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JCC Greater Boston

JCC Greater Boston is the primary destination for Jewish engagement, a hub of learning and celebration, and a connector to Jewish life. Whether it's in an early learning classroom, on the fields of one of many camps, or on stage at a public lecture, the JCC is a place where individuals and families encounter Jewish ideas and values. Serving more than 50,000 people in the Greater Boston area, the JCC offers innovative programs for children, youth, and adults.

http://www.bostonjcc.org/Home.aspx

The Electoral College: Is Reform Needed?

Wed, Dec 16, 2020

As we move past the contentious 2020 election, one particular question has surfaced once again this election cycle: Is the way we elect the President in this country still working? The electoral college – our nation’s complicated method of electing presidents -- has been under fire since its inception more than 200 years ago. The system allows one candidate to win the popular vote but another to win the electoral vote and thus the Presidency. Four candidates in U.S. history have won the popular vote but not the Presidency as they did not secure enough votes in the Electoral College. Join us for a closer look at the roles race, politics, and geography have played in the electoral college and explore if reform is needed or not. Panelists representing varying perspectives on voting and the electoral college include Amel Ahmed, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Massachusetts Amherst and Erin Geiger Smith, journalist and author of the book “Thank you for Voting.” Jesse Wegman, a member of the New York Times editorial board, will moderate the discussion. Presented by JCC Greater Boston as the latest in their Jonathan Samen Hot Buttons, Cool Conversations discussion series and co-produced with GBH Forum Network .

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JCC Greater Boston
Can Faith and Politics be Separated?

Thu, Jan 30, 2020

Communities across America are divided over politics, culture, identity, and the direction of the country. Are religious congregations any different? How do religious leaders today navigate deeply divisive issues — like the Middle East, gay marriage, abortion, the immigration crisis — in their own communities? We'll look at the intersection of faith and politics and discuss religious leaders views on engaging in social activism. We’ll examine the role religious leaders play in such partisan times.

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Jonathan Samen Hot Buttons, Cool Conversations

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JCC Greater Boston
The Future of the Supreme Court

Tue, Sep 24, 2019

Washington Post Supreme Court Reporter Robert Barnes leads a discussion with three law professors— Gary Lawson, Kate Shaw and Jed Shugerman—to examine the shift in the Supreme Court and its power to determine the direction of hot button issues including reproductive rights, gun laws, and immigration. The panel looks at the Court as a bellwether of this nation and examines the power of the highest court, asking if the court reflects the views of the country and where it’s headed. Image credit: Front row, left to right: Associate Justice Stephen G. Breyer, Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Associate Justice Samuel A. Alito. Back row: Associate Justice Neil M. Gorsuch, Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Associate Justice Elena Kagan, Associate Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh. [Photo by Fred Schilling, Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States](https://www.supremecourt.gov/about/justices.aspx)

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JCC Greater Boston
America's Opioid Epidemic

Tue, Apr 02, 2019

The Opioid Epidemic is devastating communities across the country. Overdoses have become the leading cause of death for Americans under the age of 55, killing more people than HIV/AIDS, car crashes or gun violence ever did at their peaks. But what makes this crisis especially unique is how we got here. We’ll examine the origins of the worst public health crisis of the twenty-first century and expose the role pharmaceutical companies played in pushing addictive opioids into the American market. We will explore how we got here, the science of addiction, and how to stem the crisis.

Forum Network

Jonathan Samen Hot Buttons, Cool Conversations

Partner:

JCC Greater Boston
Immigration: Balancing Security and Compassion

Tue, Jan 08, 2019

Comprehensive immigration reform has been a hot button issue for decades in this country. Immigration policy forces politicians and citizens alike to weigh economic and security concerns against humanitarian interests. The current administration has approached this issue with an emphasis on "security first" regarding immigration policy, looking to slash immigration to the United States. Measures including the "travel ban," the proposed border-wall with Mexico, and pledges to deport millions of undocumented immigrants all raise questions on how to balance keeping America safe from terrorism while still being a "nation of immigrants." This panel examines the Immigration Debate: Balancing Security and Compassion. The event is co-sponsored by Vilna Shul, Boston's Center for Jewish Culture. Image: Pexels.com

