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Newsweek
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
Capital Jewish Museum's LGBTJews Exhibit is About Pride and Preservation
Leaders of Jewish institutions rarely need a reminder that antisemitism, like other forms of discrimination, still exist. But when Washington, D.C.'s Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum launched its new exhibition, "LGBTJews in the Federal City," in May, they had no idea that a deadly attack would unfold on their doorstep. On May 21, Yaron Lischinsky, 30, and Sarah Milgrim, 26, two Israeli embassy staffers attending an event at the museum, were shot and killed. The suspect, Elias Rodriguez, 31, allegedly told police as he was apprehended: "I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza." In contrast, Lischinsky and Milgrim were at the museum to attend an annual interfaith event held by the American Jewish Committee for young people in diplomatic service, to promote peace and understanding despite differences of beliefs and opinions, specifically focused on humanitarian diplomacy. Rodriguez was charged the following day with murder of foreign officials, amongst other serious federal offenses. "Such acts of terror attempt to instill fear, silence voices and erase history—but we refuse to let them succeed," Dr. Beatrice Gurwitz, executive director of the museum, said in a statement after the shooting. "The Capital Jewish Museum was built to tell the centuries-old story of the greater Washington region's vibrant Jewish community. We are proud to tell these stories of Jewish life. In our work, we share Jewish stories in the service of building bridges and opening dialogue in our beautiful city." Building those kinds of bridges is what the museum is especially proud of, and what its new exhibit represents. Shortly before the killings, Newsweek spoke with Gurwitz in conjunction with WorldPride 2025 for a previously planned story about the new exhibit. While the quotes in this story are from before the shooting, the tone of "LGBTJews in the Federal City" reinforces Gurwitz's sentiment about the importance of resisting fear and not being silenced, and is consistent with how they addressed the attack afterward. "There's going to be debate and disagreement embedded in [what to exhibit]," Gurwitz told Newsweek. "And then the other thing that we take seriously as an institution is doing our best to capture those debates right. There is never one opinion. There is never one approach. And I think that we have a responsibility to not only document Jewish political engagement, but also showcase the ways that people have come at it from diverse perspectives over time." And for much of these debates, no matter the issue, it's the backdrop of Washington, D.C., that gives it its weight and national implications, said Jonathan Edelman, collections curator. "No matter what city people were living in when they fought for their rights, people gathered in Washington." Jewish Allies march in the DC pride parade, 1990s. Jewish Allies march in the DC pride parade, 1990s. Gift of Bet Mishpachah with thanks to Joel Wind & Al Munzer, Lillian & Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum Collection Telling a Complicated History "I feel like my whole curatorial practice for the last 30 years has been leading to this moment," Sarah Leavitt, director of curatorial affairs for the Capital Jewish Museum, told Newsweek. "I think, increasingly, stakes are really high and it's really on us as museum professionals to really be doing part of that work to tell America's story in a much more complicated way. And that includes to tell, in our case, a local Jewish story in a complicated way." The exhibit—with hundreds of artifacts provided by the community, a large portion of which came from the local LGBTQ+ Bet Mishpachah synagogue—maps LGBTQ+ history and its intersection with Jewish history in Washington, D.C., through images, archival protest campaign posters, Washington Blade archives, a panel of the AIDS Memorial Quilt and oral histories produced with the Rainbow History Project. "A big part of this exhibition and this collecting effort is to capture more of this history, especially LGBTQ history, which has either been erased intentionally by people trying to protect themselves, or by people who don't believe that history should be preserved," Edelman said. As a recent transplant to D.C. while in graduate school, he found that "in every aspect of the Jewish community, there were large amounts of out LGBTQ people," unlike where he grew up in the Midwest. "I want everyone to see themselves in this exhibit and see that LGBTQ history is Jewish history." As an intern at the museum in 2019, he had the germ of an idea which has now flourished into this exhibit. The collection puts particular emphasis on two key aspects of queer life in Washington, D.C.: the Lavender Scare moral panic from the late 1940s to the mid-1970s and the AIDS epidemic in the '80s and early '90s, as well as the impact it had on recent LGBTQ+ history in D.C. and the Jewish community. A photograph of Sarah Lynn Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky is displayed outside the Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum on May 29, 2025 in Washington, DC. A photograph of Sarah Lynn Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky is displayed outside the Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum on May 29, 2025 in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla/Getty 'What Happens Here Matters' "Washington has a specific story with the Lavender Scare—the purge of homosexuals from the federal government, which we're kind of seeing again right now. This is not a new story," Edelman said. During the height of the anti-Communist movement of the mid-20th century, thousands of queer federal employees were either fired or forced to resign because of their sexual orientation. One of these fired workers, Frank Kameny, became an influential activist in the gay