Sign in

Joanna Silver

@joannasilver73.bsky.social
179 followers 73 following 81 posts

Part-time federal public defender, part-time organizer, advocate, agitator. Autism mom, pit-bull mom. Still vegan, still late to all new tech platforms.

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
This weekend was a busy weekend for MCJC. On Saturday evening, we hosted a game night to build our community. Then on Sunday, we teamed up with the DMV Bund and JVP Metro DC to table at the Free DC activist street fest.
031
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
This week, the Senate will vote on a Joint Resolution of Disapproval to block the sale of weapons to Israel. While @vanhollen.senate.gov is a lead sponsor of this resolution, @alsobrooks.senate.gov has not yet committed to voting for the resolution.
142
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
This was such a powerful hearing. Please read the full thread and if you live in Maryland, take action now!
011
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
Our Advocacy and Partnerships Co-Chair @joannasilver73.bsky.social spoke with @therealnews.com about Break the Bonds legislation in the Maryland General Assembly ⬇️
075
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 14/03/2026
Last week, the Montgomery County Jewish Collective was invited to attend the ceremonial unveiling of a plaque honoring Delegate Thomas Kennedy and the 200th Anniversary of the passage of the “Jew Bill,” a constitutional amendment passed in 1826 that allowed Jews to hold public office in Maryland.
Members of MCJC pose with the plaque about Thomas KennedyPlaque in Annapolis honoring Thomas Kennedy 1776-1832, who introduced the "Jew Bill".
131
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 14/03/2026
I often learn a lot when I listen to @peterbeinart.bsky.social, but this episode was particularly enlightening. open.substack.com/pub/peterbei...
open.substack.com
When Your Country Attacks Your Homeland
Orly Noy on being Iranian and Israeli during this horrific war
164
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
MCJC was honored to be a part of the Muslim Community Center's Interfaith Iftar this weekend. Thank you so much for the invitation and welcome!
Iftar at the Muslim Community Center in Montgomery County, MD.Members of the Montgomery County Jewish Collective join members of the Muslim Community Center for an Iftar celebration.
062
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
An incredibly thoughtful and moving read. www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
theguardian.com
After my ICE arrest, I learned one crucial way to respond to trauma. We can all take part | Rümeysa Öztürk
I was detained for co-writing a op-ed about Gaza as a student at Tufts. My experience has only made me feel more connected to others facing oppression
020
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
MCJC joined 100s of Jews at ICE headquarters to protest its inhumane practices. We weren't quiet about the connections between repression and occupation in the US and Palestine; a message (almost uniformly) warmly received by other attendees. Credit to @rabbis4ceasefire.bsky.social for the sign.
Members of the Montgomery County Jewish Collective carry signs saying "No Human Beings Are Illegal" and "From Minneapolis to Palestine, Occupation Is a Crime" at the Jews Against ICE rally.Rabbis For Ceasefire sign: US to the West Bank: Solidarity Is Holy
154
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 09/01/2026
Happy New Year! We’ve had a busy end of the year and want to share all of our recent work. 1. Our letter of support for @vanhollen.senate.gov has reached over 600 signatures including former MD Attorney General Brian Frosh.
Graphic highlighting our recent work
111
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 02/01/2026
theguardian.com
They tried to smear him as an antisemite – but Mayor Zohran Mamdani walks in a rich Jewish tradition | Molly Crabapple
When I look at Mamdani, I don’t see some radical departure. I see him as an heir to the Yiddish socialism that helped build New York
020
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 26/12/2025
@thehill.com recently covered our Jewish community letter of support for Senator Van Hollen amid attacks from the JCRC for Sen. Van Hollen’s record of supporting Palestinian human rights. Our letter now has over 600 signatures from Jewish Marylanders. Read the article: thehill.com/opinion/whit...
thehill.com
133
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 22/12/2025
This was such a meaningful celebration at the end of our first year as an organization. If you live in MoCo and are looking for a Jewish communal and/or activist space that centers collective liberation without Zionism, please check us out!
021
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
So much good stuff in here. One of the most thoughtful and hopeful pieces I've read in awhile.
insidehighered.com
A Better Way to Approach Antisemitism on Campus (opinion)
Policing speech about Israel is counterproductive.
040
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
Powerful and hopeful piece in @jewishcurrents.bsky.social
000
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
Thanks to everyone who has signed so far. Please keep signing, it's not too late!
022
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 28/11/2025
Recommended Thanksgiving listening. www.democracynow.org/2025/11/27/i...
democracynow.org
Leonard Peltier on Indigenous Rights, His Half-Century in Prison & More
In September, Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman sat down with longtime political prisoner and Indigenous activist Leonard Peltier for his first extended television and radio broadcast interview since hi...
