Episode 40

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Published on:

8th Apr 2021

#40 - John Daly, Jewish former skinhead & Neo-Nazi survivor

Jewanced commemorates Yom Ha’Shoah – Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day - with the inspirational and shocking true story of John Daly’s incredible tale of Jewish survival - transforming and escaping from life as a closeted Jewish Neo-Nazi commander in the USA to living in Israel.

Legitimately unlike any other story Dan nor Benny had ever heard before, John Daly’s riveting recounting of the details of the events of his youth spent in Ocala, FL joining an anti-racist skinhead (yes, that’s a thing) group, being kidnapped by Neo-Nazi white supremacists into their movement, hiding his Jewish identity only to be outed – resulting with an attempt to murder him is nothing less than intense, fascinating, and truly chilling. His subsequent tale of survival against all odds and aliya to Israel is truly inspiring.

Later in the podcast, we also discuss modern day Anti-Semitism, Holocaust memory, understanding extremism, and much more.

Links:

Visit John’s official webpage, youbeginchange.com

Visit John’s Facebook page, The John Daly Story

Rent or buy ‘Escape from Room 18’ – the award-winning, riveting documentary about John Daly’s shocking story on Vimeo

‘The ‘Jewish Skinhead’ gives back and fights on’ – an article about John Daly and his battle against brain cancer in the Jerusalem Post

The American Jewish Committee’s Translate Hate glossary of antisemitic terms, phrases, conspiracies, cartoons, themes, and memes.

As always, make sure to subscribe to Jewanced on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts and subscribe to our YouTube channel.

For more information, visit us at http://www.jewanced.com

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About the Podcast

Jewanced

A nuanced exploration of Israel, the Jewish world and beyond

Jewanced is hosted by Dan Feferman and Benny Scholder, two guys who grew up in America and live in Israel.
They're curious. They want to discuss. They want to challenge popular conceptions, they want to think critically, examine independently, and most of all, they crave nuance.

Each episode features a different guest. All interesting and original people who strive to break boundaries. Together with Dan and Benny, take a deep dive into politics, foreign affairs, religion, science, technology, food, the arts, business – you name it. Explore the nuanced crossroads of Israel, the global Jewish experience, and beyond.

What's the goal? To create a daring platform where people share their stories, insights, creations, and visions. Jewanced has no talking points, no script, no agenda...just a deeper nuanced understanding of our existence.

Join them on a journey as they explore, think, debate and discuss …. And most of all, listen.

About your hosts

Benny Scholder

With over a decade of experience in Israel's tourism industry, Benny has managed sales, marketing, travel content, digital content, and the operations aspects of tour companies and travel agencies. Today, he is the Director of Sales-North America at Kenes Tours, Israel's leading provider of incoming tourism services, where he is proud to deliver transformative, custom-crafted Israel travel experiences designed to exceed expectations.
Originally from Minneapolis, Benny fell in love with Israel as a young adult, moving to the country in 2004. He has an extensive background in everything Israel-travel related, having completed Israel's intensive tour guide course in 2010. His career spans both logistical, content-related, and sales management positions with major and boutique Israeli tour companies alike. Benny lives with his amazing wife Maayan and two incredible children in the charming village of Gedera. In addition to his passion for transformative travel experiences, he's super passionate about food, modern & ancient history, politics, addictive TV, and game-changing podcasts. Contact him at Benny@jewanced.com

Dan Feferman

Dan Feferman is a Major (res.) in the Israel Defense Forces. For almost a decade, he served as a foreign policy and national security analyst, strategist and adviser in the IDF General Staff; as a special assistant to the Deputy Chief of the General Staff; and a commander in an elite intelligence unit of AMAN's Research and Analysis Division.

He is a fellow at the Jewish People Policy Institute, a think-tank focusing on issues of importance to Israel and the Jewish people, where he researches religious pluralism in Israel, trends in Jewish identity and Israel-Diaspora relations. He is also a political and strategic consultant and publishes and speaks widely on the Middle East and Israeli defense and political matters.

He is the author of Rising Streams: Reform and Conservative Judaism in Israel, and of a soon-to-be-published book on the changing face of American Judaism.

Dan holds a BA in International Politics and Middle East Studies from the American University in Washington DC and an MA in National Security Studies from Tel Aviv University.

Originally from Indiana, Dan moved to Israel in 2005. He is married to Elisheva, has three amazing kids, and lives in Rehovot. When taking a break, Dan stays busy with Crossfit, martial arts and cooking.