About this talk

Welcome to Panama, the only place on earth where you can see the sunrise in the Pacific Ocean and set on the Atlantic Ocean from the top of its highest mountain, Volcan Baru. This tropical land is also the only country other than Israel to have had two Jewish presidents in the XX Century. That is no small feat for a community that has existed openly only since the end of Spanish colonial rule in the 1820s.

Home to 10,000-12,000 Jews, it is the largest continuously existing Jewish Community in Central America. With a mixture of "Spanish-Portuguese"; Ashkenazi, and Middle Eastern origins, the Panamanian Jewish community keeps growing thanks to the recent arrival of Jews from other Latin-American countries fleeing political and economic instability.

Join us on this virtual journey for a historical, demographic, social, gastronomic, and spiritual visit to this small but prosperous community.

About David

David Mizrachi Fidanque was born in Panama, into a family of longtime Jewish Community and pro-Israel activists. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Pennsylvania, a Juris Doctor degree from Tulane University Law School, and a Masters of Law (LLM) degree from Columbia University Law School.

He has served as President of Panama's Central Jewish Community Council, of B'nai B'rith Irving Zapp of Panama, and of Panama's Anti-Defamation Commission. He was awarded the Community Service Award by the American Jewish Committee, the Lifetime Jewish Leadership Award of B'nai B'rith Panama, and the Label Katz Award of B'nai B'rith International. He has been a member of the Board of Governors of B'nai B'rith International and is a Nahum Goldmann Fellow of the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture.