Ithaca College

"Contemporary Jewish Identities: Gender, Race, and Power" (JWST 29400) is being offered in Spring 2016 on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:35-3:50 and from 4:00-5:15 in Job Hall 160. The 2:35-3:50 section has just opened for enrollment.

The course, taught by Rebecca Lesses, addresses the multiplicity of contemporary Jewish identities, focusing on Jews in the United States and Israel, the two largest contemporary Jewish communities. Questions include: What does it mean to be Jewish? Is this a religious, ethnic, national, or racial identity? Is there a common Jewish identity among Jews of widely varying ethnic origins, religious affiliation, and national allegiances? These questions will be explored through four different topics: 1) Jews and Race; 2) Post-Holocaust Jewish Identity; 3) Jewish identity in Israel; 4) Gender, Feminism, and Queer Identity.

This course is open to all students, and fulfills several ICC designations. It is a Diversity course and covers two Themes: Identities and Power and Justice, with the Humanities perspective.

In addition, in the old Humanities & Sciences general education program, it is designated as a Self and Society (1) course.

For more information, please contact Rebecca Lesses at rlesses@ithaca.edu or call 274-3556.