rights movement. He would go on to form the influential Mattachine Society of Washington in 1960 and, in 1965, organized protests outside the White House advocating for gay rights and the reinstatement of federal works. The story of Kameny, a Jewish man, is one of the many told about this period. "To me, it's so important that my generation understands what people before us had to go through and what they fought for beyond the story of Stonewall, beyond Harvey Milk," Edelman said. "Washington was such an epicenter in its own way and had its own unique aspects." While the exhibit does focus on D.C., it's the national implication these stories have that's most salient, despite rarely getting the attention better-known people and events in queer history do, like the 1969 Stonewall riots, an uprising after repeated police brutality against LGBTQ+ people; or Milk, one of the first openly gay elected officials in the U.S. who was assassinated in 1978. "D.C. has such important national resonance. And I think maybe, the rest of the country ignores that at their peril," Leavitt said. "What happens here matters for real. And the work that happens in the federal government every day, it matters. And again, that's not always a march toward justice. I mean, a lot of terrible things have happened at the federal level as well. But it's not just Frank Kameny, who we know devoted his entire life and career to opening up the federal government to gay workers, but there are so many other people as well who are marching with him." "This exhibition is so much more than the sum of its parts because it really helps emphasize why D.C. was such an important place for the LGBTQ movement and how that change rippled out across the country," Gurwitz said. "You see how the emergence of gay culture in D.C., the particular threats to gay people in D.C., help mobilize all of the different kinds of change that happened in D.C., which then has a national impact." Exhibition space at the Captial Jewish Museum Exhibition space at the Captial Jewish Museum Capital Jewish Museum The Sheer Scope Unsurprisingly, given its significance as a turning point for the movement, the exhibit also focuses on the AIDS epidemic. "When you look at the AIDS crisis, this is something that people in our generation, some people know about, but a lot of people don't," Edelman said. "I sat in this home with this one [older] man, where he was flipping through pages of photographs from the 1996 display of the AIDS quilt on the National Mall. And there were a lot of pictures of specific quilt patches, not just the big, broad photos. And I asked him why he took all of these, and he said, 'These are all my friends and former lovers who I lost.' It was dozens of people. And I don't think we understand the scope of that." One thing the trauma of the AIDS epidemic did do was force institutions to reevaluate how LGBTQ+ people are seen. One way this manifested was a critical debate about the inclusion of gay victims of the Holocaust in Jewish institutions during this era. "There was a movement in the 1980s to make sure that the Holocaust Museum tell[s] the story of non-Jewish gay victims of the Holocaust," Gurwitz said. "There were Jewish advocates advocating to tell these stories and ultimately Elie Wiesel wrote a letter and said you have to tell these stories. This needs to be part of it. I think that is such an important testament to the importance of our cultural institutions in sharing history in a way that shapes our understanding of the past." In 1989, Wiesel, a Nobel Prize-winning writer and Holocaust survivor, was awarded the Humanitarian of the Year Award from the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ+ rights organization. At the ceremony, Wiesel said: "Those who hate you hate me. Bigots do not stop at classes, at races, or at lesbians and gays. Those who hate, hate everybody." The Holocaust Museum in D.C. opened on April 26, 1993, a day after the March on Washington for Lesbian, Gay and Bi Equal Rights and Liberation. And the stories of homosexual victims of the Holocaust were included. US President Barack Obama hands to gay rights activist Frank Kameny a pen which he used to sign a presidential memorandum regarding federal benefits and non-discrimination June 17, 2009 in the Oval Office of the... US President Barack Obama hands to gay rights activist Frank Kameny a pen which he used to sign a presidential memorandum regarding federal benefits and non-discrimination June 17, 2009 in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC. More MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty A Blessing of Memories "I think it resonates so deeply because it's recent history," Gurwitz said about most of the LGBTQ+ history on display at the exhibition. "And it is significant change over time. We can all find moments that we remember, that trigger our own experiences and allow us to see that we have been part of this evolution. So, I think it is actually tremendously moving for people who come in the door." "The rich and interesting and pulls in local context, national context, international context, Jewish stories, non-Jewish stories. There is so much to engage with and to learn that even people who feel like they know this history will have something to learn in this exhibition, and that's extraordinarily gratifying." It's the context of these stories being told through the prism of diverse perspectives that makes "LGBTJews in the Federal City" particularly poignant after the events of May 21. "May their memory be a blessing" is a traditional Jewish expression of condolence after someone dies. Capturing those memories, the lives lived and tragically cut short, like Lischinsky and Milgrim, are what make the work of institutions like the Capital Jewish Museum vital. As Leavitt said about the exhibit before the shooting, she hopes the exhibition is "one way for people to see their story, whatever their identity is." LGBTJews in the Federal City will be on exhibit until January 4, 2026.
