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Contributors

CURRENT ISSUE

  • Ty Alhadeff is director of education for JIMENA, leading the development of JIMENA’s Sephardic Leadership Institute and the publication of Distinctions. He recently engineered the launch of JIMENA’s new Sephardi & Mizrahi Education Toolkit.
  • Ty Alhadeff is director of education for JIMENA, leading the development of JIMENA’s Sephardic Leadership Institute and the publication of Distinctions. He recently engineered the launch of JIMENA’s new Sephardi & Mizrahi Education Toolkit.
  • Elliott Benjamin is a partner in the real estate department of Ervin Cohen & Jessup LLP, a law firm in Beverly Hills, Calif. Born in Iran and raised in London, he is vice president and an executive board member of the Iranian American Jewish Federation. He has served in different capacities for many other organizations, including the Jewish Federation Council of Greater Los Angeles, Central British Fund – World Jewish Relief, and the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society. He has participated in several panel discussions and conferences relating to issues concerning Iranian religious minorities, and was a regular speaker at Milken Community High School in Los Angeles, where he addressed students on the conditions for Jews in Iran and the migration and resettlement of Iranian religious minorities. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two children.
  • Elliott Benjamin is a partner in the real estate department of Ervin Cohen & Jessup LLP, a law firm in Beverly Hills, Calif. Born in Iran and raised in London, he is vice president and an executive board member of the Iranian American Jewish Federation. He has served in different capacities for many other organizations, including the Jewish Federation Council of Greater Los Angeles, Central British Fund – World Jewish Relief, and the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society. He has participated in several panel discussions and conferences relating to issues concerning Iranian religious minorities, and was a regular speaker at Milken Community High School in Los Angeles, where he addressed students on the conditions for Jews in Iran and the migration and resettlement of Iranian religious minorities. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two children.
  • Miléna Kartowski-Aïach is a French-Israeli, Algerian-Polish Jew born in Paris and living in Jerusalem. She is a Shaliach Tzibbur, multidisciplinary artist and an anthropologist. A Ph.D. candidate at Concordia University in Montreal, she is researching the transformative power of prayer and the ecology of creation. As a singer, she has been investigating and performing Jewish-Berber songs from the Moroccan Atlas Mountains, piyyutim from Algeria and saving from loss the Algiers tradition of Torah cantillation. As founder and artistic director of international theater company Les Haïm, she has been creating a dozen anthropological theater projects, working mostly with mute and excluded communities. One of the works, the LEROS trilogy, was led with Yezidi refugees from Iraq who survived the genocide of Sinjar in 2014.
  • Miléna Kartowski-Aïach is a French-Israeli, Algerian-Polish Jew born in Paris and living in Jerusalem. She is a Shaliach Tzibbur, multidisciplinary artist and an anthropologist. A Ph.D. candidate at Concordia University in Montreal, she is researching the transformative power of prayer and the ecology of creation. As a singer, she has been investigating and performing Jewish-Berber songs from the Moroccan Atlas Mountains, piyyutim from Algeria and saving from loss the Algiers tradition of Torah cantillation. As founder and artistic director of international theater company Les Haïm, she has been creating a dozen anthropological theater projects, working mostly with mute and excluded communities. One of the works, the LEROS trilogy, was led with Yezidi refugees from Iraq who survived the genocide of Sinjar in 2014.
  • Adam Eilath is a Jewish educator who serves as Head of School at Ronald C. Wornick Jewish Day School in the San Francisco Bay Area. He lives with his wife, Lauren, who is deathly allergic to fish and in love with Mahane Yehuda, their three daughters, and a new baby boy born nearly nine months after that fateful night in Djerba.
  • Adam Eilath is a Jewish educator who serves as Head of School at Ronald C. Wornick Jewish Day School in the San Francisco Bay Area. He lives with his wife, Lauren, who is deathly allergic to fish and in love with Mahane Yehuda, their three daughters, and a new baby boy born nearly nine months after that fateful night in Djerba.
  • Ruth Behar is an award-winning anthropologist and writer. Born in Havana, she has dedicated her scholarship to the Spanish-speaking world, carrying out research in Spain, Mexico and Cuba. Her books, An Island Called Home: Returning to Jewish Cuba, and Traveling Heavy: A Memoir in Between Journeys, explore her Jewish identity and search for home. A fiction writer for young readers, she has won acclaim for her middle grade novels, Lucky Broken Girl and Letters from Cuba, and her picture books, Tía Fortuna’s New Home and Pepita Meets Bebita, co-authored with her son, Gabriel Frye-Behar. Her newest novel, Across So Many Seas, is a sweeping saga of four girls from different generations of a Sephardic family. She is the James W. Fernandez Distinguished University Professor of Anthropology at the University of Michigan and an elected member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. View the trailer and rent Ruth Behar’s 2002 documentary film, Adio Kerida: Goodbye Dear Love, on Vimeo. Learn more about Ruth Behar’s latest book, Across So Many Seas, by visiting the Penguin Random House website.
