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New York City—Lower East Side Tour 2006
On April 8 - 9, 2006 Professor Sanford Sternlicht and ten of his students toured the Lower East Side of New York City as part of the course JSP400/ETS 315, "Immigrant Saga: The Lower East Side and Early Jewish/American Writers." This two day trip was made possible with funding by the Holstein Foundation in Judaic Studies. The Foundation has sponsored this tour six times since the year 2000 .It has been an exceptional learning opportunity for Syracuse University students.
Early Saturday afternoon, Professor Sternlicht led the group on a personal tour of the Lower East Side. The cold and rainy weather prevented the group from walking, so Professor Sternlicht conducted the tour on the bus with quick stops at major locales. He pointed out and discussed different land marks referred to in the student's course readings: The Rise of David Levinsky, Bread Givers, Jews Without Money, Call it Sleep and from his newly publish book The Tenement Saga (University of Wisconsin Press, 2004). The bus stopped at well-known Jewish landmarks such as the University Settlement House, the Henry Street Settlement, the Essex Street Market, the Forward Building, the Education Alliance Building, the Seward Park Branch of the New York Public Library and the Eldridge Street Synagogue.
After lunch, the students regrouped at the Tenement Museum and took the tour "Piecing It Together: Immigrants in the Garment Industry." The students had the chance to experience life in the tenements during the early twentieth century. Two apartments are re-created there to illustrate the life of immigrants living and working in the garment industry. The first was the Levine family from the year 1897. Jennie and Harris Levine immigrated from Poland and ran a garment shop from their apartment. The other was the Rogarshevsky family in 1918, mourning the loss of their father who succumbed to tuberculosis after working as a presser in a garment industry sweatshop.
On Sunday morning, the group boarded a ferry from Battery Park (in lower Manhattan) and sailed to Ellis Island. Between the years of 1892 and 1954, approximately 12 million immigrants entering the United States were processed through the island. The students had the chance to explore the variety of exhibits and programs on the history of the island and the immigration process offered by the Ellis Island Immigration Museum.
Upon returning to Syracuse, each student from the group wrote a thank you letter to Mr. and Mrs. Holstein to show their appreciation and gratitude for this opportunity. Dimitre Guenov wrote: "I was too once an immigrant and it brought me back to my own roots as well as experiencing those of others. It was truly an once-in-a-lifetime experience and truly unique." Another student said that exploring the streets of the Lower East Side helped her connect to the text's characters and gave her a better understanding of the kinds of lifestyles they had in the early twentieth century. The Holstein Foundation in Judaic Studies has given the students at Syracuse University a unique and unforgettable learning experience that they will carry with them the rest of their lives.
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Group on Ellis Island |
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Michel Wex September 13 and 14, 2006
The Judaic Studies Program in Syracuse University’s College of Arts and Sciences and the Arnold and Miriam Weiner Yiddish Culture Fund of Congregation Beth Sholom-Chevra Shas will host two local appearances by Michael Wex, author of “Born to Kvetch” (2005).
Wex will lecture and sign copies of his book on Sept. 13, at 7:30 p.m. at the Congregation Beth Sholom-Chevra Shas, 18 Patsy Lane in DeWitt. Wex will also speak on Sept. 14 at 11 a.m. in Room 214 of the Hall of Languages. Both events are free and open to the public. Paid parking for Wex’s campus appearance is available in the University’s visitor pay lots.
Wex speaks on the history and usage of the Yiddish language, but his lectures become stand-up comic routines, with the audience trying to write down notes between explosions of laughter.
Born in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, Wex is the last member of a rabbinic family tree tracing back to the Rebbes of Ciechanow and Strykow. He has taught at the University of Michigan and as a fellow of Massey College in University of Toronto. His previous novel, “Schlepping the Exile” (1992), discusses the world of a small, immigrant Jewish community in Alberta between 1956 and 1959. It is concerned with the coming of age of the religious and conflicted Yoine, trying to make sense of his traditions and the realities of a 20th century Canadian community.
Wex has lectured and performed in venues ranging from Borscht Belt hotels to recreation centers in what was once East Germany. Some of his Yiddish songs have been recorded by the The Klezmatics, Sukke and the Flying Bulgars. His Yiddish translation of Kurt Weill’s Threepenny Opera premiered in June 2001. He teaches a popular annual class, called “Wexology,” at Klezkamp, the Yiddish Folk Arts Festival.
For more information on Wex’s visit, contact the Judaic Studies Program at 443-5671. |
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