Newsweek
30-05-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
Democratic Mayor's Budget Would Remove 25,000 People From Medicaid
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Democratic Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser has proposed a budget that would remove 25,000 people from Medicaid. The budget would update eligibility requirements for Medicaid in D.C. and subsequently lead to tens of thousands of people being kicked off the health coverage. Why It Matters Republicans have touted Medicaid cuts federally, with GOP leaders seeking changes to the program to pass a $2 trillion government spending cut. However, Democratic cuts to the program are relatively rare. Without access to Medicaid, many low-income D.C. residents would be forced to find other insurance or go without, potentially leading to medical debt and worse health outcomes. Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser addresses a remembrance and reopening ceremony at the Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum on May 29, 2025, in Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser addresses a remembrance and reopening ceremony at the Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum on May 29, 2025, in Washington, To Know Bowser's fiscal 2026 budget would change eligibility to help curb the estimated $182 million increase in Medicaid costs for the city. "We also have to deal with the fact that Medicaid is growing at a substantially faster clip than the city's revenues," said Wayne Turnage, deputy mayor for D.C. Health and Human Services, as reported by local station WTOP News. Under the budget, childless adults and adult caregivers would be ineligible if they have an income 138 percent of the federal poverty level or above. This likely would cut off 25,575 residents from Medicaid. "While any cut to this program is going to be difficult, one silver lining is the city has alternative health plans that could be available to some who are no longer ineligible," Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek. "Ultimately, this could be a dilemma other cities facing rising expenses have to deal with in the coming years." Newsweek reached out to Bowser for comment via email. "When you have such cost inflation, the most pragmatic way to control costs in an entitlement program is to slow spending by reducing the number of people in the program," Turnage said during a presentation Tuesday. D.C. is facing a $1 billion decline in revenue over the several years, sparking the need to cut programs like Medicaid. "We think that we will be getting into an unsustainable decision-making loop of, 'I don't want to make hard choices,'" Bowser said. What People Are Saying D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, during a Tuesday briefing on the budget: "We can't invest in the best schools if we don't have revenue to do that. We can't have the types of human services programs that we've invested in if we don't have revenues. "If you don't have enough money, something has to go or you have to make more money." Chris Fong, CEO of Smile Insurance and a Medicaid specialist, told Newsweek: "This type of limitation would eliminate a larger number of DC residents from qualifying for Medicaid. These requirements are more commonly found in Republican leaning states. "It is surprising from a simply political position, but the current D.C. has been known to go against the more progressive democrat positions." Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek: "D.C. is facing something than just a few years ago would have seemed highly unlikely: a severe reduction in its workforce due to recent labor cuts by the federal government and other major employers. Faced with fewer tax dollars and more expenses, this proposal would make childless adults and adult caregivers whose income is 138 percent of the federal poverty level ineligible for Medicaid." What Happens Next The D.C. council is set to debate the proposed changes during the budget process. Voting is expected to take place by early August. "The options the D.C. mayor has is to either increase the burden on the citizens of the city by increasing taxes or to reduce the number of Medicaid beneficiaries," Fong said. "I think it is likely this will pass given the current state of inflation and the challenges that the average citizen is running into when paying their daily bills."