  • Ruth Behar is an award-winning anthropologist and writer. Born in Havana, she has dedicated her scholarship to the Spanish-speaking world, carrying out research in Spain, Mexico and Cuba. Her books, An Island Called Home: Returning to Jewish Cuba, and Traveling Heavy: A Memoir in Between Journeys, explore her Jewish identity and search for home. A fiction writer for young readers, she has won acclaim for her middle grade novels, Lucky Broken Girl and Letters from Cuba, and her picture books, Tía Fortuna’s New Home and Pepita Meets Bebita, co-authored with her son, Gabriel Frye-Behar. Her newest novel, Across So Many Seas, is a sweeping saga of four girls from different generations of a Sephardic family. She is the James W. Fernandez Distinguished University Professor of Anthropology at the University of Michigan and an elected member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. View the trailer and rent Ruth Behar’s 2002 documentary film, Adio Kerida: Goodbye Dear Love, on Vimeo. Learn more about Ruth Behar’s latest book, Across So Many Seas, by visiting the Penguin Random House website.
  • Nesim Bencoya is manager of the Izmir Jewish Heritage Project and founder of the Izmir Sephardic Culture Festival. Over the past 14 years, he has been involved in the preservation of Jewish heritage in Izmir. Born in Izmir, he moved to Haifa, where he was the director of Cinematheque, one of Israel’s leading art centers. In 2010, he returned home to Izmir and since then, alongside his devotion to Jewish heritage, has served as artistic director of well-known film festivals in Turkey.
  • Nesim Bencoya is manager of the Izmir Jewish Heritage Project and founder of the Izmir Sephardic Culture Festival. Over the past 14 years, he has been involved in the preservation of Jewish heritage in Izmir. Born in Izmir, he moved to Haifa, where he was the director of Cinematheque, one of Israel’s leading art centers. In 2010, he returned home to Izmir and since then, alongside his devotion to Jewish heritage, has served as artistic director of well-known film festivals in Turkey.
  • Ada Aharoni was born in Cairo, Egypt, and now lives in Haifa, Israel. She is the founder and world president of IFLAC: International Forum for the Literature and Culture of Peace. She is a cultural sociologist, poet and author. Two of her bestsellers are: From the Nile to the Jordan and The Woman in White: An Extraordinary Life.
  • Ada Aharoni was born in Cairo, Egypt, and now lives in Haifa, Israel. She is the founder and world president of IFLAC: International Forum for the Literature and Culture of Peace. She is a cultural sociologist, poet and author. Two of her bestsellers are: From the Nile to the Jordan and The Woman in White: An Extraordinary Life.

past ISSUEs

  • Sarah Levin is the executive director of JIMENA: Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa.
  • Sarah Levin is the executive director of JIMENA: Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa.
  • Sapir Taib is senior program director at JIMENA and has been part of the JIMENA team since 2018. Born and raised in Israel, she relocated to San Francisco in 2017. Since arriving in the U.S., she has participated in several leadership programs including the Shalom Hartman Bay Area Fellowship, JCC East Bay Leadership Development Fellowship, IAC Gvanim, and others focusing on Jewish communities and advocacy. She holds a bachelor’s degree in political and social science from Bar-Ilan University, where she graduated with honors.
  • Sapir Taib is senior program director at JIMENA and has been part of the JIMENA team since 2018. Born and raised in Israel, she relocated to San Francisco in 2017. Since arriving in the U.S., she has participated in several leadership programs including the Shalom Hartman Bay Area Fellowship, JCC East Bay Leadership Development Fellowship, IAC Gvanim, and others focusing on Jewish communities and advocacy. She holds a bachelor’s degree in political and social science from Bar-Ilan University, where she graduated with honors.
  • David Suissa is the publisher and editor-in-chief of the Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles. For the past 17 years, he has been writing a popular weekly column that covers the Jewish world, Israel, spirituality, and life in general. Born in Morocco, he grew up in Montreal and graduated from McGill University. He moved to Los Angeles in the early 1980s and now lives in a Jewish area of the city that reminds him a little of his old neighborhood in Casablanca.
  • David Suissa is the publisher and editor-in-chief of the Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles. For the past 17 years, he has been writing a popular weekly column that covers the Jewish world, Israel, spirituality, and life in general. Born in Morocco, he grew up in Montreal and graduated from McGill University. He moved to Los Angeles in the early 1980s and now lives in a Jewish area of the city that reminds him a little of his old neighborhood in Casablanca.
