The Argentinean Jewish Community is the 6th largest in the world after Israel, the USA, France, Canada and the UK. The first Jewish communities in Latin America were Sephardic. What happened to those Jews during the Inquisition? Why, if Latin America was part of the Spanish Empire, is the Jewish Community in Argentina 80% Ashkenazi and only 20% Sephardic today? We are going to answer all these questions and many more during the first session of our Virtual Jewish Tour of Argentina. Join us as we “visit” Buenos Aires, a wonderful, cosmopolitan, European-looking city and learn about the first Jewish immigrants (who settled in the rural areas), the Jewish colonies and the Jewish Gauchos.

Claudia Hercman is an Argentinian tour guide and translator. She is also a sculptor and painter, whose main subjects are “Memory” and “Uprooting”, in honor of her four grandparents who emigrated from Poland to Argentina in the 1930s. Claudia was born and raised in Buenos Aires. Twenty years ago, she became bored of translating books with a computer as her only company, so she decided to study tourism and history. She has been conducting City, Art and Jewish tours ever since, and enjoying every single moment of it. And then 2020 arrived, and with it the pandemic, which forced her to go back to spending time with her computer. So she decided to create these virtual lectures as an excuse to be able to talk to people and meet new friends from all over the world.

CSP Partners: Beth Israel (San Diego, CA), Brotherhood Synagogue (Gramercy Park, NYC), Congregation Adath Jeshurun (Elkins Park, PA), Congregation Beth Shalom (Seattle, WA), Congregation B’nai Tzedek (Fountain Valley, CA), Congregation B’nai Israel (Tustin, CA), Jewish Collaborative of Orange County, Shomrei Torah Synagogue (San Fernando Valley, CA), Temple Bat Yahm (Newport Beach, CA), Temple Beth David (Westminster, CA),Temple Beth El of South Orange County (Aliso Viejo, CA), Temple Beth Emet (Anaheim, CA), Temple Beth Ohr (La Mirada, CA), Temple Beth Tikvah (Fullerton, CA), Temple Beth Shalom (Needham, MA), Temple Beth Sholom (Santa Ana, CA), Temple Emanuel (Newton, MA), Temple Judea of Laguna Woods, CA, The Boston Synagogue (Boston, MA), Town & Village Synagogue (NYC, NY), University Synagogue (Irvine, CA), Valley Beth Shalom (Encino, CA) & Walnut Street Synagogue (Chelsea, MA)