UPI
29-05-2025
- General
- UPI
Capital Jewish Museum reopens in an 'act of resilience'
1 of 5 | Visitors pray at a memorial to Yaron Laschinsky and Sarah Milgrim outside the Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. Photo by Leigh Vogel/UPI | License Photo May 29 (UPI) -- The Capital Jewish Museum reopened Thursday morning with an invitation-only tribute to the Israeli Embassy staffers who were killed outside its entrance last week. "Today's reopening is not simply a return to normal," museum president Chris Wolf told visitors, WNBW reported. "It is an act of resilience," Wolf said. "It is a declaration that we will not allow hate to silence our voices or diminish our commitment to building a better future." Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser was among those invited and who attended the reopening of the museum that is located near the intersection of 3rd Street and F Street in the capital's downtown district. "Part of my charge to my team in every difficult circumstance is that we have to get open [and] we have to get back to normal," Bowser said during the reopening event. "Thank you for getting open," she told museum officials and staff. Bowser also encouraged city residents and visitors to: "Keep showing up for the Jewish community." A 'most heinous form of anti-Semitism' Museum officials called the attack the "most heinous form of anti-Semitism" in a statement posted on the museum's website. "They are a stark and tragic reminder of the hatred that, regrettably, still exists in our world," the statement says. "In the face of such darkness, we are called upon to respond not with despair, but with resilience." The museum had closed for a week following the May 21 double homicide of Yaron Lischinsky, 30, and Sarah Milgrim, 26, after they left a museum event and were waiting to cross the street outside while on foot. Both were employed by the Israeli Embassy in the nation's capital and were a couple who many said likely were about to become engaged. Lischinsky was an Israeli-German citizen and had purchased an engagement ring ahead of a trip to Jerusalem, where he planned to propose marriage. Milgrim was born in Kansas and was a U.S. citizen. A history of anti-Israel activity Chicago resident Elias Rodriguez, 31, is a U.S. citizen and is charged with two counts of murder and other related crimes after traveling from Illinois to Washington, D.C., before the shooting. He did not enter a plea during his arraignment hearing. Rodriguez has a history of involvement in far-left and pro-Palestinian events and is recorded shouting, "free, free, free Palestine," as he was being arrested, according to an FBI affidavit. He had entered the museum that Lischinsky and Milgrim had just exited immediately after the shooting, the affidavit and witnesses say. Witnesses said he yelled, "I did it for Gaza," while admitting to the attack when police arrived and arrested him. Video footage from surveillance cameras in the area shows a man who looks and was dressed the same as Rodriguez walking past a group of four people, including Lischinsky and Milgrim. The man in the video then turned to face their backs, drew a firearm and shot Lischinsky and Milgrim in their backs. Video footage shows the man reloading the firearm and shooting each victim several more times. The FBI affidavit says law enforcement recovered a 9mm pistol from the scene that records show Rodriguez purchased in Illinois in 2020 and declared in his checked baggage when he flew to the capital. Spent casings from 21 cartridges were found at the scene, suggesting the shooter used two 10-round magazines and a chambered bullet during the attack.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
We Must Stand in Solidarity Against Hate
An embassy official cleans blood off the sidewalk at the shooting location outside of the Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum on May 22, 2025 in Washington, DC. Credit - Tasos Katopodis—Getty Images On Wednesday night in Washington, D.C., two young staffers from the Israeli embassy, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, were shot and killed after leaving a Jewish community event. Witnesses say the attacker shouted 'Free Palestine' before opening fire. He reportedly said, 'I did it for Gaza.' This was a targeted antisemitic attack. And tragically, this is not an isolated incident. Since the October 7 massacre in Israel, antisemitism has surged with renewed intensity across North America. It's showing up on campuses, in protests, on social media—and now, in the streets of the U.S. capital. Perhaps most alarming is the growing ease with which it is tolerated, rationalized, or ignored. There is a long and painful history of antisemitism being treated as an afterthought—even in spaces devoted to human rights and justice. But this form of hate is not just persistent—it's shape-shifting, virulent, and, as we've seen, increasingly violent. Over the years, my work in human rights—particularly through the Raoul Wallenberg Centre—has shown me how hate, left unchecked, mutates and spreads. In various board and leadership roles, I've worked to help build coalitions that advance