John Zogby is a regular contributor to the Huffington Post and frequently publishes opinion columns in the likes of the The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Newsweek and more. He also regularly appears on nightly network news programs and is a guest commentator on MSNBC and the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). People may also recognize him from appearances on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

He will be addressing the state of affairs in America today, including international views of the country. The event will include a meet & greet with Zogby, a presentation and booksale/signing thanks to Carmichael’s Bookstore. For anyone who has trouble making sense of the often confusing and complex world we live in or wants a chance to hear more than just what they read in the news, this will be a great event.

November 10, 2011
5:30PM – reception
6:30PM – speaking event
Price: $15 (includes reception) for nonmembers
Free with a student ID!
Tickets available online at worldkentucky.org or by calling (502) 561-5422

Regency Ballrom
Hyatt Regency Downtown
320 W. Jefferson Street
Louisville, KY

Just about every calendar has Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) and Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement) noted (along with Boxing Day and tons of other holidays that not all of us observe) so it’s not that difficult to know you’re scheduling an event on these holy days. This makes me think that there are two possible scenarios for deciding to hold an event on Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur. The first scenario is one in which a conscious decision was made to have an event on the holiday because for your specific audience you know there isn’t a conflict or you’ve calculated that the percentage of people impacted by the conflict isn’t significant enough, for you, to choose another date.

The second possible scenario (and the one I hope is most common) is that event planners simply don’t know how important the Jewish High Holy Days are to observant (and even most non-observant) Jews. They see Yom Kippur on the calendar but how are they to know that it is the holiest day of the year for Jews if they don’t have any connection to the Jewish community? Posing that question makes me ask myself: do I know when the holiest days of the year are for Muslims or Hindus? The answer, sadly, is no.

So I think we all need to step up our religious diversity awareness game a little bit. I’m not asking you to know what or when Purim (or even Hanukkah) is but Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur should be on everyone’s radar. So should Eid ul-Fitr (Islam) and Diwali (Hindu). I don’t want to just be a complainer, I want to do my part in this area so I’m going to do two things:

1. I’m going to give you a little primer on the Jewish High Holy Days and their observance in Louisville. Throughout the year I may throw in some info about “minor” but fun Jewish holidays like Purim and other major ones like Passover.

2. I’m going to publish guest posts from writers of different faiths about their religion’s holiest days and rituals and how those holidays are observed in Louisville. So please consider this an open call for guest writers, who are not Jewish, to educate us about your faith’s most holy times. I’d be pleased as could be to get writers representing Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Shinto and others. Also I’m aware that some Christian denominations have different/additional holy days (I’m thinking of Orthodox Christians who celebrate Christmas on a day other than December 25 I believe, correct me if I’m wrong) so I’d love to have those voices represented as well.

Don’t worry it’s not going to turn into all-religion, all the time around here but I honestly do think being aware of and respectful to the religious diversity that exists in our city makes us all better Louisville citizens.

And to help event planners out here are the dates of the Jewish High Holy Days for this year and the next two years:

Rosh Hashanah
Sunset September 28 – nightfall September 30, 2011
Sunset September 16 – nightfall September 18, 2012
Sunset September 4- nightfall September 6, 2013

Yom Kippur
Sunset October 7 – nightfall October 8, 2011
Sunset September 25 – nightfall September 26, 2012
Sunset September 13 – nightfall September 14, 2013

The one-day TEDx conference will highlight various aspects of the sustainable food and farming movement and the work being done to shift the U.S. food system from industrially-based agriculture to regional sustainable where healthy, nutritious food is accessible to all.

In addition to the NY speakers folks involved with our local food scene will be on hand, a farmers market will take place during the day and if you RSVP by February 8 you can get a brown bag lunch featuring local foods (email thefarmer@grasshoppersdistribution.com to RSVP).

Saturday February 12, 2001
10AM-6PM

Bellarmine University
Frazier Hall

Each event will feature:
- Tastings of 4 different wines from the highlighted country
- A full pour of your favorite wine from the tastings
- Expert presentation and explanation of the wines
- Entertaining and Educational activities in the language from the highlighted country
- Great Food and Coffee available for purchase

You can enroll for all 6 weeks for $130 or choose individual sessions for $25 each. With 4 wines and an introduction to the language of the country represented it seems like a pretty good deal and I really bet this is going to be fun. I highly encourage you to check it out and report back to the class. Space is limited so reserve your spot online. The first session is Tuesday July 6, 2010.

