The Secret Jews of Mallorca

11 AM LOS ANGELES • 2 PM NEW YORK

The Spanish island of Mallorca (or Majorca) has a secret history — a group of families who have been discriminated against for centuries because their surnames connect them to a once-suppressed Jewish heritage. Some members of these families have been inspired to return to the faith of their ancestors. American Jewish filmmaker Dani Rotstein tells their story. 

xxxxx

VIEW THE TRAILER

xxxxx

THE SCHEDULE

⇒ April 5-8, watch the film Xueta Island on your home device. A link will be provided to all who register.

MEET THE PANEL

xxxxx

Dani Rotstein moved from New Jersey to the island of Mallorca, Spain, in 2014. There, he learned of the taboo history of the Conversos of the island. In 2018, he founded Limud Mallorca and has run over 50 successful events promoting diversity and inclusion in the small, yet growing, Jewish community. During COVID he broadened the scope and now connects Jewish and non-Jewish guides all over the world with communities that are seeking quality virtual programming. In 2022 he produced and co-directed the documentary film Xueta Island, which has been making its way through many international film festivals. 

Mariana Abrantes, right, who will moderate, is a Board member and the Portugal representative of the Sousa Mendes Foundation. A dual US-Portuguese citizen, she studied Economics at UC-Berkeley and earned an MA from Princeton University. After training and working in Chase Manhattan Bank, she returned to Portugal, where she worked at the European Investment Bank. She also served in the Portuguese government’s Ministries of Transport and Health, and on the Boards of international investment funds and the Fulbright Commission Portugal.  

Candela Tzipporah Bonnin, left, is a student and aspiring poet who grew up in Mallorca, Spain in a family of Xuetas (the secret Jews of the island). Candela, who speaks three languages, currently lives in Göttingen, Germany where she is pursuing her international education. She is active with Limmud Mallorca, an organization devoted to the Jewish life of the island today and its secret Jewish past. She has also organized events for the Göttingen Youth Community. She enjoys spreading awareness of the Jewish history of Mallorca by sharing her personal experiences as a Xueta, who grew up in a Xueta family. She is currently in the process of writing her first anthology of poems.

xxxxx

Registration for this program is closed.