2003 Programs

Fall 2003

Monday, September 8, 2003

LBI, the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies and the American Jewish Committee present:

Symposium
"The Jewish Voice in German-American Relations"

This fascinating subject of the Jewish Voice in German-American Relations was the theme of a panel jointly sponsored by our three organizations earlier this year in Washington, D.C. The enthusiastic responses by audience and speakers alike provided the incentive to do it again - post-Iraq and after the temporary disruption of generally cordial US-German relations - in New York City.

Participants will include Atina Grossman, Andrew Baker, Frank Trommler, Lily Gardner-Feldman, Gregory Caplan, Anson Rabinbach, Jeffrey Herf, Yossi Shain, and representatives of American and German newspapers.

To RSVP please call Mrs. Kirschen at 212-744-6400. There is no admission fee, but no one will be admitted who is not on the list of attendees.

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Tuesday, September 23 , 2003, at 4:30pm Lecture Ernst Cramer: Germany after 9/11: A Reckoning This lecture is presented by the LBI in association with the American Jewish Committee and the American Council on Germany

Ernst Cramer (2002)

Ernst Cramer's political, social and cultural observations derive from his long-term perspective as journalist and editor in Germany (Welt; Welt am Sonntag); as chairman of the Axel Springer Foundation and as a keen observer of postwar Germany for over half a century. But Cramer's view is equally informed about America, having emigrated to the United States in 1939 and served in the U.S. Army from 1942-1945. Cramer is as highly respected in Washington as he is in Berlin.

Ernst Cramer will talk about the dramatic new paradigms of history that emerged from the disaster at the World Trade Center and the subsequent reckoning that was forced upon every nation. Will security issues determine the course of national affairs and international relations? Is the German-American friendship in danger? These issues need to be addressed, and inherent in their consideration is always the "Jewish question". Ernst Cramer will provide an insider's analysis of these new realities.

To RSVP please call Mrs. Kirschen at 212-744-6400. For security reasons no one will be admitted without prior registration.

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Wednesday, October 15, 2003

Lecture
Richard Sonnenfeldt

Richard Sonnenfeldt, chief interpreter and youngest member of the American prosecution team at the Nuremberg War Crimes Trial, has just completed an extraordinary memoir. Beginning with his escape from Nazi Germany at age 15 to his schooling in England, his deportation to Australia, and his arrival in New York via Bombay, South Africa, and Cuba, this is an amazing story.

Mr. Sonnenfeldt spoke to all defendants and most key witnesses in the Nuremburg Trials. As chief of the interpretation section, he had conversations with everyone from Hermann Goering to Hitler's secretary.

Returning to America after the war, Mr. Sonnfeldt studied electric engineering at John Hopkins University. He became a principal developer of color television, computer and space electronics, and received 35 U.S. patents.

Mr. Sonnenfeldt's new book, "Mehr als ein Leben", has just been published in Germany.

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Thursday, October 16, 2003, 6pm, German Historical Institute, Washington DC

Joint lecture of the Leo-Baeck-Institute, New York, and the German Historical Institute

Liliane Weissberg: Reflecting on the Past, Envisioning the Future:
New Perspectives in German-Jewish Studies

PROGRAM

Welcome
Carol Kahn Strauss, Executive Director, Leo Baeck Institute
Christof Mauch, Director, German Historical Institute

Lecture
Liliane Weissberg, Joseph P. Glossberg Term Professor in the Humanities and Professor of German and Comparative Literature, University of Pennsylvania

Comments
Jeffrey Peck, Professor, York University (Toronto), Senior Fellow in Residence, American Institute for Contemporary German Studies, Washington, D.C.

Reception

Please RSVP by October 12, 2003
German Historical Institute
1607 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20016
Phone: (202) 387-3355

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Wednesday, October 29, 2003, 7pm, Goethe-Institut, New York

Panel Discussion
German Civilians as Victims? The Evolution of Perception

A panel discussion on aerial warfare, with a strong focus on the films previously screened in this series (on October 7, 15, and 21).

Because the content of the films will be central to this panel discussion, we recommend that audience members attend the earlier screenings. Just before the discussion, "The War of the Century - Firestorm" will be shown again.

