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Category: Jewish
Mount Scopus calls for removal of legislation allowing exclusion of students and staff on basis of sexuality
Mount Scopus Memorial College calls for the removal of discrimination against staff and students on the basis of sexual orientation.
Aleph Melbourne warmly welcomes Mount Scopus Memorial College’s submission to the inquiry into legislative exemptions that allow faith-based educational institutions to discriminate against students, teachers and staff.
Submissions to the inquiry are open until November 26 2018
See our table of responses from Jewish schools across Australia.
20181118-Mount-Scopus-Memorial-College-Submission-40Aleph Melbourne submission to inquiry into legislative exemptions that allow faith-based educational institutions to discriminate against students, teachers and staff
Aleph Melbourne opposes discrimination against students and staff of educational instutions on the grounds of LGBTIQ status. This is our submission to the senate inquiry.
Aleph Melbourne’s submission to the inquiry into legislative exemptions that allow faith-based educational institutions to discriminate against students, teachers and staff.
See our table of responses from Jewish schools across Australia.
Aleph_Melbourne_submission_to_inquiryThe King David School calls for all discrimination against students, parents and staff to be removed
King David School says discrimination against staff, parents and students on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation is unacceptable.
Aleph Melbourne welcomes The King David School’s submission to the inquiry into legislative exemptions that allow faith-based educational institutions to discriminate against students, teachers and staff.
Submissions to the inquiry are open until November 26 2018.
See our table of responses from Jewish schools across Australia.
20181120-KDS-Submission-to-inquiry-into-legislative-exemption
Bialik College calls for religious exemptions allowing LGBTIQ students, teachers and staff to be excluded to be scrapped
Bialik College says discrimination against staff, students and teachers on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation is unacceptable.
Aleph Melbourne welcomes Bialik College’s submission to the Senate inquiry into legislative exemptions that allow faith-based educational institutions to discriminate against students, teachers and staff.
Submissions to the inquiry are open until November 26 2018.
See our table of responses from Jewish schools across Australia.
20181119-Bialik-College-Submission-to-Discrimination-Inquiry
Aleph Melbourne launches 2018 Victorian State Election Voters Guide for LGBTIQ Equality
Aleph Melbourne launches its 2018 Victorian State Election Voters Guide for LGBTIQ Equality
MEDIA RELEASE
18 NOVEMBER 2018
ALEPH MELBOURNE LAUNCHES 2018 VICTORIAN STATE ELECTION VOTERS GUIDE FOR LGBTIQ EQUALITY
Aleph Melbourne is proud to announce its 2018 Voters Guide for LGBTIQ Equality. The Voters Guide is designed to assist voters living in Victorian voting districts with high Jewish populations best select candidates who have comprehensively demonstrated or pledged support for LGBTIQ equality.
The Voters Guide is online here: https://aleph.org.au/vic2018
Based on the Victorian Gay and Lesbian Lobby’s Rainbow Votes Survey and Report Card, we categorise the issues as Advancing equality, Discrimination, Safety and security, Family violence, housing and homelessness, Relationships, families and children, Education, Health and wellbeing, Bisexual Victorians, Trans and gender diverse Victorians, and Intersex Victorians.
We encourage voters to locate their voting district, review their candidates’ levels of support for LGBTIQ issues and vote in a manner that prioritises LGBTIQ equality.
We also encourage voters to contact candidates directly if they require additional information not included in the Voters Guide.
The 2018 Voters Guide is our first for a state election and follows on from our 2013 Voters Guide and 2016 Voters Guides for the respective Federal Elections.
ENDS
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
Michael Barnett
0417-595-541
contact@aleph.org.au
Jewish Care Victoria and Jewish Community Council of Victoria: Standing against Conversion Therapy
STANDING AGAINST CONVERSION THERAPY
A unique piece of research from La Trobe University, in conjunction with the Human Rights Law Centre and Gay & Lesbian Health Victoria, has highlighted the impact and harms of LGBT conversion therapy.At its core, conversion therapy asserts that individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender are ‘sexually broken’ or ‘psychologically damaged’ and therefore in need of redirection and reorientation to repair their sexual orientation or gender identity. To achieve this purported aim, conversion therapy imposes a range of practices such as electroconvulsive therapy, exorcism, hypnotherapy, intensive group prayer and other psychological strategies. The impacts according to those who have experienced such therapies include severe trauma, stress and often long-term psychological damage.
Of concern is the report’s finding that these practices continue today in a broad range of faith communities.
