Allison Kaplan Sommer is a journalist at Haaretz, host of Haaretz Weekend podcast and co-host of The Promised Podcast.
Allison Kaplan Sommer
By Allison Kaplan Sommer
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The Schmooze Paladino’s Apology Sticks in Rabbi Levin’s Throat
New York gubernatorial hopeful Republican Carl. P. Paladino should be more relieved than distressed after Rabbi Yehuda Levin loudly, publicly — and colorfully — renounced his support for Paladino’s New York gubernatorial bid, telling the New York Times that the GOP nominee “folded like a cheap camera” in the face of backlash over remarks about…
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Life A New Reason To Make ‘Infertility Aliyah’: Free Egg-Freezing
It’s no secret that Israel is a fabulous country to live in if you happen to be struggling with infertility. Not only is health care considered a right, not a privilege, but so is childbearing. The universal government-funded health care, package covers fertility treatments for women until they produce two children. Israeli women take full…
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Life If You Must Be Fruitful and Multiply, a Sister Wife Sounds Appealing
Leah Berkenwald discussed how the reality show “Sister Wives” has joined HBO’s fictional “Big Love” in shining the spotlight on polygamous lifestyles, and in raising interesting questions about our ideas about marriage, monogamy and religion. Her conclusion? “I came to realize that my problem with “Sister Wives” is not a problem with the family itself…
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Life How Rav Yosef’s Daughter Is Educating Her Father’s Flock
Just before Yom Kippur, The Sisterhood linked to this article in Haaretz profiling the life and work of Adina Bar-Shalom, founder of the Haredi College of Jerusalem. She is the eldest daughter of Shas leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, and her valiant work is bringing higher education to both men and women in the rapidly expanding…
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Life Now, It’s the Jewish Men Who Are Wearing Burqas
I’m not one to frequently applaud the approach to female modesty in the ultra-Orthodox community. Particularly during the hottest days of an Israeli summer, seeing Haredi women perspire under layers of clothing, wigs, hats, and heavy wool stockings makes me sweat in sympathy. And over the past years, we’ve seen the birth of the Jewish…
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Life Ayelet Waldman on Writing Jewish Characters and Raising Daughters
Ayelet Waldman makes up half of one of America’s most prolific Jewish literary couples. (She is married to Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Michael Chabon.) Her most recent novel, “Red Hook Road,” is the story of two tragically intertwined families: the Jewish Copakens, from New York, and the Yankee Tetherlys of Maine, led by matriarchs Iris and…
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Life In Praise of the Rabbi Who Married Chelsea Clinton
When selecting a rabbi to co-officiate at their wedding, Chelsea Clinton and Marc Mezvinsky made a wise choice in selecting Rabbi James Ponet. Not many people can tell you this from personal experience, but I can: The guy does great intermarriages. Now, don’t get me wrong. I married a Jewish man. But I would dare…
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Life Jewish Women, Behind the Veil
The politics of Muslim women and the burqa has sparked debate and grabbed headlines worldwide. Numerous communities and countries have been wrestling with the question of whether banning modest dress that covers the face is protecting — or violating — human rights. Here on The Sisterhood and in numerous feminist circles, it has been hotly…
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