Saturday April 17, 2010
2PM

LFPL
601 W. Woodlawn Avenue
Louisville, Kentucky 40215
(502) 574-1720

Hixson, a University of Akron history professor, is expected to talk about the cultural roots of U.S. foreign relations and explain why the nation’s foreign policy has remained remarkably unchanged throughout its history. He contends that Americans always have united behind a powerful nationalism grounded in campaigns against external enemies and that this also affects domestic reform and dissent. Hixson suggests that people can better understand the relationship between war and society in the past and present by analyzing foreign policy in a cultural context over the span of American history.

Wednesday March 31, 2010
5:30PM
Free and open to the public

Ekstrom Library
Chao Auditorium
University of Louisville

Thanks to the miracles of modern technology, the Adath Jeshurun Vision Committee is pleased to announce the following special LIVE from NY’s 92nd Street Y ™ events:

Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Thursday January 28, 8PM
Nina Totenberg, moderator

Rabbi Capers Funnye on Tuesday March 2, 8:15PM
Rabbi Capers Funnye, Michelle Obama’s first cousin, holds a pulpit on the South Side of Chicago and is the first African American rabbi to serve on the Chicago Board of Rabbis. Hear about his journey to Judaism and to the rabbinate, his work in Africa with groups exploring their ancient Jewish roots and about Black Jewish communities in America, as well as a few inside stories about the First Family

Matisyahu on Tuesday March 16, 8PM
Cultural icon Matisyahu, whose blend of Hasidic, reggae and hip hop music has sold millions of records and garnered fans around the world, makes his first visit to the 92nd Street Y to discuss his development as an artist, his latest record, Light and the fusion of his various musical styles. He will perform several songs!

Each program will be broadcast live via satellite from the 92nd Street Y in New York.

Tickets: $8 per event
To order tickets with your credit card call 458‑5359 or buy at the door (cash only).

Congregation Adath Jeshurun
2401 Woodbourne Avenue
Louisville, KY 40205

Visitors to this week’s Farmer’s Market & Bazaar will have a unique opportunity to learn about the culture of Burundi, the African nation that was formerly home to many refugees now living in Louisville. The Burundi Community of Kentucky will be hosting this week’s Heritage Sunday.

The number of immigrant and refugee microentrepreneurs selling their wares at the Multicultural Bazaar continues to grow and includes a Cuban who makes macramé and bead jewelry, a Somali woman selling fabrics and doing Henna tattoos, a Congolese man who imports crafts from his native village to help support his former neighbors struggling to survive in the war-torn country, …
This week we will also have a visitor from Rwanda selling arts and crafts.

The farmer’s market also features a variety of locally-grown fresh produce, flowers and some home canned items.

We encourage you to stop by this Sunday, learn more about Burundi, and support our microenterprise clients as well as local farmers.

Open 12-4 this Sunday – corner of Dutchmans and Cannons Lanes

This new market at the JFCS offices (across from the JCC) starts this weekend and will run through October. It appears they plan to have different cultural programs each week. The one for this Sunday, June 14, is going to feature a Mexican dance group called Arcoiris Latino.

JFCS Farmers Market
Sundays June 14 – October

Jewish Family & Career Services
2821 Klempner Way

Enjoy the area’s largest Asian culture event at the Speed Art Museum. Experience the arts and traditions of China, India, Japan, Korea, Laos, Cambodia, Philippines, Uzbekistan and others. Activities include cultural performances in the auditorium, informational displays, hands-on experiences in the Art Sparks Workshop and special demonstrations.

Event sponsored by Speed Art Museum, Crane House (The Asia Institute, Inc.), University of Louisville, Organization of Chinese Americans, Greater Louisville Japan Center, Cambodian Community, Filipino American Heritage Association, Crescent Moon Dancers, and the Asian communities of Louisville.

Program is free and is from 12:00 – 5:00. A variety of Asian food will be offered outside along with outdoor activities.

Saturday May 16, 2009

Speed Museum
2035 S. Third St.

Louisville, Kentucky