Religious Jews Donate Plasma by the Thousands to Fight Covid-19 & Other Orthodox Jews in the News

Thousands of Orthodox Jewish New Yorkers Donate Plasma to Fight Coronavirus
Thousands of Orthodox Jewish New Yorkers who have recovered from the coronavirus are now stepping up to donate potentially life-saving blood plasma to help fight the illness, according to a new report. More than half of donors to Mount Sinai hospital system’s plasma collection have been Orthodox Jews, Dr. David Reich, president and chief operating officer for the system, told The Forward.

Orthodox Jews Are Donating Plasma by the Thousands to Fight Covid-19
Dr. Shmuel Shoham, an expert on infectious diseases in transplant patients at Johns Hopkins University, realized that convalescent plasma — antibodies spun out of the blood of people who had Covid-19 — could be a key therapy in fighting the disease. So he called a friend who is an Orthodox Jew — Chaim Lebovits, from Monsey, N.Y. — to ask him if he could encourage others in his community to donate their plasma. Thousands responded.

First-Ever Hasidic Jew Appointed as US Assistant Secretary
The US Senate on Tuesday unanimously confirmed the nomination of Mitchell (Moyshe) Silk to be assistant secretary of the Treasury for international markets. Silk is the first Hasidic Jew to be appointed to such a position. He will oversee international energy and infrastructure finance, global financial markets and international trade.

Plague on a Biblical Scale: Hasidic Families Hit Hard By Virus
The coronavirus has hit the Hasidic Jewish community in the New York area with devastating force, killing influential religious leaders and tearing through large, tight-knit families at a rate that some public health data suggest may exceed that of other ethnic or religious groups. Hasidic news media report that roughly 700 members of the community in the New York area have died from Covid-19, the disease caused by the virus.

A Father’s Homecoming: NJ Man Recovers From COVID-19 After One Month
A 34-year-old father of two from Bergen County was hospitalized for a month after he contracted the coronavirus. Michael Goldsmith was on the ventilator for 22 days.

Zoom Shivas and Prayer Hotlines: Ultra-Orthodox Jewish Traditions Upended by Coronavirus
Hundreds of ultra-Orthodox Jews are estimated to have died in Brooklyn. Here’s how the pandemic is changing their longstanding rituals.

Ex-Hasid: Why My Former Community Makes For Such Compelling Television
Netflix’s widely popular miniseries “Unorthodox” joins an emerging subgenre of television explorations of Hasidic Jewish communities and characters. From the critically acclaimed Israeli hit series “Shtisel,” to Netflix’s original documentary “One of Us,” depictions of extremely religious Jews are becoming more mainstream.

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