CBS First Friday with Moishe House: Jewish Katrina A Decade Later

Moshe Kornfeld: Jewish Katrina – A Decade Later

In the years following Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans became a center and a symbol of American Jewish philanthropy, service and activism. Though not a major Jewish population center, New Orleans has a historic Jewish community. In the years following the storm, it also became a prominent travel destination for Jewish service tourism; in fact, an article published in the New York Jewish Week declared the city the “The New Mecca of Tikkun Olam.” New Orleans thus emerged as a symbolic location for communal reflection on the meaning of Jewish social responsibility. In this talk, Moshe will situate Jewish community responses to the storm in relation to the history of Jewish philanthropy in the United States and will consider what we might learn from looking back a decade later.

Moshe Kornfeld received his PhD in Anthropology (2015) from the University of Michigan, where he was also affiliated with the Frankel Center for Judaic Studies. His research and teaching apply anthropological theories and methods to achieve new interpretations of contemporary American Jewish life and culture; particular interests include Jewish philanthropy and Jewish youth culture.

Moshe currently teaches at the University of Colorado Boulder. He is also the curator of Freedom Seder: American Judaism and Social Justice, an exhibit associated with the Post-Holocaust American Judaism Archive.

First Friday begins at 6:00 pm at Bonai Shalom and includes service, dinner, and discussion with our special guest. Moishe House friends are welcome for free, pre-registration is required. $54/family, $15/member, $18/non-member. BYOB: Kosher wine or beer.

Visit http://bonaishalom.org/events/first-friday-6/ to reserve your spot today!