Jewish Care and the Jewish Community Council of Victoria firmly condemn the principles and assumptions that underlie the practices of conversion therapy, and we are proud to acknowledge and celebrate diversity and hold strong to the belief that it is a human right for all individuals, including those who identify as LGBTIQ+, to live free from prejudice, harm, harassment or abuse.
Jewish Care Victoria and JCCV stand against LGBT Conversion Therapy | J-Wire
A unique piece of research from Melbourne’s La Trobe University, in conjunction with the Human Rights Law Centre and Gay & Lesbian Health Victoria, has highlighted the impact and harms of LGBT conversion therapy.
The Preventing Harm, Promoting Justice: Responding to LGBT conversion therapy report explores the history of LGBT conversion therapy in Australia through the lens of 15 LGBT individuals with lived experience, with a focus on the use of conversion therapy in faith-based communities including the Jewish community.
At its core, conversion therapy asserts that individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender are ‘sexually broken’ or ‘psychologically damaged’ and therefore in need of redirection and reorientation to repair their sexual orientation or gender identity. To achieve this purported aim, conversion therapy imposes a range of practices such as electroconvulsive therapy, exorcism, hypnotherapy, intensive group prayer and other psychological strategies. The impacts according to those who have experienced such therapies include severe trauma, stress and often long-term psychological damage.
Of concern is the report’s finding that these practices continue today in a broad range of faith communities.
Jewish Care and the Jewish Community Council of Victoria (JCCV) firmly condemn the principles and assumptions that underlie the practices of conversion therapy, and we are proud to acknowledge and celebrate diversity and hold strong to the belief that it is a human right for all individuals, including those who identify as LGBTIQ+, to live free from prejudice, harm, harassment or abuse.
“It is a dark day to think that individuals are still not accepted for who they are and how they identify,” says CEO Bill Appleby. “Conversion therapy is a violation of the principles of social justice and human rights, and Jewish Care condemns such practices as archaic and harmful. They should not be tolerated.”
The value of inclusion or hachlala underpins the work of Jewish Care and is at the heart of all service delivery. “If we are truly to embrace diversity and work together for a just and equitable society, we need to stand up for those who are marginalised in our community. For an individual to feel forced to choose between their sexuality or gender identity and their religious community is extraordinarily painful. It is for this reason that I felt compelled to take a stand on this important issue,” said Mr Appleby.
JCCV President Jennifer Huppert said, “We must ensure that our community is inclusive for all community members and that our community organisations maintain inclusive practices and procedures to ensure LGBTI individuals and their families feel welcome, respected and valued.”
In addition to other activities to ensure the inclusion of LGBTI community members, Jewish Care is currently working to achieve Rainbow Tick accreditation.
For further information on the Preventing Harm, Promoting Justice: Responding to LGBT conversion therapy report, visit https://www.latrobe.edu.
au/news/articles/2018/release/ report-on-lgbt-conversion- therapy-harms
‘Independent, Jewish, gay’ – ABC Insiders
‘Independent, Jewish, gay.’ @frankelly08’s final observations after the #Wentworth by election.
'Independent, Jewish, gay.' @frankelly08's final observations after the #Wentworth by election. pic.twitter.com/ao4K4KipPg
— Insiders ABC (@InsidersABC) October 20, 2018
Queer @ JIFF 2018
Enjoy the following queer offerings at JIFF 2018. Full programme here.
THE PRINCE AND THE DYBBUK (KSIĄŻĘ I DYBUK) POLAND, GERMANY / 2017
“Outstanding… one of the most amazing biographies of the 20th century.” — The Spiegel
The director of the Yiddish classic The Dybbuk is remembered as a Polish aristocrat, Hollywood producer, a rogue and liar, and an open homosexual. But who, really, was Michal Waszyński (born Moshe Waks), the son of a poor Ukrainian Jewish blacksmith, who died as Prince Michal Waszyński in Italy? Waszyński made 40 films with Sophia Loren, Anna Magnani, Orson Welles and other stars, but his most spectacular creation was his own life.
Presenting a modern take on the narrative of the Wandering Jew, The Prince and the Dybbuk asks whether it is ever possible to cut oneself off from one’s roots, and at what cost.
Winner Best Documentary on Cinema at the 2017 Venice Film Festival.
82 MINS / ENGLISH, ITALIAN, HEBREW, YIDDISH (ENGLISH SUBTITLES)
DIRECTOR — Elwira Niewiera, Piotr Rosolowski
CATEGORY — Documentary
DEAR FREDY (FREDY HAYAKAR) ISRAEL / 2017
“People loved him. Their eyes sparkled when they talked about him, and they accept him as he was.” — Director Rubi Gat
The extraordinary story of Fredy Hirsch, a charismatic gymnast and youth leader who provided care and dignity to over 600 Jewish children.
