You are now entering the Jewish Currents archive.
December 3: Heart to Heart
Louis Washkansky, a Lithuanian Jew who emigrated to South Africa as a child in 1922, received the first human heart transplant in the world on this date in 1967. Washkansky, 53, a grocer and sportsman, had suffered three heart attacks and had no alternative treatment. The surgical team, in Cape Town, was led by Dr. Christian Barnard. Washkansky lived for 18 more days before succumbing to double pneumonia.
In response to a radio news report about organ rejection: “If he thinks I am giving up on this new heart, he’s meshuge.” —Louis Washkansky, Day 7 after surgery
I’m Arielle Angel, editor-at-large of Jewish Currents. Before you go, there’s something I need to ask.
We’ve seen over and over how the mainstream media falters in telling stories on our beats—whether it’s antisemitism, Israel/Palestine in American politics, Jewish identity, or the American left. At Jewish Currents we’re committed to uncompromising analysis and longform reporting on these issues and more—stories you won’t find anywhere else. In a media landscape that obscures injustice and flattens discussion, we’re changing the conversation. But we need you.
If you believe in this work, please consider making a donation—or even better, a recurring one—to ensure that we are able to keep publishing stories like this one. We can’t do it without you.
