When Beliefs Are Tested
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OCTOBER 15, 2020 – 27 TISHRI 5781 JEWISH JOURNAL VOL 45, NO 4 JEWISHJOURNAL.ORG Doctors brace for second COVID-19 wave By Rich Tenorio JOURNAL CORRESPONDENT Jewish medical profession- als in the Boston area and on the North Shore are urging continued vigilance to miti- gate a possible second wave of COVID-19 and the additional threat of the flu with fall in full swing. “If we do all of the things that need to be done – masks, social distancing, hand-washing – and are observant of other data and Flowers left in front of a memorial at the Tree of Life Congregation in Pittsburgh where 11 Jews were science-driven public health killed in a mass shooting on Oct. 27, 2018. controls,” said Mark Poznansky, an infectious disease physi- cian at Massachusetts General Hospital, “we will not only flat- WHEN BELIEFS ARE TESTED ten the curve on COVID-19, we will also flatten the curve on the “Everybody should be as careful ary, 11 Jews were slaughtered in an onslaught of flu and other seasonal respira- and cautious as possible; make By David M. Shribman bullets. A symbol because the episode, the worst tory viruses.” sure we’re saving as many lives as JOURNAL CORRESPONDENT incidence of anti-Semitic violence in the history of Poznansky is the direc- possible,” said Dr. Camille Kotton, clinical director of transplant and the United States, stood as a tragic emblem of the tor of MGH’s Vaccine and PITTSBURGH – They were the shots heard immunocompromised host infec- way we live today: Immunotherapy Center, where ‘round my neighborhood. The shots heard ‘round tious diseases in the Infectious In fear. In mourning. In sad reflection. he spends 75 percent of his the country. The shots heard ‘round the Jewish Disease Division at MGH. These shots rang out two years ago this month. time. As director, he guides world – indeed heard ‘round the entire world. So much has happened in those crowded 24 vaccine and immunotherapy On an otherwise tran- months: More mass shootings. A bitterly divided efforts for infectious diseases including COVID-19, as well as cancer quil autumn Saturday nation. A corrosive presidential campaign. A pan- and Type 1 diabetes. The other 25 percent of his time goes toward morning before the coro- demic. Shutdowns and lockdowns. Tears and fears. clinical service at the main hospital for patients with infectious dis- Opinion navirus – people lining up Two years ago we walked the streets without eases, including COVID-19. at the bakery a few blocks masks and, generally, without trepidation. But The surge of the past spring was a challenge for hospitals like away, others walking along Shady Avenue, still after October 27, those walks – I take mine right MGH, which had hundreds of patients hospitalized. Although the more shopping near the Squirrel Hill intersection past Tree of Life at least four times a week – have number has decreased since then, it has crept back up over the past of Forbes and Murray Avenues, for a century the taken on a new character, and possibly a new month, from 300 in September to 500 currently, according to Dr. center of Jewish life in Pittsburgh – a clutch of men meaning. Wilkins Avenue, where the synagogue Camille Kotton, the clinical director of transplant and immunocom- and women were at prayer. In a tragic instant their faces the world, has become a miniature portrait promised host infectious diseases at MGH. pews in the Tree of Life synagogue became a crime of America: Down the street the Five Points Bakery It is important to realize that in general, Massachusetts case scene – and a symbol. allows only two customers at a time into its tiny numbers are “slowly trickling up,” Kotton said. Addressing the A crime scene because there, in the sanctu- continued on page 17 continued on page 17 The three ‘landsmen’ are among the nation’s best photographers Getting the story, one picture at a time By Ethan M. Forman fall cushioned by her godmother, according to an JOURNAL STAFF account Forman gave in a 1991 book, “Winning Pulitzers.” “Fire Escape Collapse” also triggered Award-winning Jewish photojournalists Stanley changes to fire-escape safety legislation in Boston Forman, Stan Grossfeld and Mark Garfinkel have and across the nation. crossed paths many times at countless scenes, press In the photo that resonates to this day, Forman’s conferences and events over the years in search of “The Soiling of Old Glory” captured a white teen- just the right shot. ager pointing an American flag toward a black Garfinkel’s and Grossfeld’s careers behind the lawyer named Ted Landsmark on Boston City lens are intertwined around that of Forman, who at Hall Plaza during