Voices on Antisemitism features a broad range of perspectives about antisemitism and hatred. This podcast featured dozens of guests over its ten-year run.
Blog Home > popular culture figures
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James Loeffler
June 2, 2016
James Loeffler is an associate professor of history and Jewish studies at the University of Virginia. He is a trained pianist, musicologist, and specialist on Jewish classical music. He serves as scholar-in-residence at Pro Musica Hebraica in Washington, DC, and has curated concerts at the Kennedy Center.
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Robert Edsel
February 6, 2014
Robert Edsel's book The Monuments Men is about a group of Allied men and women tasked with saving the cultural and artistic treasures of Europe. Now a Hollywood film, Edsel's book details the extraordinary scale of Hitler's theft, alongside the calculated destruction of Jewish art and culture.
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Rita Jahanforuz
December 6, 2012
Iranian-born Rita Jahanforuz is one of the biggest pop stars in Israel. With the release of her recent album, sung almost entirely in her native Farsi, Rita is developing a fan base in Iran as well, despite the fact that her music is banned there. Although she does not consider herself a political person, Rita is proof that individuals can challenge a system of state-sponsored antisemitism by reaching across cultural boundaries.
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Vanessa Hidary
April 5, 2012
In her signature poem "Hebrew Mamita," Vanessa Hidary addresses antisemitic stereotypes in her direct, no-nonsense style. In this piece, she unpacks insult-as-compliment antisemitism, and the subtle ways that oppression can get under your skin.
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David Draiman
February 2, 2012
As frontman for the multi-platinum hard-rock band Disturbed, David Draiman writes songs that are often personal and political. As a kid, he was drawn into occasional fistfights over anti-Jewish remarks. As an adult, he addresses Holocaust denial and antisemitism in his song "Never Again."
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Vidal Sassoon
January 5, 2012
Although Vidal Sassoon has stopped cutting hair himself—he jokes that no one wants an 84-year-old stylist—he maintains a strong pride in his Jewish identity, a robust sense of political activism, and a vigilance toward antisemitism.
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Michael Kahn
December 1, 2011
During his career, Kahn has produced The Merchant of Venice three times. It is among the most popular and the most contentious of Shakespeare's plays, with ever-evolving relevance for modern audiences.
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Sir Ben Kingsley
October 6, 2011
Sir Ben Kingsley has played key roles in several films about the Holocaust, including Simon Wiesenthal, Itzhak Stern, and Otto Frank. Kingsley believes that it is important to confront tragedy in film and art, and that as an actor he is able to be both storyteller and witness.
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Sarah Jones
April 7, 2011
Sarah Jones is well known for her one-person Broadway show Bridge & Tunnel, in which she delivers monologues from fourteen characters of different ages and cultural backgrounds. Jones has dedicated her work to bringing people together through shared stories.
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Garth Crooks
September 2, 2010
Racism and antisemitism have, unfortunately, been part of soccer culture for many decades. As a black player on predominantly white British teams, Garth Crooks experienced the problem firsthand, and now strives to purge the sport of prejudice and hate.