040
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 27/11/2025
He was charged with throwing objects at a moving vehicle www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
theguardian.com
Palestinian-American teenager held in Israeli prison freed after nine months
Israeli soldiers had taken Mohammed Ibrahim from his home in a night raid when he was only 15 years old
020
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 09/11/2025
In case that ridiculous women-hating garbage they published this week wasn’t enough to get you off the times.
lithub.com
Maybe Don’t Talk to the New York Times About Zohran Mamdani
It’s remarkable, the people you’ll hear from. Teach for even a little while at an expensive institution—the term they tend to prefer is “elite”—and odds are that eventually someone who was a studen…
110
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
For my Jewish friends: www.bendthearc.us/reject_adl_m...
bendthearc.us
Add your name: American Jews reject the ADL’s racist “Mamdani Monitor”
If the ADL wants to keep Jews isolated from our allies and neighbors, their time as Jewish leaders is over.
010
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
In a time of ever-present bad news, it is delightful to have a several day run of good news: www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/202...
washingtonpost.com
Jury finds D.C. ‘sandwich guy’ not guilty of assaulting officer
Sean C. Dunn admitted he flung the hoagie at a federal agent. His attorneys called it a “harmless gesture” of protest as Trump commandeered D.C. police.
010
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 03/11/2025
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | How to Be a Good Citizen of a Bad Country
000
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 28/10/2025
I can't get enough of this local legend.
0142
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 25/10/2025
"...in fact, despite their distinct views about Israel, the dynamics that made older Jewish Democrats initially skeptical of Obama are the same that make you and your congregants skeptical of Mamdani....
jta.org
Jewish fears about Zohran Mamdani reveal more about us than about him — and it's a problem - Jewish Telegraphic Agency
The co-creator of the Great Schlep says a prominent rabbi got things wrong with his sermon on the NYC mayor's race.
110
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 17/10/2025
MCJC Member Adina Cohen has filed a civil rights complaint after Club Pilates North Bethesda banned her for wearing shirts with messages like “Jews Say Ceasefire Now.” Read the press release from CAIR ⬇️ www.cair.com/press_releas...
cair.com
CAIR Submits Civil Rights Complaint Against North Bethesda Pilates Studio for Discrimination Toward Md. Jewish Woman 
012
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
Please take a minute to check out what one of our state legislators is up to.....
021
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 06/10/2025
What the F basically sums up the entire state of affairs at the moment, this being the latest bit of icing on the authoritarian cake.
zeteo.com
‘What the F**k?’ CBS News Insiders Prepare for Takeover by Self-Described ‘Zionist Fanatic’
Bari Weiss is expected to be announced as editor-in-chief of CBS News, as employees worry her new role will bring a pro-Israel bias, more censorship, and lower editorial standards.
020
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
Friends, as we approach Yom Kippur and you consider how you can make Teshuvah this year; in particular how you can take collective responsibility for our community's wrongdoings, I'd encourage you to consider this. givebutter.com/FoodAidTzeda...
givebutter.com
High Holidays 5786 Tzedakah Campaign
Let’s keep Gaza Soup Kitchen running through the High Holidays
010
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 28/09/2025
Outrageous
theguardian.com
Northwestern students blocked from enrollment after refusing controversial antisemitism training
Students say mandatory training video is biased in favor of Israel and could inflame campus tensions over Gaza
000
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 14/09/2025
Grateful, once again, to @vanhollen.senate.gov for doing the right thing, even when (and especially when) the powers that be refuse to.
nytimes.com
Van Hollen Criticizes Democratic Leaders for Delay in Endorsing Mamdani
021
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 13/09/2025
Well this is terrifying. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
theguardian.com
UC Berkeley shares 160 names with Trump administration in ‘McCarthy era’ move
Prominent professor Judith Butler among students and faculty investigated for ‘alleged antisemitic incidents’
011
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 28/08/2025
An update on this: the Maryland State Department of Education has reversed course and will not implement changes to remove mentions of Palestine in the state curriculum. Read more in CAIR’s press release: www.cair.com/press_releas...
cair.com
CAIR Welcomes Maryland State Dept. of Education’s Steps to Restore Palestine in Curriculum, Calls for Further Action and Transparency
055
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 20/08/2025
"I would suggest that it is the Washington Jewish Week editorial board, not I, who has applied a double standard." Thank you @vanhollen.senate.gov for refusing to be bullied and for continuing to speak and vote with your conscience.
washingtonjewishweek.com
An Editorial Response From Maryland’s Senior Senator
I have long believed that the United States should pursue a values-based foreign policy that is grounded in clear standards that we apply uniformly across the globe.
