up doing it in three separate parts. There was no real planning besides making sure I played 50 different records. Hope you dig it!

For 50 Years

Subscribe on Apple!

50 Hip-Hop Records for 50 Years of Hip-Hop (mix)

Back with an episode for the new year - some mellow-ish selections to set a tone. Trying to get back on pace with some weekly episodes for you all but it remains a little tough with everything going on. Hope folks are healthy and safe out there. 

Tracklist: JJ Whitfield, Jazz Co/Op, Rudolph Johnson, Alan Hawkshaw, Brian Bennett, Tangerine Dream, Atlantis Jazz Ensemble

January 10 2024

Subscribe on Apple

Pullin from the Stacks - Episode 239 - New Modes

Reform Jews are the largest Jewish denomination in the US, and the URJ (Union of Reform Judaism) is at its helm. Members and alumni of the URJ are organizing to push it to finally join the majority of American Jews who oppose Israel's attacks on Gaza, which the International Court calls genocide. We're joined by Elise Glaser and Sam Panken, who are demanding URJ and its leader Richard Jacobs, use their relationships with Joe Biden, the White House and others in power to push for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

Elise Glaser is an anti-Zionist Jewish activist. Growing up as a Reform Jew, she attended a URJ temple, URJ camps, held a leadership position in the North American Federation of Temple Youth (NFTY-NW) the youth group of the URJ, and interned at The URJ Religious Action Center (The RAC) in Washington, DC, which serves as the URJ's lobbying arm.

Sam Panken is a Reform rabbi’s kid committed to a radical vision of post-institutional Jewish life. Sam’s father, Rabbi Aaron Panken, was president of Hebrew Union College Jewish Institute of Religion until his death in 2018. Sam attended URJ Eisner Camp and the URJ’s high school in Israel program. Sam’s engagement with the URJ since October 7th serves to put pressure on the institution to adhere to the values they teach—the values that Sam grew up with. When they’re not busy figuring out how to be a Jew in 2024, Sam is a pastured poultry farmer and horticulturist in the Hudson Valley.
Sam’s upbringing in the heart of the Reform movement informs their dedication to a just future for all, one that includes a free Palestine. 

We also speak about two legislations proposed in New York, one which would criminalize protests on roads as terrorism, and another that would criminalize disrupting any meeting with protests as a felony with one year in prison.

The "Dialog and Decorum Act" A8334, which is introduced by conservative NY Assembly member Sam Berger and co-sponsored by Democrats who call themselves progressive: Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, Catalina Cruz, Nily Rozic and others.

https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2023/A8334

And A08951, which attempts to criminalize blocking "a street, avenue, road, alley, lane, highway, boulevard, concourse, park- way, driveway, culvert, sidewalk, crosswalk, boardwalk and viaduct, and every class of public road, square and place" in non violent protest a terrorist act.

https://nyassembly.gov/leg/?default_fld=&leg_video=&bn=A08951&term=2023&Summary=Y

Please keep our show and WBAI going by becoming a buddy of the show at https://wbai.allyrafundraising.com/

Will Reform Judaism Say Ceasefire?

Elohin creates the Man from Eve's Rib. When the man is brought to her she exclaims: “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; he will be called man, because he was taken out of woman.”

Genesis 2: Elohin Creates the Man from Eve's Rib

Live DJ set from a performance at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, June 1st 2019. Gallery visitors were responding to the prompt: 

"Think about what your journey to empowerment has been like. In one paragraph, share a story of a time when you felt closest to your most powerful self."

Thank you to everyone who participated, and to YBCA for hosting!

Music:
4Hero - Spirits in Transit
Sun Ra - Tiny Pyramids
Antibalas - Sanctuary
Leah King - Silver Ocean, Space Signs
J Dilla - Crushin’ (instrumental)
TOKiMONSTA - Waiting for the Break of Dawn
Nostalgia 77 - Dreamers Dance
Build an Ark - The Blessing Song

Diasporic Futurism @ Yerba Buena Center for the Arts 6.1.19

This exploration of masculine and feminine forms of the sh'ma was created for Beit Toratah with Yael Kanerak. 

Shimi Tisraela Tehovah(Adonotai) Elohoteinu Tehovah Ahat
Sh'ma Yisrael Adonai Eloheinu Adonai Ehad 

Hear, wrestlers with divinity: Our source, our God, is sacred unity

Learn more about Beit Toratah at: https://www.beittoratah.org/

Vocals: Emily Cohen
Production/Mix: Adami Gordon

Kriat Shim'i Sh'ma

Host of Beyond The Pale on WBAI 99.5 FM New York