an anti-busing demonstration in age 75 still keeps his ear to the scanner as he works April 1976. as a cameraman for WCVB-TV. His career in the “I guess that you could say Stan, Stan and me are news spans nearly 55 years. landsmen,” said Garfinkel, a Swampscott native, Forman’s Pulitzer Prize-winning photos have using the Yiddish term that is pronounced “lants- influenced the work of The Boston Globe’s men” for Jews who come from the same commu- Grossfeld, 68, who is also a two-time Pulitzer Prize nity, even though the three did not come from the winner, and Garfinkel, 55, an award-winning news same town. and weather photographer working for NBC10 Recently, the three photographers were inter- Boston. viewed about their work, and discussed how they Forman, who lives on the North Shore, has won have adjusted to shooting in the time of COVID-19, three Pulitzers, including a 1979 Boston Herald and what their Jewish identity means to them as American staff award for coverage of the Blizzard of they seek out their next shot. 1978. More importantly, he won back-to-back spot In addition to his photography, Forman is news photography awards in 1976 and 1977. known for his uncanny ability to seemingly get Standing on the bed of a ladder truck with a to know and befriend everyone, from firefighters camera with a motorized drive set for three frames to police officers, to those just standing around a a second, Forman captured the indelible image of scene. It’s also indicative of an encyclopedic mem- a 2-year-old girl and her 19-year-old godmother ory in which he can recall minute details of photos plunging to the ground in a fire escape collapse dur- he took decades earlier. Photo: Tim Mantoani/Courtesy of Stanley Forman ing a fire on Marlborough Street in 1975. Stan Forman, who grew up in Revere, is shown holding the two “I do remember a lot of stuff,” Forman said, The woman died, but the toddler survived, her Pulitzer Prize winning photos he shot. continued on page 4 The Jewish Journal is a nonprofit newspaper supported by generous readers, committed advertisers and charitable organizations. Email [email protected]. 2 THE JEWISH JOURNAL – JEWISHJOURNAL.ORG – OCTOBER 15, 2020 COMMUNITY NEWS How has your Jewish identity shaped GENERATION Z VANESSA FREEDMAN, 21 you? My Jewish identity has taught me to find com- HEBREW NAME: Nisan FAVORITE JEWISH FOOD: munities that value similar aspects of life as me. Additionally, my Jewish identity has taught me Chopped liver HOMETOWN: Marblehead to be accepting and open to all different types ALMA MATER: FAVORITE JEWISH of people and to not judge them based on their demographics. It has made me become an ally Marblehead High School, ’17 PERSON: Albert Einstein for other minority groups and taught me the importance of compassion and empathy. CURRENT SCHOOL: FAVORITE JEWISH University of Michigan ’21 HOLIDAY: Hanukkah What’s it like being a student at the MAJOR: Neuroscience FAVORITE MOVIE: “42” University of Michigan and being Jewish? Do you find it accepting? MINOR: Judaic Studies FAVORITE SONG: Anything by Taylor Swift I love being a Jewish student at the University How have you gone back to of Michigan. During the first month of my fresh- college this year? In person, man year, I joined a Jewish sorority and found remote, or a combination of a large group of Jewish girls that accept me both? and understand the same culture and values PHYLLIS LEVIN that I identify with. My sorority, along with on REAL ESTATE my minor, has surrounded my experience at WHAT IS INCLUDED IN THE SALE? I live in a house off campus, so I was Michigan around Judaism and has made me able to return to my physical campus feel accepted here and right at home. How do you know if your favorite this year in person. I live with nine other chandelier will be included in the sale of your Jewish girls from many different states. home? Usually if a feature is attached to the Out of my four classes, two of them are The Jewish Journal recently ran a Phyllis Levin house, it will go to the buyer. remote and two of them are socially dis- story about somebody or a group CRS GRI CBR In most cases, the critical test is whether the tant in person. writing racist and anti-Semitic item is permanently fastened to the property graffiti on the rocks of Preston by nails, bolts, screws, cement, glue or other permanent attachment. Beach in Swampscott. What is your If attached, it is considered a fixture that has been converted into What was your Jewish experience with anti-Semitism and real property. For example, a wine cellar installed after the house background growing up? how do you combat it? was built will convey, but the portable wine rack in the kitchen will not.