Participants: Atina Grossmann, professor of history, Cooper Union; Professor Andreas Huyssen, Villard Professor of German and Comparative Literature, Columbia University; Volker Hage, journalist for the German magazine Der Spiegel (Hamburg); Professor Frank Bajohr, Institute for Contemporary History, University of Hamburg.
Moderator: Dr. Frank Mecklenburg, director of research and chief archivist, Leo Baeck Institute.

This panel discussion is cosponsored by the Leo Baeck Institute.

For reservations and information please call: (212) 439-8700
Admission free

Goethe Institut
1014 5th Avenue at 82nd Street
New York, NY 10028

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Thursday, November 6, 2003, 6pm (by invitation only)

9th Annual Leo Baeck Institute Dinner
Harmonie Club, New York City

Mr. Daniel Libeskind, architect of the Jewish Museum in Berlin, will be the guest of honor and recipient of the Leo Baeck Medal, to be presented by Dr. Michael Blumenthal, president of the Jewish Museum Berlin.

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Wednesday, November 12, 2003, 7pm

LBI and Elysium - Between Two Continents co-sponsor:
Hoppla, Such is Life!: Theater and Music in Roaring Twenties Berlin

Concept: Michael Lahr and Gregorij H. von Leitis
Musical Direction and Piano: John W. Simmons
Directed by: Gregorij H. von Leitis
Featuring: Galit Dadoun (soprano), Heather Randall (actress), and Josh Peters (actor)

Tickets: $20 / LBI members, seniors and students: $15

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Tuesday, November 18, 2003 47th Annual Leo Baeck Memorial Lecture Robert Liberles: Persistent Myths and Stereotypes in the Image of German Jews: A Social Perspective

Adolf and Johanna Stern with four children and governess

From the 17th century until the end of the Nazi period, German Jewry struggled to define its ever-changing status in a society, in which it represented only one percent of the total population. The popular image of German Jews as a community rushing to abandon Jewish traditional life in order to embrace assimilation is not accurate. Nor is it correct to generalize about a community that was highly urbanized throughout the modern era, comfortably German, and almost universally wealthy. These myths represent a combination of highly enduring stereotypes that defy sixty years of postwar research and turn complex processes into simplistic and invalid historical notes.

In fact, entire sectors of the vibrant German Jewish community are excluded by such formulations. In contrast with these monolithic presentations, the recently completed LBI history of Jewish daily-life underscores what can be gained by understanding the full range of German Jewish life that includes urban and rural; wealthy and poor; traditional, reform, and non-observant Jews. It is with this attention to diversify that one reveals the true excitement of German Jewry's encounter with modernity.

Robert Liberles is the David Berg and Family Professor of European History at Ben Gurion University in Beersheva, Israel, and currently Horace W. Goldsmith Visiting Professor of Judaic Studies and Religious Studies at Yale University. He is the former President of LBI Jerusalem and co-author of the latest LBI publication "Jewish Daily Life in Germany, 1618-1945".

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Thursday, December 11, 2003

Exhibition
Salon Paintings of the Leo Baeck Institute

Over the course of nearly 50 years, the Leo Baeck Institute has acquired a vast collection of artwork, consisting primarily of paintings representing aspects of the life and culture of German-speaking Jewry in the 18th through the 20th centuries. For the first time, a selection of these paintings will be on display in an atmosphere reminiscent of 19th century European salons.

The exhibit will showcase works of such prominent artists as Max Liebermann, Lesser Ury, Julius Schulein, as well as works by artists who did not necessarily rise to prominence. The paintings evoke the contemporary Zeitgeist as well as the ever-changing status of the Jewish population. The portraits, domestic scenes, country-sides and religious themes reflect the aura of the times and the perceptions of the artists. In addition, artifacts from the Leo Baeck Institute archives will be on display in order to place the exhibition within a historical context.

Spring 2003

Wednesday, February 26, 2003 LBI and Elysium - Between Two Continents present: Libertas: "Our Death must be a Beacon" Libertas Schulz Boysen (nee Haas-Heye) was one of the courageous young members of the Nazi resistance group "Red Orchestra". During her last three months in prison prior to her execution in December 1942, Libertas wrote a number of remarkable poems and letters to her mother. The dignity and humanity of these texts reflect and intelligence that understood not only the worst aspects of those terrible times, but also the very best instincts of decent people everywhere.

