Durban Jewish Club is an arts, culture and entertainment venue, an educational facility and a social and community hub in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. It was first established in 1931. It is also home to a number of Jewish organisations such as Beit David, a Reform synagogue.[1] It is also the site of the Durban Holocaust Centre, which has sister centres in Johannesburg and Cape Town, Cape Town Holocaust Centre and Johannesburg Holocaust and Genocide Centre.[2]
| Founded | 1931 |
|---|---|
| Location |
|
| Coordinates | 29°50′57.31393″S 31°2′2.80446″E / 29.8492538694°S 31.0341123500°E |
History
editTalks to establish the club began in earnest in 1919. The club was subsequently built and opened on 4 May 1931 partly in response to antisemitism in South Africa. Jewish benefactors supported the project as Jews were mostly barred at the time from the Durban Country Club and similar clubs.[3][4]
During the Second World War, Allied servicemen were invited to make use of its facilities such as its canteen, shower rooms, billiards, tennis, writing and reading rooms. An estimated two million soldiers and sailors of diverse nationalities and faiths are reported to have visited the club.[4]
In the 1950s, Israel Goldstein, the American-born Israeli rabbi, author and Zionist leader addressed several Jewish groups at the club. Goldstein wrote about his visit in his memoirs: "The Durban Jewish Club, located near the seafront, was a large and impressive center of activity."[5] Tony Leon, former leader of the opposition has been a guest speaker at the Club on a number of occasions since 1990.[6]
Beit David (formerly Temple David), a Reform synagogue establish in 1950, relocated to the club, where it had created a new sanctuary.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b New Beit David shul consecrated in Durban The South African Jewish Report. 13 December 2018
- ^ Durban Jewish Club KZN: A Photographic and Historical record. Retrieved on 31 October 2024
- ^ Leon, Tony (2008). On the Contrary: Leading the Opposition in a Democratic South Africa. Johannesburg: Jonathan Ball. ISBN 9780868409276.
- ^ a b Durban Jewish Exhibition South African Jewish Board of Deputies. 26 July 2017
- ^ Goldstein, Israel (1984). My world as a Jew: The memoirs of Israel Goldstein. New York: Herzl Press: Cornwall Books. p. 50. ISBN 0845347802.
- ^ The two South Africas Politicsweb. 23 July 2013