Wild Jewish West portrayed in new film
Jews of the Wild West, by director Amanda Kinsey, shows how thousands of families went from Europe’s shtetls to filthy New York tenement buildings to the new frontier.
A documentary due out this year is set to raise awareness about a little- known side of American history: Jewish cowboys.
Historians behind the project have shown how there was a very successful move to get 75,000 Yiddish-speaking Jews based in and around New York to resettle “out west”, but that their adventures were overlooked by American history.
Jews of the Wild West, by director Amanda Kinsey, shows how thousands of families went from Europe’s shtetls to filthy New York tenement buildings to the new frontier.
“Their stories were sidelined for social, political and economic reasons, but they were visionaries who saw the opportunity, and who were rooted in family and tradition,” said Kinsey.
Among those to set their sights on new horizons was Bavarian-born Levi Strauss, who was leader of the nascent Jewish community of San Francisco in the mid-19th century when a tailor approached him with the idea of putting rivets in trousers, to cut down on wear and tear.
Watch a promotional video for Jews of the Wild West here:
blob:https://www.jewsofthewildwest.com/c3de16ac-e9a1-4cf8-94c4-0776be33b5d3
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