Born in Germany, Hirsch was 19 years old when the Nuremberg Laws were published, forcing him to flee to the Czech Republic. Soon deported to Auschwitz, Hirsch used his experience to entertain and comfort the children of the camp, and collaborated with members of the underground to plan a revolt that never came to pass. Combining survivor testimony, exquisite animation and archive, Dear Fredy explores the life and legacy of an unsung queer Jewish hero.
74 MINS / HEBEW, ENGLISH, CZECH (ENGLISH SUBTITLES)
DIRECTOR — Rubi Gat
CATEGORY — Documentary
STUDIO 54: THE DOCUMENTARY USA / 2018
“[A] thrilling and definitive documentary [that] captures the delirium — and the dark side — of the legendary New York disco, and imprints us with an indelible portrait of the nightclub that became the apotheosis of the disco era: the freedom, the excess, the aristocracy, the pulsating pop glory.” — Variety
Studio 54 was the epicentre of 70s hedonism – a place that not only redefined the nightclub, but also came to symbolise an entire era. Its co-owners, Ian Schrager and Steve Rubell, two Jewish friends from Brooklyn, seemed to come out of nowhere to suddenly preside over a new kind of New York society. Now, 39 years after the velvet rope was first slung across the club’s hallowed threshold, this feature documentary tells the real story behind the greatest club of all time.
98 MINS / ENGLISH
DIRECTOR — Matt Tyrnauer
CAST — Steve Rubell, Ian Schrager
CATEGORY — Documentary
SAVING NETA (LEHATZIL ET NE) ISRAEL / 2016
“Touching and rewarding.” — The Jerusalem Post
Four women with nothing in common find their lives profoundly altered by an encounter with a mysterious stranger. A collection of stories spanning the seasons, each episode introduces a woman ‘on the verge’: a career police officer unable to cope with the stress of work and her teenage daughter; a lesbian cellist ambivalent about raising a child with her partner; a mother who plans to tell her children she’s getting a divorce; and a businesswoman who goes home for her mother’s funeral and must institutionalise her mentally challenged sister. Impacting each of these fractured lives is Neta, a drifter struggling with his own personal crisis.
This sensitive and thought-provoking contemplation of femininity and parenthood won the Audience Award at the 2017 Jerusalem Film Festival.
90 MINS / HEBREW (ENGLISH SUBTITLES)
DIRECTOR — Nir Bergman
CAST — Benny Avni, Rotem Abuhab, Naama Arlaky, Irit Kaplan
CATEGORY — Feature
RED COW (PARA ADUMA) ISRAEL / 2018
“An intriguing tale of forbidden first love.” — The Hollywood Reporter
Benny, an only child who lost her mother at birth, lives with her fundamentalist father in a Jewish settlement in East Jerusalem. As her father becomes more and more obsessed with a red heifer that he believes will bring the redemption, Benny drifts further away and into the arms of Yael, a young new woman in her life. She embarks on a personal journey that will shape her religious, political and sexual consciousness.
This sensitive and assured coming-of-age film won Best Israeli Film, Best Debut Film and Best Actress at the 2018 Jerusalem Film Festival.
91 MINS / HEBREW (ENGLISH SUBTITLES)
DIRECTOR — Tsivia Barkai
CAST — Gal Toren, Moran Rosenblatt, Avigail Kovari, Dana Sorin
CATEGORY — Feature
AGMC Conference 2018: Melbourne’s Jewish Community: Going from “gays not welcome” to “we support marriage equality” in under 20 years
An exploration of the transformation of attitudes toward LGBTIQ people within Melbourne’s Jewish community from the 1990s to current day.
(Click above or here to register)
Melbourne’s Jewish Community: Going from “gays not welcome” to “we support marriage equality” in under 20 years
3:30 PM – 4:00 PM
Sat Sep 22, 2018
Training Room
Community groups in action
Description
An exploration of the transformation of attitudes toward LGBTIQ people within Melbourne’s Jewish community from the 1990s to current day. This session includes the screening of a 10 minute documentary “Aleph Melbourne – Celebrating 20 Years – 1995-2015”. It also includes an exploration of how the 2009 shooting at the Tel Aviv LGBT Youth Centre was the catalyst for a series of events that shattered the decade-long silence since the Victorian Jewish community leadership rejected the membership application of a gay men’s group to them endorsing marriage equality 8 years later.
Learning objectives/outcomes:A greater understanding and appreciation of the issues, sensitivities and nuances around LGBTIQ inclusion in Melbourne’s Jewish community.
30 minute Oral Presentation and Video
Speaker
Michael Barnett
Convenor, Aleph Melbourne
