News/Events

• Israel Nitzan, Anne Bayefsky		Hadassah and Israel Nitzan

  May 2, 2012
  The Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust hosted representatives of more than a dozen Jewish NGOs accredited to the United Nations. The speaker on this occasion was Israel Nitzan, Minister-Counselor in Israel's Permanent Mission to the United Nations. He gave a presentation addressing recent upheavals in the Arab world and their repercussions at the United Nations. Mr. Nitzan was the last Israeli diplomat evacuated from Cairo after all Israeli diplomats serving in the embassy had to be evacuated for security reasons in September 2011. A fluent Arabic speaker, who served a total of five years in Egypt over his career, his presentation provided fascinating insights into the history-making events of the past year across the Arab Middle East. Contributing to the event was Gloria Landy, representative of the World Council of Masorti synagogues.
• April 19, 2012

  Eva Fogelman (left) and Anne Bayefsky (right)

  Stephen Greenwald (left)and Eva Fogelman(right)

  
  

  Aron Krell survivor liberated from Gunskirchen (left), Alan Moskin liberator of Gunskirchen (right)

  The Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust commemorated Yom Hashoah with two speakers, Alan Moskin and Dr. Eva Fogelman. The event was cosponsored with the American Association of Jewish Lawyers and Jurists, which was represented by Stephen Greenwald, and 3GNY - an organization for third generation children of Holocaust survivors - which was represented by Daniel Brooks. Mr. Moskin, drafted into the army at age 18, served from 1944 to 1946. As a member of the 66th infantry, 71st division, he participated in the liberation of the Gunskirchen concentration camp, a sub-camp of Mauthausen, in May of 1945. Dr. Fogelman was born in a displaced persons camp in Kassel, Germany after the War. She has done seminal research on non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust, and wrote a Pulitzer Prize nominated book, Conscience and Courage: Rescuers of Jews During the Holocaust. Mr. Moskin gave a spell-binding first-hand account of the reality of war and the horror he witnessed in the camps. Dr. Fogelman shared the findings of her ground-breaking research on what human qualities and experiences are more likely to make people become rescuers when confronted with evil.
• January 11, 2012

  Gloria Landy

  
  The Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust hosted representatives of more than a dozen Jewish NGOs accredited to the United Nations. Noa Furman, Minister-Counselor in Israel's Permanent Mission to the United Nations, gave a presentation highlighting recent developments concerning women's rights and social issues as pertaining to Israel and the United Nations. Gloria Landy, representative of the World Council of Masorti synagogues, presented Ms. Furman with a certificate from the Jewish National Fund in recognition of her contribution to the welfare of Israel and the Jewish people at the United Nations.

• September 22, 2011
  The Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust co-hosted a major conference entitled “The Perils of Global Intolerance: The United Nations and Durban III.” The conference, opened by Touro President Dr. Alan Kadish as well as Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Ron Prosor, featured leading figures from three continents, including Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, Nobel peace prize laureate Elie Wiesel, former New York City Mayor Ed Koch, Academy award-winning actor Jon Voight, Sudanese human rights activist Simon Deng, and Harvard Professor and award-winning author Ruth Wisse. The conference was webcast live by PJMedia and has been viewed more than 200,000 times. The conference videos have been archived and can be watched here.

• May 2, 2011
  On the occasion of Yom Hashoah, the Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust co-sponsored an event with 3GNY, an organization of third generation children of Holocaust survivors. The event featured Holocaust survivor Greta Elbogen who gave a moving account of her experiences through her poetry; Sarri Singer, a courageous survivor of a lethal terrorist attack in Jerusalem; and Matthew Shapiro, the grandchild of two Holocaust survivors, who recounted his personal efforts and those of other young people to ensure that the experiences of their families were not forgotten and a constant source of motivation for a better future.

