8 p.m. | The Berman – Louis Grumet – The Curious Case of Kiryas Joel: The Rise of a Village Theocracy and the Battle to Defend the Separation of Church and State

Twenty years ago, in the middle of the night and on the last day of session, the New York State Legislature created a publicly funded school district to cater to the small village of Kiryas Joel. Virtually everyone who lives there is a Satmar Jew, and the village exerts extraordinary pressure over both political parties.

Marking the first time in American history that a governmental unit was established for a religious group, the legislature’s action prompted years of litigation.

The case, Board of Education of the Village of Kiryas Joel v. Grumet, eventually went to the U.S. Supreme Court and became the most important legal precedent in the fight to uphold the separation of church and state.

The Curious Case of Kiryas Joel details the inside story of this fight for the First Amendment and against New York’s most powerful politicians.

$12 ($10 for JCC members)

Co-sponsored by the Jewish Bar Association of Michigan (JBAM)

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