As we searched for meaningful ways to add dimension and perspective to our series of stories reporting on the conflict in the Middle East and its reverberations on our college campus, we heard from an alumnus whom we'd worked with before. Jeff Bercuvitz ’84 was a mentee of a holocaust survivor and Brown University professor, George Morgan, whose cross-disciplinary approach was the genesis, back in the 1960s, for Brown's Open Curriculum. Jeff ardently believed in the philosophy he arrived at in classroom discussions with George, all those years ago: that, as a Jew, he must "meet the world as it is and do the hard work of looking to see the human face of the Other, hoping that at least some people would try to see my human face as well." And yet, Jeff had himself known terror, several times in his life, but most notably at the 1980 Paris synagogue bombing. And he was willing to share his story. The Brown Alumni Magazine mission, written in 1900, is to bring the university and its alumni "into closer touch and sympathy." What better way to do that than to showcase alumni voices, in their own words, while trying to deepen readers' understanding of what it means to be Jewish at a time of so much hatred and violence in the world?
From the Judges
This piece was powerful and topical with a provocative headline that accurately reflects the piece. Additionally, we liked how the pull-quote highlights the most important takeaway; if you look at just the headline, photos, and pull-quote, you already have learned something about this author's view.
