Best The CJN Podcast Network Podcasts (2024)

1
After Fredericton's pride parade was led by pro-Palestinian activists, local Jews worry about their place in the city 25:49

6h ago25:49

25:49

Fredericton's annual LGBTQ pride parade wound its way through the New Brunswick capital on July 21—with the Fredericton Palestine Solidarity group leading the event as grand marshals. The march went ahead despite the mayor and provincial lieutenant-governor pulling out due to the event's distinctly political tone. Local Jewish leaders and groups, m…

1
Other Positions Are Possible 47:03

4h ago47:03

47:03

Last week, two very different sex-related 1980s icons passed away: Dr. Ruth Westheimer, the 4'7" German-born Holocaust survivor, who was 96; and Richard Simmons, whose mother was Jewish, and who rose to fame as a sweat-focused TV fitness guru whose personal sexuality was famously ambiguous . So, clearly, the hosts of Bonjour Chai had sex on the bra…

1
Derek Penslar, a Canadian scholar of Jewish history, hopes to fix Harvard’s antisemitism problem 27:38

9h ago27:38

27:38

Six months have passed since the president of Harvard University was forced to resign after she refused to sanction pro-Palestinian protesters. Claudine Gay was one of several university leaders who came under fire at a congressional hearing in Washington, D.C., last December during an investigation into how America’s Ivy League schools were failin…

1
Ysabella Hazan wants to flip the narrative of Jewish 'colonization' 47:48

2d ago47:48

47:48

When the University of Windsor recently conceded to the demands of its pro-Palestinian encampment protesters, officials signed an agreement that stated, among other anti-Israel sentiments, the post-secondary institution would affirm "its commitment towards principles of decolonization... in the context of the occupation of Palestine." The narrative…

1
‘We are going to fight back’: Windsor Jews rally against UWindsor’s concession to pro-Palestinian students 24:07

12h ago24:07

24:07

The head of Windsor’s Jewish community, Stephen Cheifetz, is calling in the big guns to fight back “significantly” against the University of Windsor, which agreed last week to accept a list of demands by its pro-Palestinian tent encampment protesters. In exchange, the protesters agreed to take down their two-month-old tent city peacefully.The July …

1
Former Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy wants to fight the information war in Canada 21:56

3h ago21:56

21:56

On the weekend, the IDF announced its forces had targeted a zone in the Khan Younis area of Gaza where the senior Hamas mastermind behind the Oct. 7 attack had been hiding. Initial reports said the attack aimed to take out Mohammed Deif, Hamas’ military chief. International condemnation was quick to blame Israel for dozens of civilians killed in th…

1
Vive l'Omnicause 32:48

1d ago32:48

32:48

This month, two major elections have changed the European political landscape. In both France and the United Kingdom, progressive parties have overcome significant right-wing counterparts, overthrowing 14 years of British Conservative power and staving off Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally party in a surprising result. Jews, as they often ar…

1
When a craft market in Saskatoon banned Zionists, these Jewish parents decided to fight back 24:04

4d ago24:04

24:04

At the end of June, a queer artist group's craft market was scheduled to celebrate Pride Month in Saskatoon with an event called Cheers for Queers. The organizers declared support for Palestine, later laying down an umbrella ban on Zionists. Jews could come, they said—just not Zionist ones. That's when a local parent recalled an interview they'd he…

1
'I could not stop crying': Holocaust survivor Maxwell Smart on his life story being made into a movie 23:10

4d ago23:10

23:10

At the onset of the Holocaust, after Maxwell Smart's family began being targeted and killed in Nazi-occupied Europe, he became separated from his mother, who made one final request of her young son: "Please run away." He did as he was told. He ended up spending one and a half years living in the cold, desolate woods of Eastern Europe, meeting and m…

1
It's time for French Jews—and Jews in the Diaspora—to come live in Israel, says MK Sharren Haskel 24:59

4d ago24:59

24:59

A few days ago, Israeli Knesset member Sharren Haskel, who was born in Canada, made headlines when she said her 88-year-old grandmother, who lives outside of Paris, had been badly beaten by two Arab suspects who noticed the visibly Jewish elderly woman wearing a Star of David necklace. The alleged attack is part of a series of antisemitic violence …