• Ady Schonmann, Anne Bayefsky		Ellen Fawer, Ady Schonmann

  April 6, 2011
  The Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust hosted representatives of more than a dozen Jewish NGOs accredited to the United Nations. Ady Schonmann, the Legal Advisor to the Israel Mission to the United Nations gave an enlightening and insightful overview of a full range of current issues at the United Nations of special interest to Israel and the Jewish people. Ellen Fawer, representative of Jewish Women International, presented Ms. Schonmann with a certificate from the Jewish National Fund in recognition of her outstanding contribution to our understanding of both the issues and possible solutions.
• January 25, 2011
  

  Sarri Singer, Dr. Scharia, & Anne Bayefsky

  The Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust co-hosted an event with One Heart Global, a non-profit organization established to bring survivors of terrorism together globally to heal. Sarri Singer, Co-founder and Director, and others members of the organization participated in the event. The lecture was entitled “Combating Terrorism and the United Nations.” The guest speaker was Dr. David Scharia, legal expert, U.N. Counter Terrorism Executive Directorate (CTED), a special political mission of the U.N. Security Council. Dr. Scharia gave an overview of the Security Council’s work in the field of counter-terrorism and an update on the operations of the Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC). A number of the representatives of One Heart Global shared with us their moving first-hand encounters with terrorism, making the lecture and discussion both meaningful and informative.
• November 10, 2010

  Rabbi Abraham Cooper

  
  The Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust hosted an event entitled “The War Against the Jews and Durban, Lessons Learned and Unlearned.” The guest speaker was Rabbi Abraham Cooper, Associate Dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center. Rabbi Cooper attended the first UN Durban Conference that took place in August-September of 2001. He recounted numerous first-hand experiences of modern antisemitism that he has witnessed over the decades around the globe from Durban to Asia. He also discussed current worrying activities at the United Nations and efforts to delegitimize the state of Israel by a number of Christian churches. Finally, he pointed to constructive opportunities to combat antisemitism today.

• April 27, 2010

  Anne Bayefsky, Martin Kramer, David Matas, Trevor Norwitz, and Shmuel Trigano

  
  The Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust hosted an all-day conference entitled “The UN’s Goldstone Report: Lawfare, the Defamation of Israel, and the Threat to American National Security in the Age of Terrorism.”  The event was co-sponsored with the American Association of Jewish Lawyers and Jurists along with a number of other co-sponsors.  The day’s events included four expert panels and a keynote address by the Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations, Ambassador Gabriela Shalev. The day’s events included four expert panels and an address by the Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations, Ambassador Gabriela Shalev.
   
  

Stephen Greenwald, Elizabeth Defeis, William C. Banks, and Larie Blank

The day began with a panel entitled “The Goldstone Report:  The Defamation of Israel and Human Rights Distortions.” The panel was chaired by Anne Bayefsky, Director of the Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust and a Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute. The panel featured: Shmuel Trigano, a Professor at Paris X University Nanterre; Martin Kramer, a Senior Fellow at the Shalem Center and the Wexler-Fromer Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy; Trevor Norwitz, a partner at the law firm of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz and an Adjunct Professor at Columbia Law School; and David Matas, the Senior Honorary Counsel of B’nai Brith, Canada, and nominee for the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize.

The day’s second panel was chaired by Elizabeth Defeis, a Professor of Law at Seton Hall, and was called, “The Goldstone Report:  Undermining Self-Defense in the Age of Terrorism.”  The panel featured presentations by: Lt. Col David Benjamin, a former Director of the Strategic and International Branch of the International Law Department of the Israel Defense Forces; Laurie Blank, the Director of the International Humanitarian Law Clinic at Emory Law School; Abraham Bell,  Professor of Law at the University of San Diego School of Law and member of the Bar Ilan University Faculty of Law; and William C. Banks, the Director of the Institute for National Security and Counterterrorism at Syracuse University.  
 
The third panel, “Legal Weaponry: The Perversion of International Jurisprudence and Institutions,” chaired by Samuel Edelman, the Executive Director of Scholars for Peace in the Middle East.  This panel included: Kenneth Marcus, Ackerman Visiting Professor of Equality and Justice in America at Baruch College; Ed Morgan, a Professor of Law at the University of Toronto; and Peter J. Haas, the President of Scholars for Peace in the Middle East.  
 
The day was concluded with the fourth panel, “International and Domestic Legal Recourses:  Responding to ‘Lawfare’ and the Goldstone Report,” chaired by Herb London, President of the Hudson Institute.  This panel featured: Nicholas Rostow, University Counsel and Vice Chancellor of the State University of New York and former legal advisor to the U.S. Mission to the United Nations; Allan Gerson, the Chairman of AG International Law, PLLC; Nathan Lewin, Partner at the law firm of Lewin and Lewin in Washington DC; Malvina Halberstam, Professor of Law at Cardozo School of Law; and Brooke Goldstein, Director of The Lawfare Project.

