It is with profound sadness that the Field Band Foundation marks the death earlier today of its co-founder and Honorary Life President, Mr. Bertie Lubner. From our very beginnings in 1997, Bertie has been an active and involved supporter of the Foundation’s outreach to more than 40 000 children of disadvantage across South Africa. Through this time, he personified active citizenship, humane caring for people less privileged, consistent optimism in positive outcomes, and dilig

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies extends its condolences to the family and friends of Bertie Lubner who sadly passed away this morning (18 April 2016). Bertie was an extraordinary man, contributing to many worthy causes. His vision and leadership were responsible for the creation and development of some of South Africa’s leading NGO’s including Afrika Tikkun, Friends of Ben Gurion University and the SA Israel Chamber of Commerce.Bertie was a member of the Gauteng Co

Reports of violence, intimidation, and hate-speech directed against Lesbians, Jews and Whites during the protests at Wits University yesterday are distressing.  While the South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) is sensitive to the myriad of serious issues facing students in this country, it is never acceptable to target minority groups and inflame hatred.  According to comments and photos on twitter, a student claims “they strangled me, choke slammed me, threatened me.

Reports of violence, intimidation, and hate-speech directed against Lesbians, Jews and Whites during the protests at Wits University yesterday are distressing. While the South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) is sensitive to the myriad of serious issues facing students in this country, it is never acceptable to target minority groups and inflame hatred. According to comments and photos on twitter, a student claims “they strangled me, choke slammed me, threatened me. A

The SAJBD condemns the horrendous terrorist atrocities that took place in Brussels today. We express our sincerest condolences to the people of Belgium and particularly the families of the victims. We join with the international community in expressing our commitment to eradicating the scourge of terrorism wherever it surfaces.

The SAJBD joined the Hellenic, Italian and Portuguese commemorating Human Rights Day in Sharpeville. The event remembered the horrific loss of life in Sharpeville, but also focused on the important anti-racism campaign. Witnesses shared their harrowing tales of the 21st of March 1960. SAJBD Chairman, Shaun Zagnoev, delivered a message on behalf of our community.

King David Linksfield and Yeshiva College leadership participated in the Greek National Day Celebrations and  ‪#‎takeonracism‬  event at Saheti School.

On 18 March, the SAJBD delegation joined international Jewish leadership at a World Jewish Congress commemoration of the terror attacks in Buenos Aires in the early 1990’s.  In two separate attacks 114 innocent civilians lost their lives and a further 540 people were injured. There has still been no justice for the victims of the brutal killings at the Israeli Embassy which occurred on this day 24 years ago, nor for the horrific attacks at the AMIA community centre in 1994. 

Neglected MuseumAfrica has a treasure trove of collections that have been consigned to mothballs All aspiring writers will attest to the pleasure of seeing their work appear in print for the first time. In my case, it was an article (published by this newspaper) on the new direction that the Africana Museum – shortly to rename itself MuseumAfrica – was taking in response to South Africa’s unfolding political transformation. My very appointment, in April 1990, as curator of hi

South Africans Rally Against Antisemitism and the Targeting of Jewish Owned Businesses; Celebrate strengthening ties between South Africa and Israel South Africans from all walks of life gathered in today’s rallies against antisemtism and the targeting of Jewish-owned Businesses. The rallies, held in both Johannesburg (outside the Gauteng Legislature) and Cape Town (Parliament), protested the targeting of Jewish Businesses, specifically those known to be founded, owned or run

Once again, ANC Deputy Secretary-General Jessie Duarte’s obsessive hostility towards the State of Israel has seen her, on behalf of the ruling party, align herself with a movement that routinely promotes hatred not merely against Israel, but against the Jewish community in South Africa.  The annual propaganda circus known as “Israel Apartheid Week” (IAW) has consistently shown that it its aim is not to be pro-peace or even pro-Palestinian, but simply to be viscerally anti-Isr

There is much excitement within the South African Jewish community around the visit of Nobel Peace Laureate Shimon Peres.   Mr Peres is a former President and Prime Minister of the State of Israel and will be in Johannesburg for one night only, in what promises to be a never to be repeated experience. At 92 years’ old, Peres is the last of Israel’s founding generation. He was first elected in 1959 to the Knesset and held the post for 48 years, the longest ever term of service

The SA Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) condemns the violence that has taken place at the University of the Free State (UFS).  The SAJBD recognises the ongoing concerns of students and workers across the Higher Education sector.  All parties must be given space to engage in the right to protest and all acts of violence, especially racist violence should be condemned in the harshest terms by all South Africans.  We urge the Student Body and University Management and the Depart

“Stop the hate. The slow march towards healing. While 2016 was still in its infancy and we were surfacing from the holiday euphoria, we got the news that has shaken our precious democracy; that racism was well and thriving in our country. Penny Sparrowbroke the bubble with her ‘monkey’ comments, followed closely by Steven Hart, Velaphi Khumalo, and Nicole de Klerk. Sadly, I suspect that by the time this is published there will be many more. While 2016 was still in its infancy

Zev Krengel, James Motlatsi, Bobby Godsell write for City Press Voices about the Anti-Racism Pledge all South Africans should sign.  It would be naive to expect 300 years of race-defined conflict to disappear in the first two decades of democracy. Our new Constitution of 1996 lays a solid foundation for a nonracial society.It affirms that our country belongs to all who live in it. View the full article  here.

The World Conference Against Racism, held in Durban in 2001, left a psychological scar on anyone who witnessed the blatant anti-Semitism that accompanied it. But what was it like for Israel’s ambassador to South Africa at the time, Tova Herzl? Would Israel and the US in fact participate? Was it the right decision to boycott it altogether? Would it not have been better to stay at the conference, and battle it ou t?  These are some of the questions that Herzl asks herself in he

It is not generally known today that originally, when pundits and politicians spoke about the problem of ‘racism’ in South Africa, they were referring to tensions between the English and Afrikaner sections of the white community. It is not generally known today that originally, when pundits and politicians spoke about the problem of ‘racism’ in South Africa, they were referring to tensions between the English and Afrikaner sections of the white community. Only much later did