Congratulations to Anne Sebba: her biography of Ethel Rosenberg was just short listed for the 2022 Wingate Literary Prize!

The UK-based honor “is awarded to the best book, fiction or non-fiction, to translate the idea of Jewishness to the general reader.”

The winner will be announced February 16th; good luck to Anne Sebba! Learn more about the prize and the other finalists at https://www.thejc.com/news/news/wingate-literary-prize-short-list-relea…

We are honored to learn that The Guardian named this article one of their "US editor's pick: best of 2021." It was originally published on June 19th, on the 68th anniversary of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg's executions. It is a beautifully written piece on Ethel and Julius and Anne Sebba's biography, "Ethel Rosenberg: An American Tragedy," and includes interviews with their two sons, Robert and Michael Meeropol.

This excerpt from the article is one of Executive Director Jenn Meeropol’s favorites of the year:

It’s a rainy, fall day. Perfect reading weather. 🍂 Returning to this brilliantly written biography by Anne Sebba, "Ethel Rosenberg: An American Tragedy."

In one passage, Sebba relates the story of Hilda Bernstein, a Jewish, political activist and Communist party member living in South Africa, to Ethel's story.

Also a mother, and also arrested, Hilda shares a reflection on the tensions involved in being an activist parent, "In the long run the most important thing as far as the children are concerned is what sort of country they will have to live in.'"

Rosenberg Mention of the Day, courtesy of an excellent review of Anne Sebba’s biography of Ethel (we especially appreciate the reviewers conclusion re: Anne & Abel Meeropol):

“Nearly 70 years after their execution for having allegedly passed atomic secrets to the USSR, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg remain a prominent presence in the American consciousness, perhaps because their story sits so uneasily in the American conscience.

Rosenberg Mention of the Day: A review of Anne Sebba’s biography by Martha Sonnenberg that “must, of necessity, begin with a personal note..."

"When I was 13 years old, my mother took, from the deep recesses of her chest of drawers, a copy of The Death House Letters of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg:

"(1) We sat down together on our sofa, and we went through the letters. She told me how the Rosenbergs had been executed, by electric chair, in 1953, being accused of giving secret information to Russia.

Today’s Rosenberg MOTD comes from “across the pond” courtesy of what sounds like a fascinating literary festival: “In an age of fake news that can create misinformation on crucial issues, Ilkley Literature Festival is inviting audiences to explore the phenomenon of ‘Unreliable Narratives’.

Rosenberg Mention of the Day: We're mourning the loss of David Alman, a major figure in the Rosenberg Case struggle who died earlier this month at the age of 102.

He & his wife Emily were cofounders of the National Committee to Secure Justice in the Rosenberg Case and co-authors of "Exoneration: The Rosenberg-Sobell Case in the 21st Century." It is the inside story of those on the front lines battling to save Ethel & Julius Rosenberg at the height of the McCarthy-era hysteria.

Rosenberg Mention of the Day: Sharing Foreign Affair's latest review of "Ethel Rosenberg: An American Tragedy", a brief statement acknowledging that prejudice (misogyny, antisemitism, anti-communism) obstructed justice for Ethel and led to her eventual execution. (While we’ve known the truth of the review’s concluding sentence for years, it’s still shocking to read it in a preeminent establishment publication...)

Rosenberg Mention of the Day: Sharing a lovely and fitting tribute to legendary actor Ed Asner (an "unflagging supporter of socialist causes") which shares a number of stories of his art & activism, including his role in a film adaptation of a fictionalization of the Rosenberg Case. He stood for what was right, even though it cost him. May we all have his courage.

Read the article here: https://www.jacobinmag.com/2021/08/ed-asner-obituary-actor-hollywood-so…