(Jewish Group) 15 overlooked Jewish stories of 2021 -- and 1 you'll want to read again

In 2021, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency published nearly 3,000 stories — news, analysis and commentary about our complex and dynamic shared community.

We recently shared the stories that you, our readers, read most this year. But the thousands of other articles we reported also deserve a second look.

We asked each of our writers and editors to choose one of their own stories to highlight. Read on for our team’s picks.

How a determined Jewish community helped bring home Danny Fenster, the journalist imprisoned in Myanmar
The months-long imprisonment of Jewish-American journalist Danny Fenster in Myanmar this year was a story that shocked and disturbed people worldwide — particularly in my hometown of Huntington Woods, Michigan, where Fenster grew up. But it was also one of the few 2021 stories with a happy ending, as Fenster’s family and friends continued advocating for him until he finally saw freedom just before Thanksgiving. It was a privilege for me to spotlight how the Jewish community of suburban Detroit and beyond banded together to keep Fenster’s name in the public eye. — Andrew Lapin, managing editor for local news, JTA. Follow Andrew on Twitter.

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