Libertas Schulze-Boysen at the age of 18 as a girlscout in Zurich. Photograph from the Archives of Johannes Haas-Heye.

The anti-Hitler "Red Orchestra" group consisted of young Germans and Americans who helped Jews and political dissidents to escape from Germany to freedom. When the Gestapo discovered their activities in the summer of 1942 they arrested more than 100, half of whom were sentenced to death. Libertas and her husband Harro, as well as Arvid Harrack and his American wife Mildred, were the leaders of the resistance. Libertas was their inspiration.

Michael Lahr will provide background information; pianist John W. Simmons will accompany the readings of Heather Randall with music by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy and Alban Berg. Conception and direction: Gregorij H. von Leitis.

Tickets:
$20 General Admission
$15 for Students, Senior Citizens, and LBI Members
For advance ticket sales call the Box Office: (917) 606 8200

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Thursday, March 6, 2003 LBI and the Auschwitz Jewish Center present: Reception, Lecture, and Book Signing Stuart E. Eizenstat: "Imperfect Justice" (Public Affairs, New York: 2003) Reception from 6pm to 7pm Lecture starts at 7:30pm

Subtitled “Looted Assets, Slave Labor, and the Unfinished Business of World War II”, Imperfect Justice is a high-stakes, high-powered international thriller. The lawyers, organizations, politicians and heads of state all claimed to represent the best interest of the victims. The victims all claimed to ask only for what was rightfully theirs. In the process, European nations, American museums, and special interests around the world were forced to face their past.

Subtitled “Looted Assets, Slave Labor, and the Unfinished Business of World War II”, Imperfect Justice is a high-stakes, high-powered international thriller. The lawyers, organizations, politicians and heads of state all claimed to represent the best interest of the victims. The victims all claimed to ask only for what was rightfully theirs. In the process, European nations, American museums, and special interests around the world were forced to face their past.

President Clinton asked Mr. Eizenstat to be the Administration’s leader on Holocaust-related issues by serving as Special Representative of the President and Secretary of State. Recognizing a singular opportunity to push for settlements with banks, insurance companies, museums and other corporations, Mr. Eizenstat devoted eight years to the pursuit of the claims of the victims. This is Mr. Eizenstat’s remarkable personal account of his effort to provide justice-however belated or imperfect-to the still uncompensated victims of the Nazis, Jews and non-Jews alike.

William Gladstone is thought to have said that “justice delayed is justice denied” but in this book Stuart Eizenstat proves that justice delayed is often the only kind available.

Stuart Eizenstat is currently the head of international trade and finance at the Washington law firm of Covington and Burling. Before joining the firm he held a number of key positions in the government; including, from 1977 to 1981, President Carter’s Chief Domestic Policy Adviser. He also served as U.S. Ambassador to the European Union, Under Secretary of Commerce, Under Secretary of State, and Deputy Treasury Secretary during the Clinton administration.

Copies of "Imperfect Justice" are available through the LBI. Please contact Norma Kirschen at 212-744-6400.

Tickets:
General Public: $15.00 for Lecture and Reception / 5.00 for Lecture only
LBI Members: $8.00 for Lecture and Reception / Free for Lecture only with membership card

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Tuesday, March 11th, 2003 at 6pm

Reading and panel discussion
Steven M. Wasserstrom and Richard Sieburth:
“The Fullness of Time: Poems by Gershom Scholem”
(Ibis Editions, January 2003)

Gershom Scholem (1897-1982) is known as the twentieth century's most prominent scholar dedicated to the academic study of Kabbalah. Prominent author Harold Bloom (Kabbalah and Criticism) said, “Scholem’s massive achievement can be judged as being unique in modern humanistic scholarship, for he has made himself indispensable to all rational students of his subject…. [He] is a Miltonic figure in modern scholarship, and deserves to be honored as such.”

Scholem served as a professor of Jewish Mysticism at the Hebrew University. His many works include Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism, On the Kabbalah and Its Symbolism, Sabbatai Sevi: The Mystical Messiah and Walter Benjamin: The Story of Friendship.

