Whitney Houston and Israel
by Rabbi Shraga Simmons;
Feb 12, 2012 at 03:13:46 AM
Whitney Houston, the pop sensation who died on Saturday, was many things to many people. She was one of the first black women to achieve international superstardom, and raised awareness of two issues that she experienced personally: domestic violence and drug addiction.
Another side of Houston is less known: in 2003, she visited the Jewish state for what she called a "spiritual retreat."
Houston met with Israel's Prime Minister, and spent time with the controversial Black Hebrews, a group of nearly 2,000 black Americans who moved to Israel in the 1960s and believe they are descendants of the ten lost tribes.
For her "crime" of having visited Israel, anti-Israel activists conducted an unrelenting smear campaign against Houston. Yet Whitney's support held tight, in contrast to the chorus of musicians (Elvis Costello, the Pixies, Gil Scott-Heron, Carlos Santana, to name a few) who have succumbed to pressures and cancelled tour stops in Israel.
Houston will long be remembered as a friend of the Jewish state. While in Israel, she said: "I've never felt like this in any other country. I feel at home."
with thanks to Yvette Alt Miller
About the Author
More by this Author >
Rabbi Shraga Simmons spent his childhood trekking through snow in Buffalo, New York. He holds a degree in journalism from the University of Texas at Austin, and rabbinic ordination from the Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem. In 1997 he became the founding editor of Aish.com, and later the founder and director of the Torah study website, JewishPathways.com.
Rabbi Simmons is co-editor of the four Aish.com anthologies: Like Water on a Rock (ArtScroll 2011); Triumph - Inspiring True Stories of Challenge and Spiritual Growth (2006); Israel - Life in the Shadow of Terror (2003); and Heaven on Earth (2002). He is also the author of The Brachos Book, a concise guide to understanding and remembering the laws of blessings over food (publication pending).
An expert on media bias, Simmons was the founding editor of HonestReporting.com, building it into a leading database of pro-Israel activists, where his work was cited by the New York Times as effecting sweeping changes in Mideast media coverage. He is the author of the definitive treatment of the topic, David & Goliath: The Explosive Inside Story of Media Bias in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (2012), which James Taranto of the Wall Street Journal calls "of crucial importance for the future of the Middle East."
In 2012, Simmons produced the critically-acclaimed short film, "Red Line on Iran," outlining a peaceful solution to stopping nuclear proliferation in the Middle East.
Rabbi Simmons currently serves as the Director of Aish Communications, handling all marketing, public relations and media activities for Aish HaTorah International.
He lives with his wife and children in the Modi'in region of Israel.
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(16) Betty Silberman, December 18, 2012 2:20 AM
Whitney's meeting w/prime minister
Whitney snubbed Netanyhu on her visit to Israel, not accepting his offer of a handshake. I'm not sure her trip to Israel was so much about wanting to connect with Jews or Israelis...but rather to connect with her Christian roots.
(15) Anonymous, April 29, 2012 4:03 PM
She willalways be remembered
Good
(14) jojo, March 23, 2012 8:36 PM
I read and viewed Whitney's visit to Israel and witnessed her distain at shaking Ariel Sharon's hand because he did not recognize those who she was visiting as "black" Jews coming back to their homeland. In fact, the people she visited were Americans from Chicago with no historical roots to that country.
(13) Anonymous, March 6, 2012 2:26 PM
as an israeli i am proud of whitney's visit to israel
we are very proud of your visit to israel you are a real "eshet chail" a woman of valor r.i.p.
(12) Anonymous, February 19, 2012 3:38 PM
She looked very ill
בס"ד To me. in the footage I saw of her on her last performance, she looked very ill. Why did everyone just assume she was affected by substances and not, at least get her to a doctor?