Jewish Group

Behind the Aegis

(54,852 posts) Fri Aug 23, 2024, 03:51 PM Aug 23

(Jewish Group) Kamala Harris' Hebrew merch is taking shape -- in the form of a punctuation mark

Until recently, business was slow for Michael Zorek, a retired actor who hawks irreverent political buttons every Sunday to farmer’s market patrons outside New York City’s American Museum of Natural History.

Some days, Zorek sold as few as five Joe Biden buttons. But when Kamala Harris became the Democratic presidential candidate last month, sales shot up. Now, he says, he sometimes sells many as 150 pins touting Harris in one sitting.

The surge in sales reflects the enthusiasm Harris’ campaign has drawn, and it extends to one of Zorek’s specialty offerings: Harris merchandise in Hebrew — specifically, a button featuring a comma, overlaid with the Hebrew letters “lamed” and “hay,” spelling “la” and providing a visual primer on how to pronounce Harris’ first name.

So far, Zorek, who donates 25% of his proceeds to a progressive organizing group, estimates he’s sold about 30 or 40 buttons with that design. He says his rabbi has requested one, as have neighbors in his building and even friends abroad.

more...