Caracas – One night years ago, when a Jewish man was driving to his parents’ house in Caracas, Venezuela, two cars blocked off the street he was on and held him up at gunpoint. He got into their car and began answering questions: who he was, where he lived, how much money he could give [...]

After years of pressure to crack down on hate and bigotry, Facebook has banned Louis Farrakhan Alex Jones and other extremists, saying they violated its ban on “dangerous individuals.”
The company also removed right-wing personalities Paul Nehlen, Milo Yiannopoulos, Paul Joseph Watson and Laura Loomer, along with Jones’ site, Infowars, which often posts conspiracy theories.

New York – In New York City, more than half of all hate crimes reported in 2018 and so far in 2019 were anti-Jewish. According to the NYPD on Thursday, of the 145 hate crimes reported in January through April 2019, 82 incidents – nearly 57 percent – were anti-Jewish. In 2018, there were 353 [...]

Our Child is an Addict – A Parent’s Story, Recovery at the Crossroads
“So which seminaries did your girl apply to?”
“They are telling us that the answers should be coming any day now.”
“I am so anxious.”
“My daughter is up sick waiting for her answers.”
“I hate to say this, but this is going to affect her shidduchim.”
“I hope I won’t have to use any more pull.”

A defiant Julian Assange told a London court Thursday he will fight extradition to the United States to face charges of conspiring to hack into a Pentagon computer, arguing that his work as WikiLeaks founder has benefited the public.
Speaking by video link from Belmarsh Prison in southeast London, Assange said: “I do not wish to surrender myself for extradition for doing journalism that has won many awards and protected many people.”
His formal refusal to be extradited marks the start of what is expected to be a bruising legal battle over whether he will be brought to trial in the United States.
Read more at ABC News.
{Matzav.com}

Harrisburg, PA – A Pennsylvania state lawmaker protesting a natural gas liquids pipeline project in her neighborhood apologized Thursday for saying “Nazis were just doing their jobs too” and drawing a comparison to pipeline workers. After condemnation grew during the week, Democratic Rep. Danielle Friel Otten, of Chester County, said on Twitter that her language [...]

A high res version of the photo above is available for download here or by clicking on the image.
Photo Credits: Jeff Cohn Photography
Agudath Israel of Maryland extends warm congratulations to Delegate Adrienne Jones on being elected and sworn-in as Speaker of Maryland’s House of Delegates.

Washington – Attorney General William Barr portrayed himself as an apolitical elder statesman at his confirmation hearing. He declared he’d rather resign than be asked to fire special counsel Robert Mueller without cause and insisted the prosecutor he’d known for decades would never involve himself in a witch hunt as the president claimed. But now [...]