Jewish Life

Spies, Lies, and Soviets

Step behind the Iron Curtain with former U.S. diplomat Daniel Grossman as he shares gripping stories of KGB surveillance, Cold War intrigue, and the Soviet Jewry movement that inspired a global fight for freedom.
Cost:
Free

Register Now

Date:
Thursday, December 3, 2026
Time:
7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
Cost:
Free
Location:
PJCC Boardroom

Register Now

What was it really like to be an American diplomat under KGB surveillance?

As a twenty-six-year-old U.S. diplomat serving in Cold War Leningrad, Daniel Grossman had his phone tapped, his home bugged, and his movements monitored by a young KGB officer named Vladimir Putin. Decades later, he shares these extraordinary stories in his memoir Seeing Red: Spies, Lies and My So-Called Life as a Diplomat.

Join Daniel Grossman, past CEO of San Francisco Jewish Federation, and Rabbi Laurie Matzkin of PJCC, for a firsthand look at diplomacy behind the Iron Curtain, the Soviet Jewry movement, and the struggle for freedom that mobilized Jews around the world.