The Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center of Nassau County presents a virtual lecture series of four talks, given by Dr. Thorin Tritter, HMTC’s Museum and Programming Director, that will focus on the history of Jews in New York City. Jews have made New York their home for more than 350 years.
Hardly a monolithic group, however, no singular experience captures the way Jews have fit into the melting pot of the Big Apple. In some periods, they were welcomed, in others, they were feared, but throughout, Jewish residents have not only been shaped by New York, but have changed the city’s character around them. Think of bagels, babka, the Lower East Side, and Jerry Seinfeld. No other city is as linked to Jewish culture and the Jewish community as New York.
The talks will take place on the following days:
Jan. 25 at 7 p.m.: A look at early Jewish settlers in the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam and some of their experiences up through the American Revolution.
Feb. 1 at 7 p.m.: Examines the largest wave of Jewish immigration in the period from 1890-1920, focusing in particular on Ellis Island, the gateway to America.
Feb. 8 at 7 p.m.: Arrival process to the neighborhood that many Jewish immigrants made their home, focusing on housing and settlement patterns in the Jewish Lower East Side.
Feb. 22 at 7 p.m.: A look at work and other aspects of life for immigrants in the Jewish Lower East Side.
Registration for each individual talk in the series is $10. Registration is free for all the lectures in the series for HMTC members. To register for the series visit https://www.hmtcli.org/events/history-of-jews-in-new-york-city. To become a HMTC member visit https://www.hmtcli.org/memberships.
For more information contact Dr. Thorin Tritter at (516) 571-8040 or programs@hmtcli.org.