1
Anthony Housefather is the federal government’s new special adviser on antisemitism. What now? 23:41

5d ago23:41

23:41

Montreal-area Liberal MP Anthony Housefather said he is grateful to have been officially appointed on Friday July 5 as a special advisor to the Prime Minister and cabinet on relations with Canada's Jewish community, and on antisemitism. Housefather's new title also comes with a budget for travel, and to hire one extra staffer to help with the pile …

1
Settling for Biden 56:25

9d ago56:25

56:25

It was true before Oct. 7, but especially afterwards: an increasing number of progressive-minded people are viewing Jews as settlers in Israel. "Go back to Europe," some especially antisemitic ones chant at rallies. But it begs the question: if Jews are settlers in Israel, where aren't we settlers? Ben Wexler, a writer and academic who recently gra…

1
Beach volleyballer Sam Schachter qualified for the 2024 Olympics at the last moment. Here's how he's prepping for Paris 35:02

9d ago35:02

35:02

It was the summer of 2016 when Sam Schachter and Josh Binstock—both Jewish beach volleyball players competing for Canada—just barely qualified for the Olympics, less than a month before the games were to start in Rio de Janeiro. Eight years later, history is repeating itself. Schachter (sans Binstock, instead with new partner Daniel Dearing) just r…

1
How Kitchener-Waterloo's own Walk for Israel drew a huge crowd—and no protesters 22:08

10d ago22:08

22:08

An estimated 500 people turned out on Sunday, June 23, to march through the streets of Kitchener, Ont., carrying Israeli flags and raising funds to help victims of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel and subsequent war. The number might not sound like a lot, but to organizer Jeff Budd—whose family has sponsored this Walk for Israel for generations, a…

1
‘Apology not accepted’: Behind Jewish groups’ furor over Canada’s new human rights commissioner 15:06

11d ago15:06

15:06

Birju Dattani is a Canadian human rights lawyer who worked in the Yukon and his home province of Alberta before being catapulted into the highest-profile human rights job in the country a few weeks ago. In mid-June, Canada’s justice minster announced Dattani’s appointment for a five-year term as chief commissioner at the federal human rights watchd…

1
Oy, Canada: Jews feeling ‘vulnerable’ and ‘precarious’ on Canada Day after Oct. 7 31:49

14d ago31:49

31:49

Canada Day is usually a holiday of patriotism and pride. But this year, nine months after Oct. 7 sparked new waves of antisemitism across the country, many Jewish Canadians continue to feel isolated, vulnerable and anxious. It seems like every few weeks, a new synagogue is attacked or vandalized; Jewish and Israeli children are being routinely bull…

1
Jews Against the Omnicause 53:13

16d ago53:13

53:13

What does Palestine have in common with climate change, gender equality and indigenous rights? The Omnicause, that's what. In the modern era of left-wing protests, these issues become conflated—think queer Palestinians, viewed as indigenous to their homeland, fighting climate change with organic farming practices. Or something. Perhaps something no…

1
Long-buried Nazi atrocities, retold in Robert Rotenberg’s new crime novel, have lessons for today 20:21

17d ago20:21

20:21

Author Robert Rotenberg never imagined that his newest police crime novel, written against the backdrop of European fascism, would come out at the same time that far-right political leaders are sweeping into office across the continent. Nor did he plan that What We Buried would be published in the aftermath of one of the most embarrassing moments i…

1
Danila Botha's new book of short fiction wants to break the mold of Jewish Orthodoxy 23:08

18d ago23:08

23:08

Danila Botha wants you to know something about her writing: it's not autobiographical. She pulls ideas and themes from real life, from the media and history, from current affairs and what she sees in the world. She is not personally a glitter-strewn closeted lesbian Orthodox woman, nor is she a drug addict who once met Anne Frank in a dream. But th…

1
Two years ago this week El Al said it was shuttering direct service to Canada. Will it return? 19:31

19d ago19:31

19:31

Like the Taylor Swift song about her ex-boyfriend, El Al airlines is likely “never, ever, getting back together” with Canada, at least not in the form of direct non-stop El Al flights with the Star of David logo on its planes. Two years ago on June 21, 2022 the Israeli carrier announced it was shuttering direct service to Toronto. After 40 years of…

