Editor-in-Chief Deborah Levine articles
After the attempted assassination of former President Trump, will there be renewed discussions around gun control? Gun violence researchers saying that there’s a contagion effect with every incident encouraging copy cats, little progress has been made.
Continue reading Guns and more Guns, Again – by Deborah Levine
Mothers Day is a great American traditions, but I’m not sure I like it. Unhappily, I have a really big problem with these days because I don’t have the goods. My mother and grandmother who were such loving figures in my life are gone. My father, who I take after in so many ways, is gone, too. I’m feeling a bit sorry for myself. My children live far away but will no doubt call or send a card. I’m grateful for their love but I would really like to call my own parents. Just knowing they were around made life balanced and feel more secure.
Continue reading Mothers Day: Matriarch Training – by Deborah Levine
I used to write about terrorist destructors in the U.S. every spring. My articles began with the domestic terrorism of the Oklahoma City bombing more than thirty years ago on April 19. That’s when I became the community/media liaison for Oklahoma’s Tulsa Jewish Federation. It was shortly after the bombing destroyed the Murrah Building and so many lives were affected. I felt compelled to investigate what led to the deadliest bombing, prior to 9/11, on our native soil. The violent hatred that I saw has not only continued, but has expanded globally, and now, it encompasses the entire year.
Continue reading Tracking our Terrorist Destructors – by Deborah Levine
EDUCATION TOOL &
AWARD-WINNING DOCUMENTARY
(scroll down for links)
Holocaust education is a vital element to counteracting the antisemitism and Holocaust denial as they grow world-wide. Educators and students, community leaders and activists should hear the first-hand Untold stories of WW II and the Holocaust. Deborah Levine, daughter of a World War II military intelligence officer, has created this documentary as a tool for counteracting hate and for Holocaust education. Her father, Aaron Levine was a ” Ritchie Boy” trained at Fort Ritchie, the U.S. secret military intelligence camp focused on training men, often Jewish immigrants who spoke German, to interrogate Nazi prisoners of war.
Hear the wartime perspective of Aaron Levine as he liberated death camps, served as a spy, and wrote letters about his experience. Be inspired by the love letters of Estelle Swig Malloy, a Special Education pioneer whom Aaron married after they graduated from Harvard. Then hear the memoirs of Polish Holocaust Survivor, Leon Weisband who documented the Nazi invasion of his hometown.
“No student of history can come away from this without a deeper understanding of the sacrifices that were made to end the Holocaust and of the power of storytelling to heal the human heart.”
~ Dylan Kussman, Hollywood actor/producer“Deborah Levine’s work continues to be of utmost importance for students of all ages. The specific story of ‘UNTOLD’ MUST be told today and forever, so that the words ‘Never Again’ never lose their meaning!”~Avi Hoffman, CEO Yiddishkayt Initiative, Inc.“Many liberators such as Levine’s father kept their experience largely secret So this is an important resource for Holocaust education and research…and a very engaging introduction to the journey of the Jewish community over the past century”~ The Rev. Dr. John T. Pawlikowski: Founding member of the US Holocaust Center, Prof of Social Ethics/Catholic Theological Union
From her roots in the only Jewish family to have lived in Bermuda for 4 generations, to her role as a Forbes Diversity & Inclusion Trailblazer, Deborah has been dedicated to “Tikkun olam”, Hebrew for “repair of the world”. This latest project is decades in the making, and is broadcast internationally by Jewish Life TV.
“Untold” in its radio theater, documentary and music formats is a Winner in 17 International film festivals including: 1) Lily Indie Film Fest, 2) 4theatre selection, 3) NYC Independent Film Festival (11th season), 4) Red Moon Festival (8th season), 5) Spring Time International, 6) Bright International, 7) Dreamz Catcher International, 8) Indie Cine Tube Awards, 9) Lightbox International, 10) Crown International, 11) Delta International, 12) EdiPlay International, 13) Red Wolf Film Festival, 14) Indiefare International Film Festival, 15) FlightDeck Film Festival, 16) Cine Sepia Reels Carnival, KIIFF Kurdistan International Independent Film Festival.
