Free Republic

Oscar-nominated actress Debra Winger sounded off about having a “debt to pay” for her Jewish upbringing as she joined last week’s Trump Tower protest over the arrest of anti-Israel activist Mahmoud Khalil. “I was brought up Jewish, I was brought up with a lot of things that were untrue,” said Winger, 69, to Al Jazeera outside President Trump’s Midtown East tower Thursday, when nearly 100 demonstrators were arrested in the protest in defense of the Columbia University activist. “I was brought up with a lot of things that weren’t true, I had to unlearn them, and it’s taken me a...

NEW YORK (AP) — Demonstrators from a Jewish group filled the lobby of Trump Tower on Thursday to denounce the immigration arrest of Mahmoud Khalil, a pro-Palestinian activist who helped lead protests against Israel at Columbia University. The Jewish Voice for Peace protesters, who carried banners and wore red shirts reading “Jews say stop arming Israel,” chanted “Bring Mahmoud home now!” After warning the protesters to leave the Fifth Avenue building or face arrest, police put at least 65 of them in zip ties and loaded them into a police van and city bus about an hour into the demonstration....

The arrest of Roman Polanski has spiraled into an international incident. France has appealed to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton for the 76-year-old director's immediate release from a Swiss jail as he faces extradition charges from Switzerland to the U.S. Polanski is a French citizen. snip Debra Winger, who serves as president of the Zurich fest's jury, on Monday demanded Polanski's release and criticized Swiss authorities for their "philistine collusion" in arresting Polanski as he entered the country. "This fledgling festival has been unfairly exploited, and whenever this happens the whole art world suffers," Winger said in a...