1
Will UofT’s encampment be allowed to stay up? An Ontario court is ruling soon—here’s what you should know 25:54

20d ago25:54

25:54

An Ontario court judge is expected to rule as early as this week on whether the seven-week-old pro-Palestinian tent city at the University of Toronto will be allowed to remain, or whether it must be dismantled immediately—with police help, if necessary. Lawyers for the university were in court last week arguing the encampment is illegal and has don…

1
Kiss and Tell 50:55

23d ago50:55

50:55

The trope of Hasidic women leaving their communities—particularly during a journey of queer self-discovery—is not exactly unique. And yet, memoirs and documentaries continue to come out, the latest being Kissing Girls on Shabbat by Sara Glass, who is now a therapist. After Phoebe Maltz Bovy reviewed the book for The CJN, she had more questions—so w…

1
Sidura Ludwig’s new children’s book about baking challah shares a recipe for turbulent times 21:08

24d ago21:08

21:08

Rising, the new children’s book by award-winning Canadian author Sidura Ludwig, tells the story of a Jewish child and their mother preparing homemade challah bread for Shabbat. Ludwig wrote the story four years ago, during the pandemic lockdown, when she found solace in the weekly ritual of challah-making during those uncertain times.Now, releasing…

1
Vancouver’s Schara Tzedeck was lit aflame—and the shul decided to leave the door charred. Here’s why 21:02

1M ago21:02

21:02

It’s been more than two weeks since an unknown suspect set fire to the front doors of Vancouver’s Schara Tzedeck synagogue on May 30, while people were inside attending a late-night meeting. A passerby saw the flames and called it in, while a shul member used his jacket to douse the flames.No one was hurt, but the incident left one of the building’…

1
Late spring sports roundup: Zach Hyman's Oilers struggle to stay alive while Jewish baseball stars are on the rise 29:08

26d ago29:08

29:08

We're entering the post-Shavuot dog days of summer, which means a wind-down for most Jewish athletes. After a short break, The CJN's sports podcasters return with a late spring catch-up to talk golf, baseball and the end of the NHL and NBA seasons. Atlanta Braves pitcher Max Fried has emerged as a genuine candidate to win the 2024 Cy Young Award; S…

1
'The silent tragedy of the north': Israel's military escalation with Hezbollah has major implications for Canadians 22:44

27d ago22:44

22:44

Since Oct. 8, Hezbollah—the Iranian-backed Shia militia in southern Lebanon—has launched thousands of rockets into northern Israeli communities, including Metula and Kiryat Shmona, which for decades have been financially supported by Canada's Jewish community. But Israeli air strikes that killed a senior Hezbollah commander last week have escalated…

1
Bonus: "Labour of Love", from recollections with the Jewish Public Library 56:51

29d ago56:51

56:51

We're taking the week off for Shavuot. Instead, we're airing a new episode of a podcast miniseries from our friends at the Jewish Public Library, called recollections. Avi and Phoebe will be back next week. May 2024 marks the 110th anniversary of the Jewish Public Library. Our opening season is a celebration of our Jewish Leftist roots in Montreal.…

1
Jews were once embraced by progressive activists. Did Oct. 7 permanently change that? 27:51

29d ago27:51

27:51

Bernie Farber helped create the Canadian Anti-Hate Network (CAHN) in 2018, and sat as its founding chair until shortly after Oct. 7, 2023. The organization—which investigates, publicizes and works with journalists to report on hateful far-right extremist groups—was infamously silent in the weeks following the Hamas slaughter and kidnapping of 1,200…

1
In her poetry, Zilka Joseph channels the stories of her Bene Israel ancestors in India 31:48

1M ago31:48

31:48

There's a fact Zilka Joseph likes to toss out to prove how old the Bene Israel culture is: the community, native to the Indian subcontinent, spent centuries unaware of what Hanukkah was. That's because the first Bene Israel people arrived on the shores of modern-day India in 175 BCE, according to some estimates—almost a full decade before the Macca…

1
Alexandria Fanjoy Silver converted to Judaism twice. For Shavuot, she explains why 23:03

1M ago23:03

23:03

Alexandria Fanjoy Silver enjoys being a proud and loud advocate for Toronto's Jewish community, even though she only became an "official" Jew in 2009. Her parents brought her up as a member of the Anglican Church; yet, while growing up, she always felt an "obsession" and a pull towards Judaism. And so, as a university student in 2007, after visitin…

1
‘My legs are tired but my heart is full’: Hear the sounds of Toronto’s historic Walk with Israel 23:54

