From Inquisition to Religious Freedom: The Story of Jews and the U.S. Constitution 

From Inquisition to Religious Freedom: The Story of Jews and the U.S. Constitution was presented live on June 30, 2024.
About this Event:
In 1791, the Bill of Rights - the first 10 Amendments - officially became part of the United States Constitution. The First Amendment enshrined liberty of conscience in America’s nascent governing framework. Yet, this moment did not arrive easily; it was the culmination of centuries of struggle for genuine religious freedom.
The arrival of Sephardic Jews (including conversos) in North America transformed the course of American and world history. The Founders of the United States invoked the Inquisition in their correspondence, in debates over procedural protections afforded to criminal suspects, and in the struggle over liberty of conscience. Their famous letters assuring Jews (and Christians) of religious freedom may be contextualized as starkly contrasting with the Inquisition that lasted into the 19th century.
Many of the leading Jewish figures (in New York; Newport, Rhode Island; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Savannah, Georgia, etc.), who knew the Founders, had directly suffered the Inquisition or were children or grandchildren of those who had. These experiences, coupled with the Founders’ repugnance at the Inquisition, helped to enshrine the ideal of religious liberty in the early American Republic.
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PROGRAM INTRODUCTION:
Mr. Michael Steinberger, Founder & CEO of JHA.
OPENING REMARKS & MODERATOR:
Mrs. Blanca Carrasco President of the Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies. Blanca is a descendant of Marcos Alonso de la Garza y del Arcon, co-founder of Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, a center for crypto-Jews in Mexico since the time of Luis Carvajal and Diego de Montemayor. Born in Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico, her family migrated to El Paso, Texas. Although raised Catholic, she sought to find the place she could call “home.” In 2007, she and her family made the return to Judaism. In 2008, she officially converted. Blanca is active with her local Jewish community and the El Paso Jewish Federation and as editor of “The Jewish Voice” their monthly publication. She is a Board Member of the Anusim Center El Paso and supports its outreach in Mexico.
KEY SPEAKER / PRESENTER:
Dr. Isaac Amon, Director of Academic Research at Jewish Heritage Alliance, an educational organization dedicated to preserving and promoting the legacy of Sefarad, or Jews of the Iberian Peninsula. He earned a J.D., LL.M in dispute resolution and J.S.D. (PhD in Law) in comparative criminal procedure from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis. A descendant of Jews who fled Spain for the Ottoman Empire in 1492, he was a legal fellow at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague and an ISIS war crimes investigator. He often speaks on the law, antisemitism, and Jewish history and memory.
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EVENT PARTNERS:
This event was a collaborative effort bringing together Jewish Heritage Alliance and the Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies.
Co-Sponsor: Congregation Mikveh Israel of Philadelphia
Co-Hosting Partners: Kulanu and WIZO
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cryptojews.com
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