The Afterlife of Antisemitism — with Flora Cassen

About this episode

The episode explores the complexities of Jewish identity in the context of rising antisemitism and the legacy of Holocaust memory.

What does it mean to inherit Europe’s Jewish past while living through antisemitism’s unsettling return in the present? In this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer sits down with historian and author Flora Cassen to explore the differences between European and American Jewish life, the promises and limits of Holocaust memory, and the ways antisemitism resurfaces across political and cultural contexts. The conversation moves between history and memoir, asking how Jews make sense of power, vulnerability, and belonging in a moment when old assumptions no longer feel secure. You can find Flora’s book HERE Register for Flora's book talk, Past as Prologue: Rethinking Antisemitism Today with Flora Cassen and Arno Rosenfeld, presented in partnership with the Forward HERE. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS Here’s more from the Shalom Hartman Institute this week: Register to join Yossi Klein Halevi in Vancouver, Detroit, and Palo Alto and Yehuda Kurtzer in Toronto!

People in this episode

Host: Yehuda Kurtzer

Guest: Flora Cassen

Topics covered

• antisemitism
• Jewish identity
• Holocaust memory
• European Jewish life
• American Jewish life
• political context
• cultural context

Keywords

• antisemitism
• Jewish past
• Holocaust
• European Jews
• American Jews
• identity
• belonging

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Shalom Hartman Institute, Forward

Books & works: Past as Prologue: Rethinking Antisemitism Today

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