‘Progressive Jewish Culture in Argentina and South America: An Ethno-Political Identity (1937-1991)’

Join us for this lecture by Saba Nerina Visacovsky, part of the Fordham-NYPL Lecture Series.

The progressive Jewish movement in Argentina and South America was formed in the heat of the slogans and transnational initiatives of the popular front and its call for unity to fight fascism and anti-Semitism, and in defense of the Yiddish culture. The creation of the Yidisher Kultur Farband Federation (YKUF) during the Congress of Jewish Culture held in Paris in 1937, and its replica in Buenos Aires in 1941 (ICUF), embodied this atmosphere. The YKUF/ICUF brought together the existing pro-Soviet secular Jewish institutions and collaborated to create new ones. The new federation provided them with a political-ideological framework for their representation in the Jewish street and in their relationship with the Communist Party. This lecture aims to present the progressive Jewish identity in Argentina and refer briefly to the impact of the YKUF in South American countries.

This is a hybrid event; please register for forthcoming details about the location.

About the Speaker
Nerina Visacovsky holds a Ph.D. from the Philosophy and Literature Faculty of the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is a researcher at the National Council for Scientific and Technical Research (Conicet), a professor of politics and government at the School of the National University of San Martín, and director of the Pinie Katz Documentation Center and Library (Cedob) from the ICUF. She has written several articles for national and international journals. Among her books are Argentinos judíos y camaradas: tras la utopía socialista (2015) and La tribuna icufista: tiempo de aportes (2021).