• April 11, 2010
  The Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust commemorated Holocaust Remembrance Day with an art exhibit by artist Julie Mauskop entitled “Survivors.” Mauskop painted the body of work in honor of her grandparents, who survived Auschwitz.  The exhibit was attended by survivors, family members of survivors, students, and professionals, and was co-sponsored with the Columbia and Barnard Hillel as well as 3GNY, a group for the grandchildren of Holocaust survivors.  The exhibit was held at Columbia University’s Kraft Center.

• March 24, 2010
  

  Anne Bayefsky and Toby Frankenstein

  The Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust hosted an event entitled “Israel and the UN: Challenges of Global Advocacy.”  The event featured Toby Frankenstein of the Permanent Mission of Israel to the United Nations.  Mr. Frankenstein described his experience working for the Israeli Mission as well as the issues that the Mission is currently focused on, such as the Iranian nuclear threat and the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians. Mr. Frankenstein also described how the Mission has been affected by the Goldstone Report and how it has been responding to the aftermath of its release.  The discussion drew a large group of professionals, activists, and scholars from across New York City.

• February 26, 2010

  Anne Bayefsky with Staff Sergeant Avi Webber and Master Sergeant Yoav Earon

  
  The Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust hosted an event entitled “Israeli Soldiers Speak Out: A Discussion of their Experiences and Moral Challenges During Times of War.”  The event featured Staff Sergeant Avi Webber and Master Sergeant Yoav Earon of the Israel Defense Forces. Both officers described their experiences during Operation Cast Lead in Gaza in the winter of 2008-2009.  Upon entering Gaza, Webber told of his astonishment to see pieces of paper with Arabic writing on them, warning the inhabitants that the IDF would be targeting the terrorist infrastructure and smuggling tunnels.  “No other army in the world would do this,” Webber remarked of the clear warning.  Earon told of going house to house looking for militants and smuggling tunnels.  While searching a home that was occupied by a Palestinian family, Earon’s unit received intelligence that terrorists were aiming missiles at the house, regardless of the fact that a Palestinian family was inside.  “It was very frustrating to us,” said Earon, “because we pay so much attention to protecting Palestinian civilians, but the Palestinian terrorists do not even pay attention to potential civilian casualties on their own side.”  The event was co-sponsored with Stand With Us.

• November 22, 2009
  Touro College’s Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust hosted a panel discussion entitled A Paradigm of UN Bias Against Israel: International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People on the occasion of the 2009 United Nations Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.  Panel members were three distinguished scholars, activists, and human rights authorities: Ambassador Richard Schifter, who served as the  Deputy U.S. Representative in the UN Security Council and U.S. Representative in the UN Human Rights Commission; Dr. Charles Asher Small, Director of the Yale Initiative for the Study of Anti-Semitism; and Jonathan Schanzer, Deputy Executive Director of the Jewish Policy Forum and author of several books including his most recent, Hamas vs Fatah: The Struggle for Palestine.  The event, held at the Center for Jewish History, garnered an overflow crowd of 100 participants. 

• October 21, 2009
  Touro College’s Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust hosted an event featuring Asaf Romirowsky entitled UNRWA: An Obstacle to Peace. The event was co-sponsored with the organizations Stand With Us and the Zionist Organization of America.  Mr. Romirowsky, Adjunct Scholar at the Middle East Forum and Lecturer in the History Department at Penn State University, provided a unique and important analysis of the operations of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).  The event, held at Touro College's Graduate Division School of Education and Psychology, drew participants from around the College and our co-sponsors' networks across New York City.

• April 21, 2009 -
  Touro College’s Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust commemorated Holocaust Remembrance Day at the UN’s Palais des Nations, in Geneva, Switzerland with a panel discussion on anti-semitism that included some of the world’s most distinguished scholars, activists, and human rights authorities. Participating in the panel, which was held at the United Nations in Geneva, were writer Elie Wiesel, actor Jon Voight, Professor Alan Dershowitz, human rights activist Natan Sharansky, Author Shelby Steele and Father Patrick Desbois. Over 150 people attended the event, which was titled “Anti-semitism in the Here and Now.”
• March 18, 2009
  Event co-sponsored with 3GNY-a NYC based organization for Grandchildren of Holocaust
  Survivors featuring David Gewirtzman, a Holocaust Survivor and Jacqueline Murekatete, a Rwandan Genocide Survivor. Stories of Survival and Hope. Center for Jewish History.