1M ago23:54

23:54

Ellin Bessner, host of The CJN Daily _podcast, was admittedly nervous ahead of Sunday’s 55th annual Walk with Israel, held by UJA Federation of Greater Toronto. For weeks, pro-Palestinian protest groups in the city had been threatening to disrupt the important Jewish solidarity march—the first one since the deadly Hamas attack on Oct. 7.It was stun…

1
Bot Rabbis for Jesus 46:25

2M ago46:25

46:25

Israel had some strange bedfellows in the news this week. The New York Times unveiled that country's Ministry of Diaspora Affairs created social media bots that posted AI-generated comments to influence American lawmakers and the general public; meanwhile, a rally against antisemitism in Manhattan drew headlines when it was revealed that the organi…

1
Dr. Joe Schwarcz can’t stop debunking wellness gurus, antivaxxers and pseudoscience 26:58

1M ago26:58

26:58

Montreal professor Joseph Schwarcz doesn’t actually have a medical degree, but that hasn’t stopped him from becoming a popular public figure in the Canadian media landscape as a reliable face of science.Schwarcz, 76, actually has a doctorate in chemistry from McGill University, where he has been based for more than four decades. In that time, he’s …

1
Former Israeli hostage Hagar Brodutch fears time is running out for the others still held in Gaza 22:37

1M ago22:37

22:37

Hagar Brodutch, her husband Avichai and their three children are settling into their temporary home in Toronto for an extended vacation after a horrific ordeal. Hagar and the kids were among the most high-profile hostages kidnapped on Oct. 7 by Hamas and released after 51 days, during a ceasefire deal in November 2023.Many Canadians followed the Br…

1
How ‘Beauty Queen of Jerusalem’ star Swell Ariel Or now helps Israel on and off screen 22:24

1M ago22:24

22:24

Just hours before Hamas’ attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 the Israeli film star Swell Ariel Or was in Canada as the guest of honour at an Israel Bonds fundraiser. The twenty-something actor was fresh off her breakout role in the Israeli historical family saga “The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem” which aired on Netflix in 2022. She portrayed Lun…

1
Bonus: Federation CJA speaks to lawyer Neil Oberman about antisemitism in Montreal 33:28

1M ago33:28

33:28

We're taking a day off at The CJN Daily, so please enjoy this podcast from our friends at Montreal's Federation CJA, which aired last month. To subscribe to their feed, click here. In this episode of the Federation CJA 360 Podcast, host Glenn Nashen talks about using the law and the courts to fight back. Meet lawyer Neil Oberman, who is standing up…

1
Canada's last remaining faith reporter reflects the past, and future, of religion 30:33

2M ago30:33

30:33

In 2018, at a time when the faith beat in Canadian newspapers was steadily declining, John Longhurst made an unusual deal with the publisher of the Winnipeg Free Press. He wanted to help expand the paper's audience by reporting on religion, particularly within local communities: Mennonite, Indigenous, Catholic, Muslim, Jewish, whomever. The publish…

1
Hipster Tznius 54:01

2M ago54:01

54:01

When Israel's Judaica store, a prominent retailer in the Toronto area, announced it was closing after 40 years, it felt like another moment in an unfortunately increasing trend: the decline of Jewish "third spaces", places beyond the home and office where Jews feel comfortable and welcome. Synagogues are closing and merging; community centres are b…

1
What this Canadian-Palestinian peace activist wants you to know about life after Oct. 7 28:52

1M ago28:52

28:52

Yafa Sakkejha was named after the city of Jaffa, where, until 1948, her Palestinian grandparents lived and owned property and managed orange groves. Sakkejha’s mother grew up in East Jerusalem, but left the country during the First Intifada in the late 1980s.Sakkejha, who was born and raised in Toronto, feels deep pain over the devastation that has…

1
A new political Jewish students’ union has sprung up after weeks of pro-Palestine tent protests 22:07

2M ago22:07

22:07

Since Oct. 7, at least five mezuzahs have been torn off the doors of Jewish students living in residence at Queen’s University. At the University of Windsor, a law professor urged a Jewish student not to attend their class because “Zionists aren’t welcome”. And in just the last few weeks, some protesters who set up pro-Palestinian tent encampments …