Author: Deborah Levine
Director: Dennis Parker
Music Composer/Performer: Michael A. Levine
Actors: Dylan Kussman, Joel Scribner, Charlene Hong White, Trish Ross, Chase Parker, George Hoctor, Greg Glover.
Actors: Deborah Levine, Rabbi Craig Lewis, Rabbi Sam Rotenberg, Bea Lurie, Jed Meson, Dr. John Steinberg, Richard Zachary,
Is Women’s History Month still relevant today? Is the need for sisterhood activism over as some say? We look back at the first group to advocate for women’s right to vote nationally and see that it was ultimately successful. The Seneca Falls Woman’s Rights Convention was held long ago in1848. But the words of its organizer Elizabeth Cady Stanton still hold true and yet are still controversial, “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal.”
The push to attract women to STEM education and careers is gaining steam, but the impact is questionable. Young women have ample cause to be discouraged given the decrease of the number of women professionals in many STEM fields. Bucking the trend, efforts to encourage women to embrace STEM have increased dramatically. Those efforts span the country, including in Tennessee where Chattanooga’s Women GroundBreakers Storytelling featuring women in STEM.
Continue reading STEM Women Storytellers – by Deborah Levine
I’d just driven into my parents’ driveway. I was time to pick up my toddler from the babysitting grandparents. And there was my little 3-year-old Rosie, rocking back and forth on her rocking horse without a care in the world. The horse squeaked and groaned on its springs, far too annoying to be allowed in the house.
It was an honor to share my perspective as a Jew and diversity professional at Chattanooga’s MLK interfaith service commemorating The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. That event was years ago but my passion for diversity is a lifelong legacy from my father, a US World War II military intelligence officer whose letters describing Naziism reside in Cincinnati’s American Jewish Archives. Having dedicated decades to tikkun olam, Hebrew for ‘repair of the world,’ I resonate to this day to Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel’s words, “Racism is man’s gravest threat to man – the maximum of hatred for a minimum of reason.”
Continue reading A Jewish Perspective on MLK – by Deborah Levine
Deborah: I’m getting multiple emails and phone calls disturbed and distressed about today’s divisive world. Colleagues ask about what can and should be done to counter the current trends. One of the emails that stands out is from Terry Howard, one of our American Diversity Report Advisors.
Terry: “Hey Deborah, considering the on-going Israel-Hamas conflict and its seismic increases in acts of antisemitic and Islamophobia in the United States, what are your thoughts about developing something highlighting divisive/hurtful words and language that divides? For example, I’m not sure that many people are familiar with the history behind the expression, “From river to sea,” and language used to disparage Palestinians.”
Deborah: Talk about controversy! For the Jewish people, the phrase “From river to sea” means the elimination of Israel and replacement by a Palestinian nation. For Palestinians, I believe it means freedom from occupation. What prompted your interest in this difficult subject?
I’m honored to be the Tennessee State Chair of the Inter-Cultural Dialogue Wing of G100 Women Leaders / All Ladies League. I hope to bring together women making a difference in our state. It reminds me of when I founded the Women’s Council on Diversity and the Global Leadership Class more than 20 years ago. Let’s go again: Crosscultural boundaries Locally & Globally – Instruct & Inspire! (Let me know if this interests you.)
G100 is a huge action-think tank that comprises 100 wings/sectors, led by 100 Global Chairs like Dr. Aurora Martin who is Global Chair/Inter-Cultural Dialogue and Advisors like Global Advisor/Inter-Cultural Dialogue Shon Abegaz. The Chairs further nominate 100 country chairs in 100 countries for global reach and impact. Country chairs, like Monica Jaramillo who is the USA Country Chair/Inter-cultural Dialogue, then foster communities of 100 members directly or through further distributed leadership of region/state/city/district chairs.
G100 is a powerful Group of women leaders and achievers from all walks of life who wish to give back and move us all forward as architects of the future. It’s a league of luminaries of eminence and excellence including Nobel Laureates, Heads of States, Ministers, Businesswomen, Philanthropists, Investors, Entrepreneurs, CEOs, Corporate and Community Leaders – like me.
Continue reading TN Chapter of G100 Women Leaders – by Deborah Levine