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JCC Greater Boston
Being Jewish in Trump's America

Wed, Nov 14, 2018

Fresh on the heels of the mid-term elections, the JCC Greater Boston Jonathan Samen Hot Buttons Cool Conversations series examines the political landscape in America. On issues ranging from the economy and healthcare, to immigration and the future of the Supreme Court, candidates are facing a deeply polarized electorate in a charged political environment. We present an analysis of the election outcome with two of the brightest political minds in the country. Image: [Pexels.com](https://www.pexels.com/photo/flag-of-america-1202723/ "pexels") ,[Wikimediacommons.com](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Judaism#/media/File:Davidstern_-_Hexagram_-_David%27s_Stern_II.jpg "wiki media commons")

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Is Science Replacing God?

Thu, Feb 01, 2018

Are science and religion forever locked in conflict or can they coexist? On issues from evolution and the big bang to new advances in technology and medicine, religion and science are often at odds. The panelists for this talk tackle some of the most controversial breakthroughs in science, including gene editing. What happens as our ethical and religious institutions struggle to keep up with science’s latest developments? We address the weighty questions asking if science refutes religion or if they are two separate issues. Unfortunately, we had technical issues with audio for this talk, so enjoy engaging clips from the mics that were functioning - watch more below:

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JCC Greater Boston
Criminal Injustice in America

Tue, Dec 05, 2017

JCC Greater Boston convened a panel composed of a former prosecutor, criminal justice professor, civil rights attorney, sentencing reform activist, and a wrongfully convicted individual to explore racial inequities throughout the legal system. They discuss the criminal justice system's issues of racial bias, which have lead to a miscarriage of justice ranging from police violence and brutality to presumption of guilt and wrongful convictions. In the post-Ferguson era, it is critical for many people with many voices to examine the role that race plays in the criminal justice system from policing to prosecuting. (Image: Deval Kulshrestha/Lady Justice/CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Boston Talks About Racism

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JCC Greater Boston
Israel: 50 Years After the 1967 War

Wed, May 03, 2017

Since the Six Day War, history has unfurled in the Middle East at a rapid pace, impacting generations of Israelis, Palestinians and, indeed, the entire region. Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel and Egypt Daniel Kurtzer will moderate a discussion among several Israeli thought leaders and activists on the social, political and religious challenges - and opportunities - for Israel in the next 50 years. Co-presented by CJP and JCC Greater Boston as a program of the Comm**UNITY** Israel Dialogue and the Jonathan Samen Hot Buttons, Cool Conversations Discussion Series. Photo: [Six day war. Defense Minister Moshe Dayan, Chief of staff Yitzhak Rabin, Gen. Rehavam Zeevi (R) And Gen. Narkis in the old city of Jerusalem.](http://http://www.flickr.com/people/69061470@N05 ) CC BY-SA 3.0, via [Wikimedia Commons](http://http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)

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JCC Greater Boston
Cyber Trolls, Death Threats and the First Amendment

Wed, Mar 15, 2017

In October 2016, Politico reporter Hadas Gold wrote an article about the presidential campaign and was met with a litany of Naziesque death threats. She received a photoshopped image of herself with a bloody bullet hole to her forehead and a yellow “Jude” star, as Jews were forced to wear in Nazi Germany, on her chest. From journalists and activists, to doctors and politicians, death threats, and particularly anti-Semitic and anti-women cyber threats, have become common fodder on social media. The mechanisms of the internet – its global reach, immediacy and anonymity – have exposed an ugly underbelly of targeted hate. As they consider user rights and First Amendment freedoms, social media platforms are grappling with whether to police, or even prosecute, these threats. On the internet, the push and pull between hate speech and freedom of speech reflects a new frontier in the pursuit of an ethical society. Is there a road back to civility? How far can the First Amendment be reasonably stretched? Should journalists and others under threat simply double down, or is self-censorship the way forward? (Photo: [Pixbay](https://pixabay.com/en/hacker-hacking-cyber-security-hack-1944688/ ""))

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JCC Greater Boston