1
Meet the singer who performs Yiddish opera from Holocaust survivors—and also Wagner 30:32

2M ago30:32

30:32

When Jaclyn Grossman was an 18-year-old opera student, her teacher heard her soprano voice and informed her she'd sing the music of Richard Wagner. Grossman didn't know much about the German composer, but quickly fell in love with his music. She was not particularly phased by the fact that Wagner was infamously antisemitic, included offensive Jewis…

1
Bais Chaya Mushka families celebrated Jewish pride on Sunday after gunfire was aimed at the Toronto school on Shabbat 17:34

2M ago17:34

17:34

One day after the weekend targeting of Bais Chaya Mushka, a Jewish girl’s school in Toronto, by suspects who sprayed the front of building with bullets, the school’s students and their families have gone from initial shock and fear, to the determination not to be intimidated.They turned out in large numbers at a popular park to join the city’s Chab…

1
I've Got Schisms 41:55

2M ago41:55

41:55

Last September, Eitan Hersh, a political science professor at Tufts University in Boston, tried something that hasn't been done before: he created a class teaching conservative ideas to students of his private liberal college. He felt there was a gap in the school's poli-sci curriculum, sensing that graduates were leaving without understanding the …

1
New B.C seniors advocate Dan Levitt flew to the U.N. to fight for the rights of Canada’s growing 65+ population 25:05

2M ago25:05

25:05

Show notes Seniors are in the spotlight this week as Canada and other countries are meeting at the United Nations to discuss ways to help the world’s billion people over the age of 60. And Dan Levitt is in the thick of it—the longtime nursing home administrator from Vancouver, who started as British Columbia’s official seniors advocate in April, fl…

1
Examining the many overlapping stereotypes faced by Jewish and Asian athletes 37:17

2M ago37:17

37:17

It's May, which means you can still wish people a happy Jewish Heritage Month. You can also wish them a happy Asian Heritage Month—because, in Canada, both minority groups got their politically fluffy cultural celebrations crammed into the same 31-day timespan. To honour the stuffing-together of both heritage months, the Menschwarmers wanted to tak…

1
The CJN’s Honourable Menschen: Remembering the politically embattled Patti Starr, referee Harry Davis and other late influential Canadian Jews 28:11

2M ago28:11

28:11

The CJN Daily‘s Honourable Menschen is back, just ahead of Lag b’Omer on June 11, when tens of thousands of observant Jews traditionally make a pilgrimage to Israel’s Mt. Meron to visit the tomb of Rabbi Simeon Bar Yochai, the author of the Zohar.Ahead of the calendar anniversary, it felt important to shine a spotlight on the legacies left by these…

1
Rabbi Beni Wajnberg explains why you should never pay synagogue dues 34:01

2M ago34:01

34:01

Rabbi Beni Wajnberg has worked in Brazil, Argentina, Singapore, New York, Tennessee, California, Montana and beyond. When it came down to settle down with his family and put down roots, he chose Hamilton, Ont., where he's now the spiritual leader at Beth Jacob Synagogue. Throughout his travels, he's found that one thing connects all those far-flung…

1
The 13-year old who hundreds walked to school in Toronto has no plans to change schools due to antisemitic bullying 21:44

2M ago21:44

21:44

Eitan Cohen, 13, is determined to head back to class after the Victoria Day long weekend—despite months of being bullied, taunted, threatened and assaulted by a few fellow students in his school in Toronto, in the wake of Oct. 7.It came to a head on May 17, when hundreds of neighbours and friends came to walk Eitan to Faywood Arts-Based Curriculum …

1
Gatekeepers of Heaven 44:49

2M ago44:49

44:49

You may not know who Joe Roberts is. But some people online, who may or may not have ever met the man face-to-face, claim to know him extremely well—to the point that they are posting photos of his grandmothers' graves, scouring the web for his tweets and published articles, and making bold statements about whether he's really who he says he is. Wh…

1
How a class of Dawson College theatre students are incidentally workshopping a controversial script about Zionism and campus politics 26:33

2M ago26:33

26:33

During the pandemic, David Sklar—an actor, playwright and co-host of The CJN's arts podcast Culturally Jewish—wrote a theatre script called Vial. The plot focuses on a college professor who feels conflicted when one of her far-left-wing Jewish students writes an extreme essay about Israel; the professor, who starts off adamantly pro–free speech, be…

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