HEADLINES | 4
SPECIAL SECTION | 18
RABBI RETIRES
GOING SOLAR
Rabbi David Pinkwasser reflects on 50 years in the rabbinate
Nonprofit Solar United Neighbors has a co-op for homeowners interested in solar power
1948
YEARS
2023
$1.50
MAY 19, 2023 | IYAR 28, 5783 | VOLUME 75, NUMBER 18
Silence speaks volumes, say LGBTQ+ Jews, allies SHANNON LEVITT | STAFF WRITER
I
n 2001, ninth-grader Shulamit Izen, an out Jewish lesbian who felt isolated in her suburban Boston Jewish high school, decided to start a gay/straight student alliance (GSA) in her school. The struggle she faced convincing her fellow students, teachers, principal and broader Jewish community to accept her on her own terms was chronicled four years later in “Hineini: Coming Out in a Jewish High School,” a documentary produced by Keshet, a national organization working for the full equality of all LGBTQ Jews and their families in Jewish life. At a late April gathering of LGBTQ+ Jews and their allies at Scottsdale’s Congregation Beth Israel (CBI), organizers played a long clip from the film showing Izen’s attempt to convince classmates to join her proposed GSA; her awkward exchange with her Orthodox rabbi/principal, who said he didn’t “want to hear about her sex life”; and the decision by one of her closeted gay teachers to come out at the big school/community meeting Izen’s quest ultimately necessitated. While each issue was particular to that time, that school, that community, when it came to bringing together a current panel of local Jews to discuss “LGBTQ+, Identity & the Jewish Community,” Rachael Kaplan-VanLandingham, CBI’s director of youth education and engagement; Jesse Edwards, religious school coordinator at Paradise Valley’s Temple Solel; and others found several aspects of Izen’s battle still germane today. “Unfortunately, a lot of the issues are still incredibly
Connecting the poor to the internet isn’t just politics, it’s tikkun olam, says Jewish FCC chairwoman SHANNON LEVITT | STAFF WRITER
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ederal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel joined Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego on Tuesday, May 9, as the mayor announced “an aggressive new effort to close the digital divide and connect more Phoenix residents to high-speed internet in 2023.” Rosenworcel appeared at the Phoenix Public Library’s Burton Barr Central branch as part of her nationwide tour promoting the federal government’s Af fordable Connectivity Program (ACP), which offers a monthly discount of up to $30 on broadband services to Volunteers learn how to sign eligible people up for the Affordable Connectivity Program. COURTESY OF JEWISH NEWS qualifying low-income households. To be eligible for a discount, Arizonans must have an income of no more than 200% of federal poverty guidelines ($60,000 for a family of four), or if one or more members receive other government assistance, including Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Women, Infants & Children (WIC), Medicaid, Supplemental Security Income, Federal Public Housing Assistance, Veterans Pension and Survivors Benefits or free or reduced-price school lunch. Additionally, there is a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer or tablet from qualifying providers. Before introducing Rosenworcel, Gallego touted the City of Phoenix’s recent $700,000 outreach grant from the FCC to support efforts to raise awareness and encourage local enrollment in the ACP program. SEE CONNECTING, PAGE 3
Managing bullying behavior Since May is Mental Health Awareness Month, Dr. Raun Melmed shares tips if your child is being bullied or bullies others. See page 8. COURTESY OF DR. RAUN MELMED
SEE SILENCE, PAGE 2
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