Brazilian paper abolishes verb 'to jew'

04 Jan 2007

04 January 2006

The Brazilian newspaper "Jornal do Brasil" has pledged to abolish the use of an anti-Semitic verb in its pages. The paper thus responded to Jewish readers who criticized a recent headline that used "Jew" as a verb in the sentence: "What to do when daylight-saving time 'jews' body and soul." In Portuguese, the verb "to jew," or "judiar," means to mistreat, to spoil, or to mock. For Professor Israel Blajberg, one of the readers who protested against the headline, "it is an important contribution of JB to the battle against discrimination." The "Jornal do Brasil" was founded in 1891 and is based in Rio de Janeiro.