000
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 16/08/2025
I have done a lot of pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel protesting over the past two years and the only times I've ever felt threatened and unsafe was when doing it here in Montgomery County.
100
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 06/08/2025
Can you send a letter to the State Superintendent and Maryland Board of Education asking them to reverse these revisions and include Arab and Muslim voices in the process? Use this action alert from CAIR & the Imam Network: actionnetwork.org/letters/act-...
actionnetwork.org
ACT NOW: Demand Maryland Dept. of Education Restore Palestine Context, History in Statewide Curriculum
IMPORTANT: The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) has made sweeping and deeply troubling changes to the statewide social studies curriculum—completely removing references to Palestine and h...
022
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 05/08/2025
@peterbeinart.bsky.social articulates and supports exactly what I've been thinking: it is politically and even morally wise to welcome those who come late to the game, but equally important is recognizing those who were there all along and who history has proven right, both morally and factually.
open.substack.com
The Dam Breaks
US Discourse on Gaza Has Reached a Tipping Point. We Should Welcome Latecomers but Honor Those Who Were Right All Along
1205
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 31/07/2025
This is so completely fucked up. No DEI efforts except for Jewish students; blatant anti-trans discrimination required.
010
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 30/07/2025
This vote is tonight - please call your Senators now.
act.jewishvoiceforpeace.org
You will be added to Jewish Voice for Peace's email list and can unsubscribe at any time.
000
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Jews For Racial & Economic Justice Action @jfrejnyc.bsky.social · 09/07/2025
We hope other organizations will do the same!
0549
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 08/07/2025
Amazing - mondoweiss.net/2025/07/the-...
mondoweiss.net
The National Education Association just voted to cut all ties to the Anti-Defamation League
In a momentous vote, the National Education Association voted to cut all ties with the Anti-Defamation League. The reason? “Despite its reputation as a civil rights organization, the ADL is not the so...
110
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 02/07/2025
Guys: this is my super talented friend (esp. when it comes to fonts..) @bshaykin.bsky.social! Help him help @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social win over the Upper West Side.
111
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 01/07/2025
Scary scary shit.
100
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 29/06/2025
Finally had a chance to hang with team Tiffany Kelly for Gaithersburg City Mayor!
021
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 28/06/2025
MCJC members joined the powerful Jewish Voice for Peace Stop Starving Gaza action in Washington, DC, last night. Jews say: Stop starving Gaza Never again is NOW!
MCJC at the Stop Starving Gaza action, holding a banner with our logo.Speakers at the action:
Fadi Abushammala: Head of Gaza's General Union of Cultural Centers
Nurse Lana: Emergency registered nurse who served in Gaza
Philip Farah: Founder of Palestinian Christian Alliance for Peace
Volunteers from Food Not BombsTable with banner "People's Shabbat" with people preparing electric candles and other items. Banners around the table say "Jews say: Stop Starving Gaza. Never Again is Now" and "Gaza Starves, USA Pays".
153
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 25/06/2025
Hoping that this victory will give politicians in other democratic strongholds with vocal Jewish constituencies the confidence to speak out for Palestinian justice! I'm looking at you Montgomery County, MD! www.nytimes.com/2025/06/25/n...
nytimes.com
A New Political Star Emerges Out of a Fractured Democratic Party
000
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 23/06/2025
A little love and electoral advice for my friends in NYC....
010
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 23/06/2025
Highly recommend folks take advantage of this offer - JC is such an amazing resource.
031
Reposted by Joanna Silver
Montgomery County Jewish Collective @mcjewishcollective.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
🚨 ACTION FOR GAZA: FRIDAY JUNE 27! 🚨 On Friday June 27th at 6 pm, join Jews, Palestinians, and others committed to Palestinian solidarity in Columbus Circle in downtown DC as we observe Shabbat and call on Congress to STOP STARVING GAZA. Please RSVP at bit.ly/shabbatforgaza
Stop starving Gaza!
Columbus Circle, Washington DC
Friday June 27th 6 pm
RSVP: https://bit.ly/shabbatforgaza
002
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 15/06/2025
Finally read this - would highly recommend.
jewishcurrents.org
The Tangled Knot of Anti-Zionist Violence
Doubling down on the conflation of Zionism and Judaism won’t stop violent attacks.
010
Joanna Silver @joannasilver73.bsky.social · 07/06/2025
Please write to Raskin now and if you’re Jewish you can modify the letter to let him know.
011