Dr. Yossi Olmert, Dr. Michael Shmidman and Professor Anne Bayefsky

• February 24, 2009
  Event co-sponsored with the Touro Graduate School of Jewish Studies featuring Dr. Yossi Olmert, noted author, lecturer and journalist. Israeli Post-Election Analysis: What does it mean for the Future of the Jewish Homeland? Touro College, Division of Graduate Studies, School of Education

 

 

 

• Professor Anne Bayefsky, Ambassador Gabriela Shalev, and Dr. Anthony Polemeni

  December 17, 2008
  Event on Israel and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at Sixty featuring the Ambassador of Israel to the United Nations Gabriela Shalev.  Center for Jewish History.

 

 

 

• Professor Avi Bell

  November 24, 2008
  The Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust commemorated Kristallnacht with a lecture by Professor Avi Bell, entitled “The War on Israel and the Genocide Convention”.  Professor Bell is the Director of the Global Law Forum at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, Professor of Law at Bar Ilan University and a Visiting Professor at the University of Connecticut School of Law.  He spoke about the legal definition of genocide and its contemporary application to specific cases.  He considered whether the actions and words of current political leaders and heads of terrorist organizations who threaten the state of Israel fall within the conceptual framework of genocide, and the consequences. 
• December 6, 2007
  Celebration of Human Rights Day at Touro Law Center featured His Excellency Mr. Raymond Wolfe, Jamaican Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations and the Current Chairman of the Social Humanitarian and Cultural Committee of the General Assembly and Mr. Martin Ejidike, Human Rights Officer, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

• November 18, 2007
  “Hijacking Human Rights: The Demonization of Israel by the United Nations” was held in New York City and co-sponsored with the Hudson Institute and the American Association of Jewish Lawyers and Jurists.  There were 200 participants and featured speakers from three continents included:  Former Ambassadors John Bolton, Yehuda Blum, and Max Kampelman; Congressman Thaddeus McCotter; Senator Norm Coleman; Claudia Rosett; Nonie Darwish; Andrea Levin; and Professor Walter Reich former Director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.  Conference speeches were made available on YouTube.

• October 25, 2007
  “The Legacy of Simon Wiesenthal: Anti-Semitism Then and Now,” A lecture and discussion by Mark Weitzman, Director of the Task Force against Hate and Terrorism and the Associate Director of Education for the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

• October 11, 2007
  Seminar on “Litigating Terrorism,” cosponsored with Fordham Law School and the American Association of Jewish Lawyers and Jurists.  Gary M. Osen, an expert on terror financing and Alyza D. Lewin, an anti-terrorism attorney presented.

• April 16, 2007
  On Holocaust Remembrance Day, the Institute presented a film screening of “Conspiracy” at Touro Law Center.  “Conspiracy” retells the story of the 1942 conference at Wannsee, Germany and the planning of  the Final Solution.

Prior Conferences

• “Judging Nuremberg: The Laws, The Rallies, The Trials” The Institute co-sponsored this July 2005 conference in Nuremberg, Germany with almost 300 participants.  The conference brought together leading scholars, along with some of the few remaining eyewitnesses of that time to discuss, question, theorize and remember the events that took place in Nuremberg 60 years earlier.  The legacy of the trials and what they mean to jurisprudence today was examined.   

• “Human Rights and Refugees, Internally Displaced Persons and Migrant Workers” The Institute co-sponsored this January 16, 2005 conference in New York City with Metropolitan College of New York.  Topics included:  The Challenges of International Protection, Lessons Learned, Rights and Responsibilities for Protection, Setting the Standards of Due Process, The Case of Migrant Workers.  Conference participants included UN staff from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

• “Tyranny, Justice & The Law: The Nazis and Beyond”  The Institute co-sponsored this July 7-10, 2002 Wannsee Simon Bond Seminar, held in Berlin, with Touro Law School and the Free University of Berlin. The Seminar focused on the corruption of the rule of law in Germany under the Swastika and the lessons for contemporary lawyers and judges.  200 participants, including judges and lawyers, from many countries attended.  Panels were organized around the following subjects:  “Law Under the Swastika,” “The rule of Law in Germany: After the War,” “Morality and the Holocaust,” “The Guild of Nations: The Holocaust as Precedent for Redress,” and “The Individual and the State: Democracy Under Attack.”