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Jewish American Heritage: Watch

MC Library's Guide to Jewish American Heritage

History

The Sephardic Jews and the Pike Place Market

The Sephardic Jews and the Pike Place Market

This rich documentary short captures the story of the first generation of Sephardic Jewish immigrants who settled in Seattle, found work at the Pike Place Market and established one of the largest Sephardic communities in America.

GI Jews: Jewish Americans in World War II

GI Jews: Jewish Americans in World War II

GI Jews: Jewish Americans in World War II tells the story of the 550,000 Jewish Americans who fought in World War II. In their own words, veterans both famous and unknown bring their war experiences to life.

Land of Promise: The Jews of South Carolina

Land of Promise: The Jews of South Carolina

Land of Promise is a fascinating, richly illustrated documentary that explores the Jewish experience in South Carolina from colonial days to modern times. It is a heartwarming story of religious tolerance, economic and political opportunity By 1800, Charleston was home to the largest and wealthiest Jewish community in North America. The settling of Jews in South Carolina mirrors the Jewish immigration to the United States with Sephardic Jews in the 17th century being followed by German Jews, then Eastern Jews and Russian Jews today

The Jewish Journey: America

The Jewish Journey: America

This film follows the trajectory of Jewish American life from the earliest arrivals in the mid-17th century through the impact of the Nazi regime in World War II, the creation of Israel, and the new challenges of 21st century assimilation. Explore the personal stories many faced as they migrated to America, whether for economic opportunity or to escape persecution.

Introduction to Judaism

Introduction to Judaism

Shai Cherry, professor of Jewish thought at Vanderbilt University, presents the unfolding of the religious aspects of the Jewish civilization from the Hebrew Bible to today, while keeping an eye on the historical background against which those changes within Judaims have occured.

Being Jewish Under Roman Rule

Being Jewish Under Roman Rule

Discover the problem of being a monotheist in a polytheistic state - with the Romans requiring the Jews to acknowledge their gods and the divinity of their emperor. This conflict escalated in the 1st century, leading first, to acts of terrorism; then, to the outbreak of the Jewish revolt of A.D. 66; next, to the destruction of Jerusalem; and finally, to the diaspora.

Jesus and Judaism

Jesus and Judaism

Begin your fascinating historical adventure by developing a solid framework for your exploration of Jesus’s Jewish influences. What was it like to be a Jew in the ancient world? What do we mean when we talk about Jewish temples? And how similar was ancient Judaism to other ancient religions.

Blacks and Jews

Blacks and Jews

Early in the 20th century black and Jewish Americans joined forces against bigotry and for civil rights but in the late 1960's each group turned inward and the coalition fell apart. This film examines the history of this collaboration and recent racial conflicts between Afro-Americans and Jews and attempts at understanding and reconciliation, with particular emphasis on events in New York City and Oakland, California.

Jewish Identity and Rebuilding after Exile

Jewish Identity and Rebuilding after Exile

Ezra, Nehemiah, Jonah] What did it mean to be Jewish after the Babylonian Exile? Professor Koester examines biblical books that offer differing perspectives. On one end: Ezra and Nehemiah, which define Israel by the temple, Jewish law, and Jerusalem. On the other: Jonah, where Israel’s identity is defined by the way it relates to the other peoples around it.

Films

Yidl in the Middle: Growing Up Jewish in Iowa

Yidl in the Middle: Growing Up Jewish in Iowa

Yidl in the Middle looks at growing up "different" in America. In this evocative, entertaining film, filmmaker Marlene Booth probes her Iowa-Jewish roots. Through home movies, period photos, her high school reunion, and current interviews, she examines the complicated process of negotiating identity -- as an American, a Jew, and a woman. A compelling film, sure to provoke discussion.

Regina

Regina

Diana Groó’s documentary tells the story of Regina Jonas (1902-1944) a strong woman, who made history by becoming the first properly ordained woman rabbi in the world.

Delta Jews

Delta Jews

For over a century, the largely rural region of the Mississippi delta has been home to a thriving Jewish community, rooted generations-deep in its rich soil. Jews became an integral part of delta life, forging a hybrid identity that was deeply Jewish and distinctively Southern. Their numbers have dwindled in recent years, but a small number of Jews have stayed on, determined to maintain a Jewish presence against all odds. Through the eyes of those who remain, Delta Jews traces the history of the community and its relationship to its white Christian and black neighbors.

My Coffee with Jewish Friends

My Coffee with Jewish Friends

A new film from veteran filmmaker Manfred Kirchheimer is always a cause for celebration; with My Coffee, Kirchheimer uses a simple, humorous title as a screen to ask serious questions, from gender inequality to secularism to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, for a deeply thoughtful exploration of contemporary Jewish identity.

Jackie Mason: The Ultimate Jew

Jackie Mason: The Ultimate Jew

Comic Jackie Mason performs his final stand-up show on Broadway.

The Thomashefskys Music and Memories of a Life in the Yiddish Theater

The Thomashefskys Music and Memories of a Life in the Yiddish Theater

Michael Tilson Thomas explores the lives of his grandparents, Boris and Bessie Thomashefsky, through a musical performance that features five performers and the New World Symphony orchestra, performed at the New World Center in Miami Beach. Founding members of the Yiddish Theater in America, the Thomashefskys owned theaters, published their own magazine, wrote columns in the popular Yiddish newspapers, sponsored and encouraged generations of young artists, brought countless Yiddish artists to America, tirelessly raised funds for progressive social causes, and, through it all, were adventurous trendsetters. This story presents a musical sound that few have heard, assimilating Eastern European klezmer and cantorial modes with American tones and rhythms.

Bee Season

Bee Season

Eliza Naumann (Flora Cross) has no reason to believe she is anything but ordinary. Her father Saul (Richard Gere), a beloved university professor, dotes on her talented elder brother Aaron (Max Minghella). Her scientist mother, Miriam (Juliette Binoche), seems consumed by her career. When a spelling bee threatens to reaffirm her mediocrity, Eliza amazes everyone: she wins. Her newfound gift garners an invitation not only to the national competition, but an entrée into the world of words and Jewish mysticism that have so long captivated her father's imagination. But Eliza's unexpected success hurls the Naumann family dynamic into a tailspin, long-held secrets emerge and she is forced to depend upon her own divination to hold the family together. BEE SEASON is based on the nationally best selling Myla Goldberg novel of the same name.

Fiddler on the Roof

Fiddler on the Roof

Tevye is a poor Jewish milkman with five unmarried daughters to support in a village in Czarist Russia. With a sharp tongued wife at home and growing anti-Semitism in the village, Tevye talks to God about his troubles. His people's traditions keep him strong when his existence is as precariously balanced as a fiddler on the roof.

The Book Thief (film)

The Book Thief (film)

While subjected to the horrors of WWII Germany, young Liesel finds solace by stealing books and sharing them with others. Under the stairs in her home, a Jewish refuge is being sheltered by her adoptive parents.

Borrowing at MC Library

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Community users (those not currently affiliated with MC) can apply for a community user card, which allows them to borrow materials and use other library resources. Community users are not eligible to use electronic resources from off-campus but can use electronic resources on campus.

Find Films at MC Library

MC Library provides both physical media (DVDs) and streaming films. You can search for films (both DVDs and streaming films) using RaptorSearch, or search in an individual streaming media database.

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