In 1290, Jews were expelled from England and subsequently largely expunged from English historical memory. Yet for two centuries they occupied important roles in mediaeval English society. England’s Jews revisits this neglected chapter of English history—one whose remembrance is more important than ever today, as antisemitism and other forms of racism are on the rise.
In England's Jews: Finance, Violence, and the Crown in the Thirteenth Century (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2023), Dr. John Tolan tells the story of the thousands of Jews who lived in mediaeval England. Protected by the Crown and granted the exclusive right to loan money with interest, Jews financed building projects, provided loans to students, and bought and rented out housing. Historical texts show that they shared meals and beer, celebrated at weddings, and sometimes even ended up in bed with Christians.
Yet Church authorities feared the consequences of Jewish contact with Christians and tried to limit it, though to little avail. Royal protection also proved to be a double-edged sword: when revolts broke out against the unpopular king Henry III, some of the rebels, in debt to Jewish creditors, killed Jews and destroyed loan records. Vicious rumours circulated that Jews secretly plotted against Christians and crucified Christian children. All of these factors led Edward I to expel the Jews from England in 1290. Paradoxically, Dr. Tolan shows, thirteenth-century England was both the theatre of fruitful interreligious exchange and a crucible of European antisemitism.
This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose new book focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty negotiation and implementation in civil war contexts, with qualitative analysis of the Angolan and Mozambican civil wars.
Today in Western Europe, there is a line that divides speakers of Germanic languages and speakers of Romance languages. While that line has shifted over time, its existence can be traced back to a battle that took place over 2000 years ago.
That battle rocked the Roman Empire to its core, and finally set limits for how big the empire could grow.
Learn more about the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest and how its impact can still be seen today, on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.
We'll tell you how the U.S. government might punish an Israeli army unit, just as Congress passes another big aid package for Israel and other allies.
Also, one of the most closely-watched cases in the U.S. Supreme Court: justices are being asked how cities are allowed to deal with homelessness.
Plus, a big milestone for auto workers in the South, which American city is getting pandas soon, and how people around the world are honoring Mother Earth on this Earth Day.
Those stories and more news to know in about 10 minutes!
Today we take on two law stories the media have been getting wrong recently.
1) Did the Supreme Court just "end the right to protest in three states"? We go beyond the headlines to better understand Justice Sonia Sotomayor's denial of certiorari in a negligence suit brought against Black Lives Matter organizer Deray McKesson by a police officer injured during a BLM protest in Baton Rouge.
2) Biden's border. The impeachment of DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas ended last week in the Senate before it ever began, but the lies, misinformation, and terrible reporting which fueled it are only getting worse. Matt breaks down what people who complain about Joe Biden's "open-border policies" are actually saying before getting into the facts. How do Trump's enforcement metrics compare to Biden's? How has a commitment to actually abiding by basic due process and our international and domestic obligations to people seeking protection for persecution been spun into "lawlessness at the border"? And what even are Biden's border policies anyway?
After months of delay, House lawmakers this weekend passed a package of bills to send foreign aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan. Included in that package of legislation is also a bill that could end up banning TikTok. Hard-right Republicans are threatening to oust Speaker Mike Johnson over his decision to bring Ukraine aid up for a vote. At the same time, the legislation heads to the Senate for consideration later this week.
The Supreme Court hears a case today over one of the country’s most heartbreaking and increasingly intractable issues: homelessness. In Grants Pass, Oregon v. Johnson, the justices will weigh whether penalizing people experiencing homelessness is “cruel and unusual” and, therefore, a violation of the Eight Amendment. Jeremiah Hayden, staff reporter for Street Roots in Portland, explains what’s at stake in the case.
And in headlines: We’ve got a roundup of climate news in honor of Earth Day, opening statements begin in former President Donald Trump’s criminal hush-money trial, and workers at a Volkswagen plant in Tennessee join the United Auto Workers union.
Show Notes:
OPB: "Grants Pass v. Johnson: Here's what led to key homelessness case before high court" - https://tinyurl.com/56an9dv2
Roughly 196 million tons of fish were harvested in 2020, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The organization also notes that the number of overfished stocks worldwide has tripled in the last century. All of this overfishing has led to the decline of entire species, like Atlantic cod.
Enter the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch. It and other free guides give consumers an overview of the world of fish and seafood, helping people to figure out the most sustainable fish available to them. With the help of Life Kit's Clare Marie Schneider, we figure out how to make informed decisions about what we eating – whether that's at a restaurant or the local supermarket.
During the first night of Passover, Jewish homes gather around a Seder meal and remember how God delivered the Jewish people from Egypt, and that God has always rescued His people, author and lecturer Rabbi Pinchas Taylor explains.
“We say that we recognize that in every generation, there are nations that have come against us, that seek to destroy us, and that each and every generation, God saves us from their plot,” the rabbi says.
Passover begins at sundown on Monday night, and following Hamas’ attack on Israel in October, and this month's attack by Iran, the reminder that God saves His people, “that's going to be something that resonates quite a bit extra this year,” Taylor says. (Passover runs through sundown on April 30.)
Taylor joins “The Daily Signal Podcast” as Passover begins to explain safety concerns in the Jewish community amid a rise in antisemitism after Oct. 7, and to discuss how Americans can support the Jewish people right now.
Amazon’s newest business is actually a secret spy business — And Amazon used it to infiltrate Walmart and other competitors.
Korea’s K-Pop bands don’t just play songs, they play stocks — The Big 4 Korean music groups are publicly-traded on Wall Street because K-Pop’s biz is popping.
Meta just put an AI Chatbot into the searchbar of all their apps, including Instagram — Mark Zuckerberg’s advantage in the AI battle? Free & Frictionless.
Plus, Americans toss out $68M of pennies, nickels, and dimes every year… but one company is scooping them up.
5 days until our NYC Live Show! Yetis, we can’t wait to see you in the city that never sleeps.
With all eyes on the WNBA as Caitlin Clark was drafted, many were surprised at the star player’s new salary, and how it paled in comparison to that of an NBA rookie. What would it take to address this disparity?
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