THE DEFINITIVE RAP JewishPodcasts.org

It was a great victory for a Jewish employee who faced workplace hostility and an anti Israel email blast, when the Bronx Legal Aid group, The Bronx Defenders settled with a $175, 000 payout to the victim. In addition the settlement also included an official apology, and the staff having to undergo bias and sensitivity training. Is this the beginning of something big for victims of antisemitism? Will this discourage the recent wave of rising antisemitism? 

Baila Sebrow, Producer and Host of The Definitive Rap Show sat down with Dov Hikind, an Orthodox Jew, American politician, activist, and radio talk show host. Dov is a former Democratic New York State Assemblyman representing Brooklyn's Assembly district 48, having held this position for 35 years – from January 1983 until December 2018. He is the Founder of Americans Against Antisemitism. Americans Against Antisemitism is a grassroots coalition that mobilizes supporters to take social action against anti-Semites.

Dov discussed what happened to the Jewish staffer victim with regard to antisemitic  working conditions, when it was reported, and ultimately how it came be that the victim was actually vindicated?

He was happy to report that the perpetrator of Fima Zlatsin, the Jewish victim of an unprovoked attack on a New York City subway this past summer was found and arrested. 

Also discussed was about the many recent Arab terror attacks in Israel, and that we have now seen a move where Hungary will be the first European country to establish its embassy in Jerusalem. 

Dov shared his opinion about New York City Mayor Eric Adams who is not a believer in the “separation of church and state has achieved new fans, particularly Orthodox Jews and Evangelical Christians because he ripped removal of school prayers.  

Today we are discussing a topic that will raise much controversy. Parental Alienation. This is a topic of justice. No woman, no man, no child, no animal, no living creature should ever be abused or mistreated. Not by anyone. There should be no cover-ups, and if there is, it must be exposed.

When two people get divorced, it is between them. The adults. It is the couple getting divorced. The children should not be getting divorced from either of their parents. Keep the children out of it! Children have a right to have a relationship with both parents. No Mother, no father should ever keep their child or children away from their parent.

The long term-effect of parental alienation on children can be devastating and is actually a criminal offense in some countries

Baila Sebrow, producer and host of The Definitive Rap interviewed Jeffrey Ostrov, an orthodox Jewish man from Israel. He talked about his painful experience as a father who is being alienated from his children and about how the system is failing him and others in his situation.

He explained how the alienation began, and what his ex-wife claimed is the reason for her keeping his children away from him. He also described what would happen if he attempted contact with his children, and whether his children would want to have a relationship with him.   

There are few true heroes in our midst. The people who stick their necks out to help others, and who do it not for money or fame, but because they truly care to help those whom nobody cares about. Those are the unsung heroes. 

Here on the Definitive Rap we bring the truth to the forefront. We respect people of all faiths, and we believe in America, and Justice For All. Our guest today, Mark Appel, lives and breathes for peace and justice.

Baila Sebrow, producer and host of The Definitive Rap sat down with Mark Appel, a long-time advocate who has dedicated his life to advancing civil rights for all Americans and bridging the divide between different communities. 

Mark started by giving a detailed account of his background, and explained how he became such a successful advocate for so many years. 

He talked about how he spent ten years rallying the support for the bill called the passage of the Child Victims Act, a great victory for all victims of sex abuse.

Mark explained his motivation to address the challenge of bringing multicultural communities and people together, to form The Bridge Multicultural and Advocacy  Project, a unity center that aims to address issues across cultural lines, and advocates for transformational change in New York’s diverse communities.

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The Queen of England, who in response to a request for life advice, she commented, “If I had to give only one piece of advice, it would be to invest in human connections. There is nothing more important in life than connecting with other people, and I think the last year or so has made that very clear.” The Queen was referring to the pandemic, where all humanity was witness to the importance of human connection, that has previously been taken for granted.

The show’s guest today lives by that motto, and it is demonstrated by the way he lives his life, and how it reflects his life’s work.

Baila Sebrow producer and host of The Definitive Rap sat down with Rabbi Dovid Cohen, an internationally renowned motivational speaker, spiritual leader, life coach, entrepreneur and author whose empathic approach has empowered many individuals to achieve success in all aspects of life. His teachings are firmly rooted in Torah knowledge mixed together with contemporary thinking.

