Robby Adler Peckerar · Radical Jewish Reading Circle

Join us for the Radical Jewish Reading Circle: three evenings of reading, thinking, and conversation about radical thinkers of Jewish origin.

This month we turn to Rosa Luxemburg, starting with her famous 1917 letter to Mathilde Wurm, in which she declared: "I have no special corner in my heart for the ghetto: I am at home in the entire world wherever there are clouds and birds and human tears." Born in 1871 to a Jewish family in Russian-controlled Poland, Luxemburg became one of the most influential socialist thinkers and activists of the twentieth century. A brilliant economist, theorist of democracy, and fierce critic of both nationalism and imperialism, she was murdered by proto-fascist militia in Berlin in 1919.

At a moment when authoritarianism is rising and nationalist movements are gaining strength, what can Luxemburg teach us? What might her struggles with universalism, particularism, and the dangers of ethnic tribalism tell us about the crises we face today?

No background required. All texts provided. This is a circle and together we'll think through these questions together in small-group discussion.