Geraldine Gudefin's guest appearances

Geraldine Gudefin

Jewish History Matters

Rachel Harris

Marc Dollinger

Jonathan Sarna

Jeffrey Veidlinger

Joshua Shanes

James Loeffler

Susannah Heschel

Steven Weitzman

Hasia Diner

Laura Arnold Leibman

Ran Abramitzky

Sarah Abrevaya Stein

Benjamin Netanyahu

Robert Alter

David Biale

OwlTail

Mir Yarfitz

Join our community on Facebook | Join our mailing list Mir Yarfitz joins the podcast to discuss his book Impure Migration: Jews and Sex Work in Golden Age Argentina, and the big-picture issues surrounding the history of migration, sex work and prostitution, and the morality tale of “white slavery.” As he describes in the book, and dives into in this wide-ranging conversation, looking closely at this history both offers a new light on the history of Jews in Argentina and also indicates important ways in which we can rethink the phenomenon of sex work as well as the stakes of debates about migration and immigration. Notably, he argues that we should recognize the agency of the historical actors just as much as contemporary figures in these spheres, and also that the history of the terms of the discourse surrounding sex work is closely connected to the criminalization and racialization of immigrants, both within the twentieth-century Argentine context as well as in twenty-first century America. Purchase Impure Migration at Amazon  Mir Yarfitz is an Associate Professor at Wake Forest University’s Department of History. Impure Migration is his first book. This episode is guest hosted by Geraldine Gudefin, a scholar of modern Jewish studies currently teaching at American University. She received her Ph.D. in History from Brandeis University in 2018, and her research is focused on migration, gender, and the intersection of law and religion in French and American Jewish history. An edited transcript of the conversation will be available shortly.

<a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/JewishHistoryMatters/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Join our community on Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.jewishhistory.fm/join-our-mailing-list/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Join our mailing list</a> Mir Yarfitz joins the podcast to discuss his book Impure Migration: Jews and Sex Work in Golden Age Argentina, and the big-picture issues surrounding the history of migration, sex work and prostitution, and the morality tale of “white slavery.” As he describes in the book, and dives into in this wide-ranging conversation, looking closely at this history both offers a new light on the history of Jews in Argentina and also indicates important ways in which we can rethink the phenomenon of sex work as well as the stakes of debates about migration and immigration. Notably, he argues that we should recognize the agency of the historical actors just as much as contemporary figures in these spheres, and also that the history of the terms of the discourse surrounding sex work is closely connected to the criminalization and racialization of immigrants, both within the twentieth-century Argentine context as well as in twenty-first century America. <ul><li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Impure-Migration-Golden-Argentina-Cultures/dp/081359815X/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&amp;keywords=impure+mirations+mir+yarfitz&amp;qid=1587877957&amp;sr=8-1-spell" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Purchase Impure Migration at Amazon</a></li><li></li></ul> Mir Yarfitz is an Associate Professor at Wake Forest University’s Department of History. Impure Migration is his first book. This episode is guest hosted by Geraldine Gudefin, a scholar of modern Jewish studies currently teaching at American University. She received her Ph.D. in History from Brandeis University in 2018, and her research is focused on migration, gender, and the intersection of law and religion in French and American Jewish history. An edited transcript of the conversation will be available shortly.

47: Jews and Sex Work in Argentina with Mir Yarfitz and Geraldine Gudefin

Kirsten Fermaglich

Join our community on Facebook | Join our mailing list What’s in a name? For many American Jews who changed their names in the twentieth century so they would sound “less Jewish,” clearly a lot. In this episode, guest host Geraldine Gudefin welcomes Kirsten Fermaglich to speak about her book A Rosenberg by Any Other Name: A History of Jewish Name Changing in America and the big issues it brings up: Name changing is the butt of many jokes, but it’s a really serious topic that illuminates the history of antisemitism in America and the power of bureaucracy in society. As Kirsten stresses, the way this story has been told is important too. Apocryphal tales about Ellis Island officials changing peoples’ names elide the importance of agency in Jewish history. As her books shows, Jews’ names were not being changed by others, but it was an active choice. Listen in for a fascinating conversation about why names are an important window into understanding American Jewish history and culture, for understanding the history of antisemitism, and for reframing our understanding of Jewish history to see how Jews have had more agency and control over their destiny. Purchase A Rosenberg by Any Other Name on AmazonRead Kirsten Fermaglich, “‘My Name Proved to Be a Great Handicap’” (Tablet, 2018) Kirsten Fermaglich is an associate professor at Michigan State University’s Department of History. Her book A Rosenberg by Any Other Name, which we’re looking at today, explores the history of name changing in the United States in the twentieth century, and her first book, American Dreams and Nazi Nightmares, looked at secular Jewish intellectuals’ uses of the Holocaust in the early 1960s. Geraldine Gudefin, who is guest hosting this episode, is a scholar of modern Jewish studies currently teaching at American University. She received her Ph.D. in History from Brandeis University in 2018, and her research is focused on migration, gender, and the intersection of law and religion in French and American Jewish history. An edited transcript of the conversation will be available shortly.

<a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/JewishHistoryMatters/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Join our community on Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.jewishhistory.fm/join-our-mailing-list/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Join our mailing list</a> What’s in a name? For many American Jews who changed their names in the twentieth century so they would sound “less Jewish,” clearly a lot. In this episode, guest host Geraldine Gudefin welcomes Kirsten Fermaglich to speak about her book A Rosenberg by Any Other Name: A History of Jewish Name Changing in America and the big issues it brings up: Name changing is the butt of many jokes, but it’s a really serious topic that illuminates the history of antisemitism in America and the power of bureaucracy in society. As Kirsten stresses, the way this story has been told is important too. Apocryphal tales about Ellis Island officials changing peoples’ names elide the importance of agency in Jewish history. As her books shows, Jews’ names were not being changed by others, but it was an active choice. Listen in for a fascinating conversation about why names are an important window into understanding American Jewish history and culture, for understanding the history of antisemitism, and for reframing our understanding of Jewish history to see how Jews have had more agency and control over their destiny. <ul><li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Rosenberg-Any-Other-Name-Goldstein-Goren/dp/1479867209/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=rosenberg+by+any+other+name&amp;qid=1583034246&amp;sr=8-2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Purchase A Rosenberg by Any Other Name on Amazon</a></li><li><a href="https://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-life-and-religion/270503/my-name-a-great-handicap" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Read Kirsten Fermaglich, “‘My Name Proved to Be a Great Handicap’” (Tablet, 2018)</a></li></ul> Kirsten Fermaglich is an associate professor at Michigan State University’s Department of History. Her book A Rosenberg by Any Other Name, which we’re looking at today, explores the history of name changing in the United States in the twentieth century, and her first book, American Dreams and Nazi Nightmares, looked at secular Jewish intellectuals’ uses of the Holocaust in the early 1960s. Geraldine Gudefin, who is guest hosting this episode, is a scholar of modern Jewish studies currently teaching at American University. She received her Ph.D. in History from Brandeis University in 2018, and her research is focused on migration, gender, and the intersection of law and religion in French and American Jewish history. An edited transcript of the conversation will be available shortly.

43: A Rosenberg by Any Other Name? Jewish Name-Changing and American Jewish History with Kirsten Fermaglich and Geraldine Gudefin