The National Council of Young Israel organized a company-sponsored visit for 25 Orthodox rabbis to Postville, Iowa, last week. Here is video shot by the Five Towns Jewish Times inside the plant. WARNING to vegetarians and those of weak stomach (myself included): Video includes graphic footage from the kill floor. UPDATE: Also today, the Iowa… More ▸
The New York Times weighed in with its latest editorial on the fallout from the May 12 immigration raid at Agriprocessors, the largest kosher meatpacking plant in the U.S. (See previous editorial here). Most of the newspaper’s ire was reserved for the federal government, whose criminalization of the illegal workers it called “a disgrace,” “a… More ▸
Two days after immigrants and their advocates marched in Postville, Agriprocessors released this statement: The founders of Agriprocessors, the Rubashkin family, are a Jewish refugee family that escaped the clutches of Communism decades ago. Aron and Rivka Rubashkin fled Soviet Russia after experiencing oppression in the anti religious regime. Mrs. Rubashkin’s uncles were imprisoned in… More ▸
Sue Fishkoff was in Postville, Iowa for yesterday’s rally there on behalf of the workers at Agriprocessors. Click here for her story. Perhaps the biggest name from the Jewish organizational world to take part was Gideon Aronoff, president and CEO of HIAS. Here’s the text of his speech: Statement of Gideon Aronoff President and CEO,… More ▸
On the heels of Sunday’s interfaith rally in Postville, the National Council of Young Israel has announced it is planning a mission of its own to the beleaguered Iowa town on July 31. Here’s the purpose of the trip, which will involve “several dozen Jewish community and rabbinic leaders,” according to NCYI’s Pesach Lerner: This… More ▸
I’ve heard of niche publishing, but a kosher Japanese cookbook aimed at people who don’t keep Shabbos? Kinue Imai Weinstein, the author of Japanese Kosher Cooking – With Ingredients From Your Refrigerator – will talk how easy it is to cook Japanese food kosher at Kinokuniya Bookstore located at 1073 Avenue of the Americas (between… More ▸
Another week of stunning revelations out of Postville. Let’s recap: The PR firm Agri hired to help revive its image, 5WPR, ran into some image problems of its own when evidence emerged connecting the publicity company to comments to various Web sites in the name of Rabbi Morris Allen, an advocate for ethical kashrut standards… More ▸
Here’s the fake quote attributed to Rabbi Morris Allen that was posted to the JTA site: There is a war going on here, the war between the kashrut standards of Orthodoxy and Conservatives. For so long, Orthodoxy has controlled the “industry” and we see what has happened. Tzedek will set a standard set by a… More ▸
5WPR’s founder and president, Ronn Torossian, just issued this statement about the controversy engulfing his company [UPDATE: This is the revised version that the company sent out a few minutes after the first one]: While traveling earlier this week with my family out of the country, my IT department investigated accusations which we have now… More ▸
FailedMessiah reports today that two comments attributed to Rabbi Morris Allen, the Minnesota rabbi behind the Conservative movement’s Hekhsher Tzedek project, originated in the office of 5WPR, the public relations firm hired to help kosher meat producer Agriprocessors cope with the fallout from the May 12 raid. We’re still seeking comment from 5W. Shira Dicker,… More ▸
