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Dr. Steve Feldman, pictured on a trip to the West Bank. Feldman was denied
payment from the state of Arkansas for refusing to sign a pledge promising not
to boycott Israel.

Jewish Doctor Denied $500 Payment After Refusing to Promise
Arkansas He Won’t Boycott Israel
The state of Arkansas is refusing to pay a Jewish doctor for a talk he delivered
at a public university because he declined to promise not to boycott Israel, JTA.

org reported.

Steve Feldman, a dermatologist, delivered a Zoom lecture to University of
Arkansas at Little Rock medical students in February, for which he was entitled to
a $500 honorarium from the state. But Feldman said that the state is withholding
payment because he refused to sign a pledge, required for public contractors
under Arkansas law since 2017, to commit to not boycotting Israel.

Arkansas is one of dozens of states that have passed laws aiming to combat
the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement targeting Israel. The laws
either bar the state from investing in companies that boycott Israel or, as in
Arkansas’ case, mandate that state contractors promise not to boycott the
country. Most of those laws have been struck down by courts, but Feldman’s
lecture took place the same month the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a
challenge to Arkansas’ law.

Feldman has close relatives who live in Israel. But he said the pledge conflicted
with his religious and moral views. In addition to his medical work, he is a pro-Pal-
estinian activist who created the online-only Jewish Museum of the Palestinian
Experience. The website says that the Jewish commitment to fighting injustice
should lead Jews to stand up for Palestinian rights. Feldman said he does
support boycotting Israel.

Courtesy of Steve Feldman via JTA.org
American Couples Caught at Tel Aviv Airport Trying to Smuggle
Fruit Roll-Ups into Israel
At least two American couples were caught by Israeli customs attempting to
smuggle a total of more than 650 pounds of Fruit Roll-Ups into Israel, as the
country experiences a dire shortage of the snack due to a TikTok craze, JTA.org
reported. A video posted on May 2 by Mako, an Israeli news website, appears to show
a customs official at Ben Gurion International Airport sifting through at least
three open suitcases each filled with hundreds of the colorful, sugary treats. An
American-accented voice off-screen, in a mix of Hebrew and English, explains
that he brought the snacks across the ocean for his family in Israel.

Why did he fill two checked bags with Fruit Roll-Ups? “It has something to do
with ice cream,” the man’s voice says.

The man was almost certainly referring to a viral TikTok trend, ongoing since at
least March, in which users wrap the sweet, sticky roll-up around a small scoop
of ice cream, which then freezes over and becomes hard and crunchy.

Around the country, supermarkets, convenience stores and online retailers
have reportedly sold out of Fruit Roll-Ups, driving up the cost of the snack. ■
— Compiled by Andy Gotlieb
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