Panelists to include:

Richard Sieburth: He is a professor of Comparative Literature at New York University. His translations include Friedrich Holderlin’s Hymns and Fragments, Michael Leiris’s Nights as Day, Walter Benjamin’s Moscow Diary, Gerard de Nerval’s Selected Writings, and Maurice Sceve’s Delie. His English edition of Nerval won the 2000 PEN Book-of-the-Month-Club Translation Prize.

Steven M. Wasserstrom: He is the Moe and Izzeta Tonkon Professor of Judaic Studies and the Humanities at Reed College in Oregon. He is the author of Between Muslim and Jew: The Problem of Symbiosis under Early Islam, which received the Award for Excellence in Historical Studies from the American Academy of Religion and Religion After Religion: Gershom Scholem, Mircea Eliade and Henry Corbin at Eranos.

Peter Cole: The author of two collections of poetry, Rift and Hymns & Qualms, has published seven books of translation from Hebrew and Arabic poetry and prose. He has received numerous awards for his poetry and translation, including the Modern Language Association-Scaglione Translation Prize for Selected Poems of Shmuel HaNagid has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts and the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation. He is also a visiting professor at Wesleyan University and Middlebury College.

 

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The editors of Jews in Berlin are three of the leading Jewish voices in Germany today. As they plainly state in the preface to this volume, today's official Jewish Community is neither in the tradition of nor in continuity with the Jewish Community as it existed in 1938. Today, even with 100,000 Jews, little remains of the Berlin that was a European/Jewish cultural metropolis where Jews were an integral part of the society. Will they ever again be integrated into the life of the city? The answer, according to the editors, is delicate and complex. Their perspective is especially relevant as it is informed by the optimism of survivors as well as by the burden of personal history.

Copies of "Jews in Berlin" are available through the LBI. Please contact Norma Kirschen at 212-744-6400.

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Thursday, March 20, 2003, 1pm to 5pm

The LBI, the Skirball Department of Hebrew & Judaic Studies at New York University, and the Association for the History of Jews in Central Europe present:
Symposium
Jewish Communities in the Former Habsburg Monarchy: 17th to 20th Century

Detailed program.

The organizers gratefully acknowledge the support of the following:
The Czech Center, New York
The Austrian Cultural, Forum New York

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Tuesday, April 8, 2003 Reception Dr. Kurt Biedenkopf, Former Minister President of Saxony Clifford and Katherine Goldsmith Gallery, 5pm to 7pm

For more than 30 years Kurt Biedenkopf has been one of Germany's most influential players on the political scene. Before his election as Minister President of Saxony in 1990, Dr. Biedenkopf was secretary general of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the party he continues to represent as a member of the state parliament in Dresden. His expertise in transatlantic issues has made him one of the foremost analysts of German-American relations, especially in the context of globalization and the "New Europe"

Dr. Biedenkopf will center his remarks on the undeniably uncomfortable relations that currently exist between two good friends, Germany and the United States.

The Institute is honored that Dr. Biedenkopf will meet with us on his brief visit to New York and thank the Konrad Adenauer Foundation for their help in arranging this. We urge you to join us.

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Tuesday, June 10th, 2003 New Exhibition Nahum Goldmann, Statesman without a State Nahum Goldman was a publisher and author, but above all a statesman whose wisdom helped shape the postwar world.

Nahum Goldmann

Nahum Goldmann, Statesman without a State, is an exhibit that attests to the vision and accomplishments of a man whose life (1895-1982) went well beyond geographical borders and nationalist conceptions. Together with Chaim Waizmann and David Ben-Gurion he helped formulate plans for the establishment of the state of Israel, but never thought that a Jewish state would be the answer for all Jews. Rather, Goldmann believed there must be vibrant Jewish organizations throughout the Diaspora and helped found the World Jewish Congress and the Conference of Jewish Organizations. He was a major force in negotiating German reparation payments with his groundbreaking demand that Germany make global restitution to the Jewish people.

This exhibit was original prepared for Beth Hatefutsoth, the Nahum Goldmann Museum of the Jewish Diaspora, in Tel Aviv. Additional material is displayed at the LBI for the first time.