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South Florida events to mark Jewish American Heritage Month

Three South Florida events in celebration of Holocaust survivors, Jews who participated in the Civil Rights Movement and Jews in medicine mark the month of May as Jewish American Heritage Month.

U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-23) will moderate a discussion of Jewish contributions to the Civil Rights Movement in a program titled "Standing Up in the South" on May 7 at 4 p.m. at Hallandale High School in Hallandale Beach.

Speakers and panelists in "Standing Up in the South" include U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-20), Civil Rights leader Annsheila Turkel and Former Ambassador to the United Nations Andrew Young, Jr.

Dr. Sheldon Cherry will discuss the achievements of American Jews in medicine in his lecture titled "From Maimonides to South Beach: American Jews in Medicine" on May 7 at 2 p.m. at the Jewish Museum of Florida-Florida International University in Miami Beach.

South Florida Holocaust survivors and Jewish war veterans will share their testimonies with high school students on May 15 at 10 a.m. at the David Posnack Jewish Community Center in Davie. This JAHM event is not open to the public.

Wasserman Schultz organized the "Standing Up in the South" JAHM event to focus on the relations between African American and Jewish communities.

"Often referred to as the 'Golden Age' of African American and Jewish relations, some of the more pivotal moments occurred during the 20th century's Civil Rights movement," said Wasserman Schultz.

"It was a tremendously effective collaboration that culminated in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and it's a moment that deserves a far brighter spotlight."

Wasserman Schultz added that the panelists will share their memories of the Civil Rights Movement and the collaboration of African Americans and Jews working together for civil rights.

"There is a long, wonderful and storied history between the two communities and this fight for civil rights is far from over," said Wasserman Schultz.

Turkel, a member of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), and her late husband Leonard were among many Jews who joined African Americans at staged sit-in protests in Miami against segregation, according to their son Bruce Turkel.

"My parents were the first ones in the Deep South to stage a sit-in on April 29, 1959. Miami in the mid-1950s was a Jim Crow city. Blacks were restricted to living in three neighborhoods," wrote Turkel on his website bruceturkel.com in 2011.

For more information on the free JAHM event at Hallandale High School, 720 NW 9th Ave. in Hallandale Beach, call 954-845-1179.

In his lecture, Cherry will site the contributions of many American Jews in medical research and practice, including Nobel Prize winners Richard Axel (2004), Julius Axelrod (1970), Stanley Cohen (1986) Gerti Cohen (1947), Joseph Goldstein (1985), among many others.

"There is a focal point to the lecture that attendees will learn, such as why 32% of the Nobel Prize winners are Jewish," said Cherry.

"What I hope attendees will learn about is the contributions of American Jews in medicine, who are overwhelmingly offspring of immigrants."

Cherry is known primarily for his numerous papers in reproductive medicine. He is a professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Florida International University Wertheim College of Medicine in Miami.

For more information on the free JAHM event at Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU, 301 Washington Ave. in Miami Beach, call 305-672-5044 or go to www.jmof.fiu.edu

The JAHM event focusing on Holocaust survivors and Jewish War Veterans marks the second consecutive year that the survivors and war veterans will jointly share their testimonies to high school students.

Jewish American Heritage Month is celebrated during the month of May as an annual celebration and recognition of Jewish Americans for their achievements and contributions in the United States.

Wasserman Schultz is credited, along with late Senator Arlen Specter (D-PA) and the Jewish Museum of Florida, with founding the annual JAHM celebrations, beginning in 2006.

To learn more about Jewish American Heritage Month, go to www.jewishamericanheritagemonth.us.

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