a united front against systemic racism, antisemitism, islamophobia, and other forms of hate. But make no mistake: antisemitism today demands urgent, focused attention. That's why building meaningful alliances is not just important—it's essential. Efforts like Van Jones' Exodus coalition, which brings Black and Jewish leaders together to confront rising hate and promote mutual understanding, offer a blueprint for the kind of solidarity this moment demands. These coalitions don't dilute the unique dangers faced by each group—they strengthen our collective resolve to confront them all. Yes, we can care about Palestinian rights and still denounce antisemitism unequivocally. But doing so requires empathy. And it requires the courage to speak with clarity—especially when it's inconvenient or unpopular. The victims in Washington were not symbols. They were real people, with families and futures. Their deaths must not be just another headline. Let them be a wake-up call. This is not the time for silence. It is time for clarity. And above all, it's a time for courage. Let's honor those we've lost not just with grief—but with action. Let's stand together—firmly, unapologetically—against the ancient hatred that has once again shown its deadly face. Contact us at letters@
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
What is the Capital Jewish Museum? What to know about site of fatal DC shooting
Two Israeli embassy staffers were killed by a lone gunman in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, May 21, as the pair left an evening event at the Capital Jewish Museum a little over a mile from the White House. The staffers, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, were locally employed staff according to the Israeli foreign ministry. Israel's ambassador to the U.S. told reporters the pair were soon-to-be engaged. Washington Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith said a man, identified as 30-year-old Elias Rodriguez from Chicago, shot at a group of four people with a handgun, hitting both Lischinsky and Milgrim. He was seen pacing outside the museum prior to the shooting, Reuters reported, and chanted "Free Palestine, Free Palestine", after being taken into custody by event security after having entered the museum. The museum is located 1.3 miles from the White House in Washington, D.C., in a busy part of the city packed with federal offices and museums. "We are deeply saddened and horrified by the senseless violence outside the Museum this evening," the Capital Jewish Museum posted in a statement on Instagram late Wednesday night. "Our condolences and heartfelt sympathies go to the victims and their families." The Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum says on its website that it "explores the Jewish experience in the national capital region" by connecting the past to the present via "thought-provoking exhibitions, dynamic programming, and creative public experiences." The museum, once the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington, reopened as the Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum on June 9, 2023. The four-floor building incorporates Washington, DC's oldest synagogue, with the 146-year-old historic brick synagogue moved and restored to sit alongside the modern museum building at the corner of 3rd and F Streets NW. "The Museum's collection includes more than 24,000 digital and print photographs, 1,050 objects, and 800 linear feet of archival materials from the 1850s to the present day, including oral histories, personal papers, and business and organizational records," the museum announced upon its 2023 opening. "These collections provide a multifaceted portrait of local Jewish life and form the base of the inaugural exhibitions and also provide research materials for scholars, genealogists, students, and the general public." Current and upcoming exhibitions include: "LGBT Jews in the Federal City" and "What is Jewish Washington." Previous events explored the life of former Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the impact of the Jewish deli on American cuisine, and Jewish comics. The event the two staffers attended Wednesday night was held by the American Jewish Committee, an advocacy group that supports Israel and confronts antisemitism, according to its website. The 'Young Diplomats Reception' was held from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. ET for Jewish young professionals and the D.C. diplomatic community, according to the event tickets, themed "turning pain into purpose." The reception invited members of the Multifaith Alliance and nonprofit organization IsraAID to discuss "humanitarian diplomacy" and responses to humanitarian crises in the Middle East and North Africa. The museum is closed today, Thursday, May 22, following the shooting. Its regular hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET Wednesday through Sunday. Contributing: Reuters. Kathryn Palmer is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach her at kapalmer@ and on X @KathrynPlmr. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What to know about capital Jewish museum after Israelis killed
