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WHAT’S DRIVING THE AMERICAN JEWISH CONVERSATION

U.S. mulling airdropping aid into Gaza, new poll shows young Americans more likely than their parents to hold antisemitic views, Elon Musk to testify in neo-Nazi case, remembering Richard Lewis, and the secret Jewish history of Leap Day.

ISRAEL AT WAR

Dani Schoffman, left, and Ruth Berdah-Canet on set in Tel Aviv filming a short video seeking the release of the hostages. (Zohar Zeev)

Meet the volunteer Israeli filmmakers working to free the hostages:You’ve likely seen some of the viral #BringThemHomeNow videos the group has made for the highest-stakes social media campaign in Israeli history. Seventeen have run so far, and the creators say they’ve gotten more than 150 million views. Now, with President Joe Biden urging negotiations to seal a deal for a second wave of hostage releases and a six-week ceasefire, they feel the campaign is ever more urgent. Our Susan Greene got a behind-the-scenes tour of their Tel Aviv studio. Read the story ➤

Related: Groups working to support Israeli hostages and their families were awarded the $1 million Genesis Prize, also known as the “Jewish Nobel.” Past awardees include Barbra Streisand, Robert Kraft, Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks and Steven Spielberg.

The main entrance of Barnard College in New York City. (Getty)

On campus…

In the wake of an antisemitism lawsuit, Barnard bans messaging on dorm doors: Some students at Barnard College have placed signs on their dormitory doors charging Israel with genocide in Gaza. Jewish students last week filed a lawsuit, accusing the school of failing to protect them, which led to the new rule that went into effect Wednesday. Mezuzahs will still be allowed on doorframes. Read the story ➤

‘You cannot hide’ | Jewish student leader targeted at University of California multicultural center: “I do not feel safe on campus,” said Tessa Veksler, a senior at UC Santa Barbara, of the many signs condemning her and Zionism that were plastered at the school. She posted about the incident on social media, and a day later said she was “completely overwhelmed by the love and support flooding in” online, including from actress Mayim Bialik. Read the story ➤

Plus: Dozens of students walked out of class on Tuesday as part of a protest against antisemitic incidents happening at a Los Angeles high school in recent weeks.

President Joe Biden on an October solidarity visit to Israel. (Getty)

Opinion | Biden is preparing to defy Israel in wartime — something no president has done since Eisenhower:President Biden’s recent moves — including promoting a draft proposal calling for a ceasefire in the United Nations and reversing Trump-era policies on the West Bank — are an anomaly for U.S. presidents, writes Eric Alterman, author of We Are Not One: A History of America’s Fight Over Israel. It’s been nearly 70 years since President Dwight Eisenhower demanded Israel stop its invasion of the Sinai Peninsula. No president since, until Biden, has braved the domestic political consequences that come with pushing back on Israel in the middle of a war. Read his essay ➤

Related: Biden’s Israeli-Palestinian peace plan is the best path forward, writes our senior columnist, Rob Eshman, in an opinion essay.

A student cries Wednesday in Tel Aviv after hearing a speech from the widow of a dead hostage. (Getty)

Plus…

The death toll in Gaza surpassed 30,000 on Thursday, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.

The U.S. is considering airdropping aid into Gaza as land deliveries become increasingly difficult.

Israel and Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, were on track to establish diplomatic ties. And then Oct. 7 happened.

The vast majority of Americans, 82%, back Israel over Hamas, according to a new poll.

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ALSO IN THE FORWARD

(Getty)

The secret Jewish history of Leap Day: Considering it only pops up once every four years, Feb. 29 has proven to be a somewhat auspicious date in Jewish history. And this year, we’re not only getting an extra day in February, but also an extra Purim on the Jewish calendar.

Related…

Wait, what?!? There’s an extra Purim this year?

How the Jewish calendar got coded — and how ingenious coders made it happen

How one vintage watch has been making cantors’ lives easier for more than 50 years

Bruce Haynes, left, author of The Soul of Judaism, and his grandfather George Haynes, the co-founder of the National Urban League. (Courtesy)

Author has The Soul of Judaism — and the DNA to prove it: Although Bruce Haynes is the author of one of the most important books about Black Jews in the U.S. written in the last 20 years, he didn’t know he was Jewish until recently. Bruce was quite familiar with his grandfather, who secured a place in history as the co-founder of the National Urban League. But his Jewish family? He’s just getting to know them.

Today at 12 p.m. ET: Join Bruce and our editor-at-large, Robin Washington, and others for a Zoom conversation to close out Black History Month. Register for free here ➤

Related: Five things not to ask a Jew of color

WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

The ADL’s Jonathan Greenblatt called the findings of a new antisemitism survey “shocking.” (Getty)

😲 Young Americans are now more likely than their parents and grandparents to believe negative stereotypes about Jews, according to a new ADL survey released this morning. (Haaretz, Jewish Insider)

🥊 A Texas judge ordered Elon Musk to testify in a deposition as part of a defamation lawsuit that accuses the billionaire of falsely linking a Jewish man to a neo-Nazi brawl. (Huffington Post)

🖼️ The Art Institute of Chicago was accused of exhibiting “willful blindness” to evidence suggesting it was purchasing artwork stolen during the Holocaust when it acquired a drawing that authorities say was looted by the Nazis. (Chicago Sun-Times)

🧸 A Chinese actor who voices a popular children’s cartoon called Boonie Bears is drawing criticism after he made antisemitic comments on social media. (JTA)

✍️ Following the lead of several states, the Florida Senate passed a bill Wednesday that defines antisemitism, which makes it easier for law enforcement to prosecute hate crimes. (AP)

🇬🇧 British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced Wednesday around $68 million of new funding to protect Jewish communities against antisemitism over the next four years. (Times of Israel)

Mazel tov ➤ To Sheila Weinberg, who became the first transgender person in Israel to win a local council seat.

What else we’re reading ➤ Raised in the West Bank, shot in Vermont … The Alabama ruling on embryos claimed to be Christian. Christians aren’t so sure … From knishes to challahs, these classic Ashkenazi foods aren’t for eating — they’re purses.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

Comedian Richard Lewis at the 2002 United Jewish Communities National Young Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C., where he spoke of his strong lifelong connection to Judaism. (Robert A. Cumins)

Richard Lewis, the legendary Jewish comedian, died at 76. For the last two decades of his life, he played himself on Curb Your Enthusiasm, with his friend Larry David. “Richard and I were born three days apart in the same hospital and for most of my life he’s been like a brother to me,” David said Wednesday. “He had that rare combination of being the funniest person and also the sweetest. But today he made me sob, and for that I’ll never forgive him.”

Lewis channeled his neuroses and his twitchy, undeniably Jewish self-deprecation into a successful career. Read our appreciation ➤

Thanks to Lauren Markoe, Chana Pollack and Talya Zax for contributing to today’s newsletter, and to Beth Harpaz for editing it. You can reach the “Forwarding” team at [email protected].

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