Live! The NM Jewish Journal!

A Rainbow of Hope: Yes! We happy New MexiJews have a new, independent [online] paper, the New Mexico Jewish Journal, keeping us connected with news, arts, culture, and spirituality. 

Live in New Mexico!

New Mexico Jewish Journal

You may remember those terrible days in November 2022  (see Train Wreck at Federation and The Federation's Last Day) when the Federation's wheels came off and the whole kit and caboodle hit the sand.

Among the collateral damage inflicted upon the New Mexico Jewish community by the Federation's demise was the defenestration of the New Mexico Jewish Link, which suddenly found itself without a publisher. Or an editor. Or writers. 

You may also remember that Shlomo Karni founded the New Mexico Jewish Link way back in 1968, just as Abq Jew was graduating high school. And that it had been going strong for more than 50 years when it met its untimely end.

There was even a time (2014-2016) when the New Mexico Jewish Link went online and added the New Mexico Jewish eLink. Yes, Abq Jew was the Webmaster. There was even talk of dropping the paper edition altogether - which never happened. Instead, the New Mexico Jewish eLink was dropped.

And thus, it is with great pleasure that Abq Jew announces the exciting development you've all been waiting for:

Live in New Mexico!

New Mexico Jewish Journal

The force behind the creation and development of the New Mexico Jewish Journal is - no surprise here! - renowned photojournalist Diane Joy Schmidt (see July 2019's Asylum Seekers in Albuquerque, et al).

On the New Mexico Jewish Journal's website, Diane writes:

Many in the community have wanted to see a new publication happen. I was the senior writer for the Link for over a decade and finally, felt compelled to do something. 

This past November, I gathered a group of ten* Jewish citizens from across the state and we began meeting online to discuss creating a paper. The volunteer group included journalists, editors, writers, professionals and board members of Jewish organizations, and a rabbi/chaplain connected across many Jewish groups. Her wisdom helped us bridge our differences in those first meetings.

We agreed that, yes! we want a new, independent paper, and to call it the New Mexico Jewish Journal: keeping us connected with news, arts, culture and spirituality

Our mission statement is to connect, inform, enrich and celebrate the vibrant and diverse Jewish communities of New Mexico and the region. 

Our editorial policy will follow the Society for Professional Journalists Code of Ethics, with a commitment to maintaining journalistic independence and the highest standards of accuracy and fairness.   

For our theme I chose the Sandhill Cranes, who winter in New Mexico along the Rio Grande and who have been here on earth for more than two million years. 

A sighting of cranes is said to bestow healing, blessings, good fortune and longevity to Native Americans and to other cultures around the world. And, since WWII, through the story of a Japanese girl exposed to radiation who set out to fold a thousand origami cranes, cranes symbolize peace and the innocent victims of war.  

Our favicon (the circular icon) is a paper cut art design made by Nan Rubin reflecting our long Jewish history in New Mexico. As she explains, "In the center is the six-petal flower, a symbol used by the hidden Jews of New Mexico, which is overlaid with a Star of David."

 

Now, as a volunteer committee, we have decided to take a first step — so here our story begins, again, with our first online New Mexico Jewish Journal.  

We plan to come out online with four primary quarterly editions and intermediate emails with new articles, and to eventually have a print edition.

The New Mexico Jewish Journal's Editorial Committee* 
is thrilled to announce:

If you sign up with your email,
you'll be assured of getting our publication,
the New Mexico Jewish Journal, free.
Every reader counts! 

And if you subscribe today with a payment,
you'll have the satisfaction of knowing
you are a founding member! Your subscriptions
and community support are only what makes
your very own state-wide community paper,
the New Mexico Jewish Journal,
exist, survive, and flourish. 

Thank you!

The members of the Editorial Committee are:

Diane Joy Schmidt  Publisher and Editor

Sara Koplik, Ph.D.  Director, Hillel University of New Mexico

Rabbi Min Kantrowitz  Rabbi/Chaplain, Albuquerque

Michael Wald  Lawyer; Board, Jewish Community Foundation of New Mexico

Norma Libman  Journalist, author and public speaker; Board, New Mexico Jewish Historical Society 

Claudette Sutton  Editor and writer, Santa Fe

Ron Duncan Hart, Ph.D. Director, Institute for Tolerance Studies, Santa Fe

Nan Rubin  Media consultant; Past President, Temple Beth-El Las Cruces; Co-founder Radio KTAL 101.5 FM Las Cruces

Marla Cohen  Director, Jewish Federation of El Paso and Las Cruces

Abq Jew and the New Mexico Jewish community
thank you all for your dedication!