Rabbi Cohen talked about the previous generations before us, who endured so many challenges, yet how they were able to pick up the shredded pieces of their lives, move on and build what we have today.

Rabbi Cohen shared from his book, We’re Almost There, how one can live a Jewish life in the world today in midst of dilemmas.

He offered, a deep and raw understanding of human beings, and relationships from his book, Together Again, along with some excerpts. 

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If you think your job is tough, today’s episode will leave you shocked .Baila Sebrow, producer and host of The Definitive Rap Show sat down with American TV producer Natasha Lance Rogoff to discuss her memoir, Muppets in Moscow: The Unexpected Crazy True Story of Making Sesame Street in Russia, which Rowman & Littlefield published recently. It chronicles Natasha’s experience producing a Russian version of Sesame Street in post-Soviet Union Russia.

In the process, Natasha, who is Jewish, and her colleagues faced the assassinations of their broadcast partners, a car bombing, and the takeover of the show’s production office by Russian soldiers with AK47s.

The book captures the occurrences of a disagreement creating a fun, educational children’s television show against the violent backdrop of 1990s Moscow. It also relays the cultural clashes that threatened to derail Natasha’s efforts to bring the Muppets and their idealistic values to millions of children across the former Soviet empire, including Ukraine. As one of the people on Natasha’s team put it, “You are tasking us with developing this curriculum to help kids learn the skills they need for an open society, but how can we do it if we haven’t lived in an open society?”

The show is off the air now, but its legacy—the Ulitsa Sezam (Sesame Street) generation—remains. We see it in the Russians walking out of Russia because they oppose Putin’s war and do not want to fight, and we see it on the Ukrainian side—the same age cohort, fighting for their freedom.

Since its release, the book has been covered in The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, Vulture, and on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” among others. 

Natasha Lance Rogoff is an award-winning American television producer, filmmaker, and journalist who has produced television news and documentaries in Russia, Ukraine, and the former Soviet Union for CBS, NBC, ABC, and PBS. Lance Rogoff executive produced Ulitsa Sezam, the Russian adaptation of Sesame Street, between 1993 and 1997. She also produced Plaza Sesamo in Mexico. In addition to her television work, Lance Rogoff has reported on Soviet underground culture as a documentary director and magazine and newspaper writer for major international media outlets. 

Today, Lance Rogoff produces content for television and digital platforms and is the CEO and founder of an ed-tech company. An associate fellow in Harvard University’s Art, Film, and Visual Studies department, she divides her time between Cambridge, MA and New York City.

Natasha talked about what she envisioned for this production before things went crazy, and why she chose to produce a Sesame Street type of show. 

Natasha described the most difficult part of this assignment, and the difficulties she faced working in Russia. 

She explained why this production of a Russian Sesame Street got so dangerous, and how a backer who was going to come in with a million dollars for the show was blown up in his car. 

The show concluded with Natasha’s message of what she would most like people to understand about the Russian people and their country. 

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It is 80 years since the Holocaust began. The lessons we have learned in history is that we cannot forget what has happened. We cannot forget because of the victims, their persecutions and horrible deaths. We cannot forget because of the survivors, who witnessed and lost so much, and we cannot forget because Jews, and other victims were targeted for annihilation. And if we don’t remember, if we choose to forget – it can happen again. 

The United Nations has designated Holocaust Remembrance Day to be on January 27th, the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz – Birkenau. 

In tribute to Holocaust Remembrance Day, Dr. Moshe Katz, a survivor of the Holocaust agreed to tell his story during an interview with Baila Sebrow, producer and host of The Definitive Rap. 

Dr. Moshe Katz, is author of Nine Out of Ten, and well known speaker who speaks extensively to all audiences about the Holocaust.

Dr. Katz talked extensively about his upbringing, including where he was born and raised, what his family life was before the Holocaust, everything leading up to the Holocaust, what he endured, and how he survived.

Dr. Katz, explained why people were not aware that the situation in Europe was so dire and dangerous for Jews, and that they are being deported to their deaths. He also discussed why he titled his book Nine Out of Ten. 

The interview concluded with a blessing for the audience, as it is said that a person who survived the Holocaust has the power to give blessings to others.

WE WILL NEVER FORGET. We will always keep the memory of the 6 million and plus alive. As Elie Wiesel said, “To forget the dead would be akin to killing them a second time.” 



*WATCH THIS EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW