Rahm Emanuel - Early and Personal Life

Early and Personal Life

Emanuel was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Jewish parents. His father, Benjamin M. Emanuel, is a Jerusalem-born pediatrician who was once a member of the Irgun, a Jewish paramilitary organization that operated in Mandate Palestine. His mother, Marsha (née Smulevitz), is the daughter of a Chicago union organizer. She worked in the civil rights movement, and briefly owned a local rock and roll club. The two met during the 1950s in Chicago. Emanuel's older brother, Ezekiel Emanuel, is an oncologist and bioethicist at the National Institutes of Health, and his younger brother, Ari Emanuel, is a Hollywood talent agent. He has an adopted sister, Shoshanna, who is 14 years younger. Emanuel's grandfather was a Romanian Jew from Moldova. Emanuel's first name, Rahm (רם) means high or lofty in Hebrew. The surname Emanuel (עמנואל), was adopted by their family in honor of his father's brother Emanuel Auerbach, who was killed in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War in Jerusalem, which means God with us. Sources disagree as to whether the family name was changed in 1933 or 1938.

When the family lived in Chicago, Emanuel attended the Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School. After his family moved to Wilmette, he attended public schools: Romona School, Locust Junior High School, and New Trier West High School. He and his brothers attended summer camp in Israel, including just after the 1967 Six-Day War.

Emanuel was encouraged by his mother to take ballet lessons as a boy and is a graduate of the Evanston School of Ballet, as well as a student of The Joel Hall Dance Center, where his children also took dance lessons. He won a scholarship to the Joffrey Ballet, but turned it down to attend Sarah Lawrence College, a liberal arts school with a strong dance program. He graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1981 with a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts, and went on to receive an Master of Arts in Speech and Communication from Northwestern University in 1985. While an undergraduate, Emanuel was elected to the Sarah Lawrence Student Senate.

Emanuel was a civilian volunteer assisting the Israel Defense Forces for a short time during the 1991 Gulf War, repairing truck brakes in one of Israel's northern bases with Sar-El.

Emanuel's wife, Amy Rule, converted to Judaism shortly before their wedding. They are members of the Chicago synagogue Anshe Sholom B'nai Israel. They have a son and two daughters. Rabbi Asher Lopatin of Anshe Sholom B'nai Israel Congregation is quoted as saying Emanuel's family is "a very involved Jewish family", adding that "Amy was one of the teachers for a class for children during the High Holidays two years ago." Emanuel has said of his Judaism: "I am proud of my heritage and treasure the values it has taught me." Emanuel's family lives on the North Side of Chicago, in the South East Ravenswood neighborhood. Emanuel is a close friend of fellow Chicagoan David Axelrod, chief strategist for the 2008 and 2012 Barack Obama presidential campaign. Axelrod signed the ketuba, the Jewish marriage contract, at Emanuel's wedding.

While working at an Arby's restaurant during high school, Emanuel severely cut his right middle finger on a meat slicer. He sought medical attention after suffering a severe infection from swimming in Lake Michigan and as a result, had his finger partially amputated. Emanuel also trains for and participates in triathlons.