  • Sergio DellaPergola is professor emeritus and former chairman of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s Avraham Harman Research Institute of Contemporary Jewry. A specialist on the demography of world Jewry, he has authored and edited numerous books and monographs, including the annual World Jewish Population chapter in the American Jewish Year Book since 1982. He is the recipient of the Marshall Sklare Award from the Association for the Social Scientific Study of Jewry (1999), and the Michael Landau Prize for Demography and Migration (2013). He has advised the State of Israel’s president and many other major Israeli and international organizations, and lectured at over 100 universities in six continents. Born in Italy, he has lived in Israel since 1966.
  • Sergio DellaPergola is professor emeritus and former chairman of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s Avraham Harman Research Institute of Contemporary Jewry. A specialist on the demography of world Jewry, he has authored and edited numerous books and monographs, including the annual World Jewish Population chapter in the American Jewish Year Book since 1982. He is the recipient of the Marshall Sklare Award from the Association for the Social Scientific Study of Jewry (1999), and the Michael Landau Prize for Demography and Migration (2013). He has advised the State of Israel’s president and many other major Israeli and international organizations, and lectured at over 100 universities in six continents. Born in Italy, he has lived in Israel since 1966.
  • Ophir Toubul is a social activist, journalist, writer, speaker, and thought leader of the Mesorti-Mizrahi movement. He is the author of the book, Kol ha-Tor: Sephardic Masorti Zionism.
  • Ophir Toubul is a social activist, journalist, writer, speaker, and thought leader of the Mesorti-Mizrahi movement. He is the author of the book, Kol ha-Tor: Sephardic Masorti Zionism.
  • Gila Green is an author, editor, EFL (English as a Foreign Language) lecturer, and mother of five children. Her novels often feature characters with Yemenite and Sephardic backgrounds as she strives to broaden the scope of Jewish literature. Her fifth novel, With A Good Eye, is forthcoming with AOS Publishing Montreal (2024).
  • Gila Green is an author, editor, EFL (English as a Foreign Language) lecturer, and mother of five children. Her novels often feature characters with Yemenite and Sephardic backgrounds as she strives to broaden the scope of Jewish literature. Her fifth novel, With A Good Eye, is forthcoming with AOS Publishing Montreal (2024).
  • Cindy Seni was born in France and raised in Canada. She founded her high school’s Jewish Student Union and established the Hillel at Glendon College, York University. Having worked for the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Israel Defense Forces as a video editor and writer, she now freelances as an independent content creator. She works with Brothers For Life, an organization dedicated to injured soldiers helping other injured soldiers. She recently participated in the Netflix series, “Jewish Matchmaking.” She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology with a specialization in trauma, and graduated with honors.
  • Cindy Seni was born in France and raised in Canada. She founded her high school’s Jewish Student Union and established the Hillel at Glendon College, York University. Having worked for the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Israel Defense Forces as a video editor and writer, she now freelances as an independent content creator. She works with Brothers For Life, an organization dedicated to injured soldiers helping other injured soldiers. She recently participated in the Netflix series, “Jewish Matchmaking.” She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology with a specialization in trauma, and graduated with honors.
  • Sarah Sassoon is an Australia-born, Iraqi-Jewish writer, poet and educator who lives in Jerusalem. Her award-winning debut picture book, Shoham’s Bangle, was named a Sydney Taylor Notable Book. This is Why We Don’t Look Back, a collection of 10 of her poems, was awarded first place in the Harbor Review Jewish Women’s Poetry Prize. Her work has appeared in numerous literary journals and publications. Her forthcoming picture book, This is Not a Cholent, is set for publication in 2024. She is an editorial advisor for Distinctions: A Sephardi and Mizrahi Journal. www.sarahsassoon.com
  • Sarah Sassoon is an Australia-born, Iraqi-Jewish writer, poet and educator who lives in Jerusalem. Her award-winning debut picture book, Shoham’s Bangle, was named a Sydney Taylor Notable Book. This is Why We Don’t Look Back, a collection of 10 of her poems, was awarded first place in the Harbor Review Jewish Women’s Poetry Prize. Her work has appeared in numerous literary journals and publications. Her forthcoming picture book, This is Not a Cholent, is set for publication in 2024. She is an editorial advisor for Distinctions: A Sephardi and Mizrahi Journal. www.sarahsassoon.com
  • Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt is the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism under the U.S. Department of State. She has a storied career as a historian, academic, and author. She helped found the Tam Institute for Jewish Studies at Emory University in Atlanta. She has taught at Emory, the University of Washington, UCLA, and Occidental College. She gained international notoriety after prevailing at trial against a leading Holocaust denier who sued her for libel. The case was depicted in the film Denial, which was based on her book, History on Trial: My Day in Court with a Holocaust Denier.
  • Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt is the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism under the U.S. Department of State. She has a storied career as a historian, academic, and author. She helped found the Tam Institute for Jewish Studies at Emory University in Atlanta. She has taught at Emory, the University of Washington, UCLA, and Occidental College. She gained international notoriety after prevailing at trial against a leading Holocaust denier who sued her for libel. The case was depicted in the film Denial, which was based on her book, History on Trial: My Day in Court with a Holocaust Denier.
  • Sharon S. Nazarian, PhD, is president of the Younes and Soraya Nazarian Family Foundation. She is the founder and board chair of the UCLA Nazarian Center for Israel Studies and is an adjunct professor of political science. She serves on the national board of directors of the Anti-Defamation League, is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a trustee of Freedom House. A mother of three, she resides in Los Angeles with her husband.
  • Sharon S. Nazarian, PhD, is president of the Younes and Soraya Nazarian Family Foundation. She is the founder and board chair of the UCLA Nazarian Center for Israel Studies and is an adjunct professor of political science. She serves on the national board of directors of the Anti-Defamation League, is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a trustee of Freedom House. A mother of three, she resides in Los Angeles with her husband.
  • Tabby Refael is an award-winning weekly columnist for The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles and has contributed to Newsweek, Los Angeles Magazine, Moment Magazine and other publications. She was first introduced to JIMENA as a student activist at UC San Diego, and has spoken on behalf of JIMENA for over a decade.
  • Tabby Refael is an award-winning weekly columnist for The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles and has contributed to Newsweek, Los Angeles Magazine, Moment Magazine and other publications. She was first introduced to JIMENA as a student activist at UC San Diego, and has spoken on behalf of JIMENA for over a decade.
  • Rena Nasar First is the executive director of campus affairs at StandWithUs, where she directs the organization's campus outreach activities and leadership programs on an international scale. As a proud Syrian Jew, she represents her community wherever she goes. She resides in New York with her husband, Jason.
  • Rena Nasar First is the executive director of campus affairs at StandWithUs, where she directs the organization's campus outreach activities and leadership programs on an international scale. As a proud Syrian Jew, she represents her community wherever she goes. She resides in New York with her husband, Jason.
  • Regina Sassoon Friedland became regional director of American Jewish Committee Seattle in 2017. She regularly engages with elected officials and foreign diplomats on areas of interest to the Jewish and general communities, and with multi-faith and intergroup representatives toward advancing matters of shared concern. She is a member of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition’s Washington Advisory Committee, the University of Washington’s Stroum Center for Jewish Studies Advisory Board, the Sephardic Study Advisory Committee of JIMENA, and the Sephardic Leadership Institute’s Women’s Leadership Committee.
  • Regina Sassoon Friedland became regional director of American Jewish Committee Seattle in 2017. She regularly engages with elected officials and foreign diplomats on areas of interest to the Jewish and general communities, and with multi-faith and intergroup representatives toward advancing matters of shared concern. She is a member of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition’s Washington Advisory Committee, the University of Washington’s Stroum Center for Jewish Studies Advisory Board, the Sephardic Study Advisory Committee of JIMENA, and the Sephardic Leadership Institute’s Women’s Leadership Committee.
  • Irit Dallal Zalayet is the daughter of abstract painter Nessim Zalayet, who was born in Baghdad in 1923 and fled to Israel in 1951. She honors and extends her father’s artistic legacy by operating ZalayetArt, a gallery that opened in 2017 in the Tel Aviv home where Nessim Zalayet once lived. The gallery regularly features exhibitions of his work, as well as those of guest artists. This article has been translated from the author’s primary language of Hebrew.
  • Irit Dallal Zalayet is the daughter of abstract painter Nessim Zalayet, who was born in Baghdad in 1923 and fled to Israel in 1951. She honors and extends her father’s artistic legacy by operating ZalayetArt, a gallery that opened in 2017 in the Tel Aviv home where Nessim Zalayet once lived. The gallery regularly features exhibitions of his work, as well as those of guest artists. This article has been translated from the author’s primary language of Hebrew.
  • Rachel Benaim-Abudarham is an award-winning journalist, activist, and Ph.D. candidate studying interreligious cooperation in Morocco. She currently teaches Judaic Studies in South Florida, where she lives with her husband and two bonus-kids.
  • Rachel Benaim-Abudarham is an award-winning journalist, activist, and Ph.D. candidate studying interreligious cooperation in Morocco. She currently teaches Judaic Studies in South Florida, where she lives with her husband and two bonus-kids.

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