The History of Antisemitism in Los Angeles

This event is SOLD OUT.

Livestream available HERE.

"Is the antisemitism here today worse than it has ever been? Hard to say, because for so very long, almost no one wanted to talk openly about it — certainly not most of the people committing it, and maybe not even the people who were its victims, fearful that bringing it up would only bring them more hateful attention." - Pat Morrison, "Antisemitism Has a Long History in Los Angeles", LA Times

Join this panel discussion to learn more about why and how antisemitism in Los Angeles is not new and how we, as a community, can work together to stand up against anti-Jewish hate. 

Featuring: 

Patt Morrison, Writer and Columnist for the Los Angeles Times

• Her work has spanned national politics and stories from the Los Angeles riots and earthquakes and the Space Shuttle to the Super Bowl – which she covered from inside a women’s bathroom – and the death of the Princess of Wales. As a member of two Los Angeles Times’ reporting teams, she has a share of two Pulitzer Prizes. For her work hosting programs on public television and radio, she has received six Emmy awards and a dozen Golden Mikes. Patt is also a regular commentator on the Emmy-winning “L.A. Times Today” show on Spectrum 1. Her nonfiction books, “Rio L.A., Tales from the Los Angeles River” and “Don’t Stop the Presses! Truth, Justice, and the American Newspaper,” were both bestsellers.

Jordanna Gessler, Chief Impact Officer at Holocaust Museum LA

• Jordanna Gessler, the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, provides strategic leadership for the education and archive departments at Holocaust Museum LA. With over 15 years of work in the Holocaust Studies field, Jordanna is a visionary leader with a proven track record in leading program, research, and educational initiatives. Jordanna studied Holocaust history as an undergraduate at the University of Vermont and as a graduate student at the University of Haifa. She conducted research in the Righteous Among the Nations Department at Yad Vashem and won the 2014 Yad Vashem Award for Research. Jordanna has written articles and presented internationally on topics including contemporary antisemitism, fiction and the Holocaust, art and resistance, and teaching empathy.  Passionate about animal rights, civic engagement, advocacy, and education, she is an active member of several non-profit organizations and sits on the board of the Council of American Jewish Museums, which was named by the White House as part of the National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism.

Steven J. Ross, Distinguished Professor of History and Director of the University of Southern California’s Casden Institute for the Study of the Jewish Role in American Life

• His most recent book, Hitler in Los Angeles: How Jews Foiled Nazi Plots Against Hollywood and America was named a Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in History for 2018 and was on the Los Angeles Times Bestseller List for 23 weeks. It has also been made into a documentary for French television, Leon Lewis, the Man Who Defeated the Nazis in Hollywood (English title). Ross’s current book, The Secret War Against Hate: American Resistance to White Supremacy After 1945, will be published by Bloomsbury Press.