From my experience, Jewish organizations are not treating those in need with dignity — Tzedekeh is supposed to treat those in need with dignity and help them stand independently as equals. Still, today’s Jewish communal intuitions never let those in financial perils forget where they stand on the social ladder. By Bonnie K. Goodman, BA, MLIS

By Bonnie K. Goodman, BA, MLIS This morning, May 4, 2023, at 7:30 AM, a bucket truck came to my home in Cote Saint-Luc, Quebec. They started cutting down the beautiful blooming Norway maple tree from the top branches. Hydro-Quebec had cut the branches closest to the wires last fall…

By Bonnie K. Goodman, BA, MLIS When I applied to McGill University, I was accepted into the Jewish Teacher Training Program, but I changed out barely a month before my first semester. I tell all sorts of reasons why I chose not to continue at the time, acceptable ones, not…

By Bonnie K. Goodman, BA, MLIS My journey to this point in life has been long and winding, but always with a singular purpose. However, the confidence in asserting my Jewish identity has been a progression based on my Jewish education at home, formally in Jewish day schools, and through…

By Bonnie K. Goodman, BA, MLIS We are experiencing a rejuvenation of antisemitism; far-right groups called for the last Shabbat in February, a “national day of hate.” As the Times of Israel reported, “Extremists including neo-Nazis planned to hold rallies, and distribute anti-Jewish messaging,” however, there were “no known violent…

Are we in one of the most divisive times in American politics? — By Bonnie K. Goodman, BA, MLIS The news media is making a huge deal about the Republican House of Representatives not coming to a consensus vote and making GOP leader Kevin McCarthy Speaker of the House. For three days after the 118th Congress convened on January 3, 2023, to January 6, the House went through 14…

By Bonnie K. Goodman, BA, MLIS Being bullied in school is like wearing prison stripes that you cannot escape in this social media world, despite one's successes. Barely a week after Taylor Swift released her new Midnights album to record sales, a former classmate of hers from Hendersonville High School…

By Bonnie K. Goodman, BA, MLIS Sketch of Theodor Herzl, Bonnie K. Goodman, 2022, graphite and charcoal on paper 9 x 12. On this day in history… August 29–31, 1897, Theodor Herzl convenes the First Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland, the first secular meeting about creating a Jewish state. [1] …

The Latest Paradigm Shift in Judaism towards Secularism? An examination of the religious views of Jews in the United States versus Israel By Bonnie K. Goodman, BA, MLIS (The research of this essay is based on a doctoral proposal research I have been working on since 2018 entitled, “Good Jewish Citizens: Israel or Zionist Education the Key to Saving North American Jewish identity.” …