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The Morton E. Ruderman Memorial Lecture enriches Jewish Studies at Northeastern by bringing to campus leading scholars and artists to explore a range of ideas and cultural perspectives. The Lecture brings world-renowned speakers to students at Northeastern University, increases visibility and adds prestige to the Jewish Studies Program, and contributes to the critical exchange of ideas in our increasingly complex and diverse society. Speakers not only deliver a public lecture to a large audience but also regularly teach a master class to undergraduate and graduate students as part of their visit to the Northeastern campus.

Supported by a grant from the Ruderman Family Foundation, the lecture honors the memory of distinguished alumnus Morton E. Ruderman and his commitment to the study of Jews and Judaism at Northeastern University.

The distinguished list of speakers includes:

2023 James Loeffler, A Pogrom in Chicago: Antisemitism and the Limits of Liberalism in Postwar America

2022-2023 Continuation of the series The Colors, Cultures, and Flavors of the Jews. Lecture One: Laura Arnold Leibman, Jews of Color in Early America. Lecture Two: Jonathan Kaufman, The Last Kings of Shanghai: The Rival Jewish Dynasties that Shaped Modern China. Lecture Three: The Hidden Jews of Ethiopia Film Premier and panel discussion with Marla Brettschneider, Malka Shabtay and Belayneh Tazebku. This event was not recorded.

2021-2022 Series on The Colors, Cultures, and Flavors of the Jews. Lecture One: Eric Goldstein and Kabria Baumgartner, The Price of Whiteness: Jews, Race, and American Identity. Lecture Two: Rabbi Mira Rivera, Phil Thai, Matt Lee, Lily Song, Asian Americans in a Multi-Racial and Multi-Religious Democracy.

2021 Rachel Yehuda, Eva Fogelman, Danny Brom, Trauma, the Jewish Experience, and Lessons for Post-Covid Mental Health.

2019 Michael Pollan, What Can Psychedelics Teach Us About Spirituality?

2018 David N. Myers, Why is Jewish History So Important Today? An Impassioned Plea for Studying the Past

2017 Paul Wolpe, Frankenstein and the Golem

2015 Jodi Rudoren, Journalism in a Land of Few Facts

2014 Brooke Gladstone (moderator), Jane Eisner, Mark Oppenheimer, and Dina Kraft, On the Jewish Media

2013, Nathan Englander, What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank

2012 Art Spiegelman, What the %@&*! Happened to Comics? A lecture with images

More information about each lecture can be found here.