Guest Editor: Rachel Sklar

Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
This fall, eight guest editors are helping to shape the Forward Forum by commissioning opinion pieces. This week it’s Rachel Sklar, who has chronicled the media world at the Huffington Post and the Daily Beast, and now at Mediaite.com in her capacity as editor-at-large. A native of Canada, Sklar is a contributor to numerous anthologies and is working on a humorous book titled “Jew-ish.” She also co-hosts “The Salon” on The Jewish Channel.
Always Anatevka: In “Fiddler on the Roof,” Tevye, the milkman, longs for the simple times in his village of Anatevka, where traditions could be counted on and everyone knew his or her place. By the end of the play, pretty much every assumption Tevye started out with has been completely taken apart. But also, put back together — remade, reshaped, reinvented for a new time, with new players. That is what these four essays are about: evolving Jewish identity — and what is won, lost, found and created in the process. It’s not always easy and it’s not always pretty, but it is, ultimately, what always is. To that, what else can we say but — L’chaim! Right? Of course, right.
Back to Ideas on Identity
Hello, fellow Forward reader! I’m Joel Brown, a Forward reader and supporter for more than 15 years, and currently the chair of the board of directors.
I’m an avid Forward reader because it ticks so many of my essential boxes: excellent journalism, Jewish focus and diverse viewpoints. In today’s political climate, what I most appreciate is the Forward’s independence — made possible by the generosity of its membership.
The Forward is committed to bringing you unbiased, nuanced Jewish news. From my position as board chair, I see an exciting future as we expand our position as the definitive independent voice of contemporary American Judaism.
— Joel Brown, Forward board chair
