Need to Know for June 22

BaltimoreLink hits the road, vacation days go unused and Mattel’s Ken diversifies

Jared in Jerusalem

Jared Kushner met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his office in Jerusalem on June 21. According to the Times of Israel, Netanyahu said, “This is an opportunity to pursue our common goals of security, prosperity and peace, and Jared, I welcome you here in that spirit. I know of your efforts and the president’s efforts, and I look forward to working with you to reach these common goals.” While in Israel, Kushner also visited the family of Hadas Malka, the Israeli border policewoman killed Friday night in terror attacks near the Damascus Gate in the Old City of Jerusalem.

Marking World Refugee Day

Dozens of refugees, faith leaders and others marked World Refugee Day at a rally outside the White House sponsored in part by the Jewish nonprofit HIAS. “World Refugee Day is about who we are as a country and what we stand for,” Melanie Nezer, a senior vice president at HIAS, said at the rally on June 20. “We must choose to welcome refugees seeking safety for themselves and their children, and not turn our backs on people who need our help.” Speakers called on elected officials to adequately address the refugee crisis — more than 65.5 million people were forcibly displaced from their homes at the end of 2016, the highest figure the U.N. Refugee Agency has recorded since its inception, USA Today reported. World Refugee Day is held each year on June 20 to honor those who have fled their homes because of violence and persecution. As noted by the organizers, the rally occurred days after President Donald Trump’s travel ban was again struck down by a federal appeals court. – JTA

Linked In

The new BaltimoreLink MTA transit system is up and running throughout the Baltimore City region. According to the MTA, “Under BaltimoreLink, we’ve created a more efficient and reliable bus network by spreading out the routes within the downtown core and creating a grid of high-frequency routes.” The new system is meant to improve service, increase connections between bus and rail routes and align the network with emerging job centers. It launched on June 18.

For maps and other information, go to mta.maryland.gov/baltimorelink

How About a Staycation?

Project Time Off, recently conducted a study to determine the states with the best and worst vacation usage. According to the study, Baltimore collectively has 9,168, 350 unused vacation days and 57% of workers have unused vacation days. Maryland has 17,838,460 total unused vacation days and 58% of workers have unused vacation days. Idaho was at the top of the list with 78% of its workers leaving vacation unused in 2016. Maine ranks highest for workers using vacation. Just 38% of its workers leave vacation time. Baltimore – we need a vacation!

View the full study here.

New, diverse Ken — (Image courtesy Mattel)

Ken Gets a Make Over

Mattel announced this week that it is introducing 15 new diverse looks for its Ken doll. The dolls come in three body types, seven skin tones and nine hairstyles – including cornrows and man buns. This follows last year’s introduction of three new body types and various skin tones and hairstyles for Barbie. Mattel also said it will be rolling out 25 new diverse Barbies. Who wants one?

Mr. Gal Gadot Wins the Internet

“Wonder Woman” star Gal Gadot’s husband, Yaron Versano, went viral on Instagram last week. Versano posted a photo of himself wearing a T-shirt that showed a generic symbol for a female above the words “Your Wife” next to a depiction of the Wonder Woman character, above the words “My Wife.” Gadot was also in the photo. The image had more than 100,000 likes and 1,500 comments.

Today’s J-word:

Leezrom (Hebrew)
Meaning: Go with the flow
Usage: “He’s a leezrom kinda guy. Not much fazes Binny.”

Go to the YouTube Jmore – Baltimore Jewish Living channel to watch the J-Word of the Day video.

Go to facebook.com/JMORELiving every Tuesday at 12:30 p.m. to watch Need to Know with Jonathan Oleisky, sponsored by University of Maryland, Baltimore. Join the discussion on the week’s news and current events.