Avital Chizhik-Goldschmidt was the Life/Features editor at the Forward. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, Salon, and Tablet, among others.
Avital Chizhik-Goldschmidt
By Avital Chizhik-Goldschmidt
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Life Mikveh And The American Jewish Woman: It’s Complicated
The ultimate training for a rebbetzin is not, in fact, hosting a Shabbat dinner, or remembering the name of a congregant during Kiddush. It happens, actually, in your dining room on a late weeknight. When you’re basically still a novice bride yourself, your wig sitting awkwardly on your head, not yet molded to your crown,…
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Culture ‘A Good Name’: What Jewish Law Says About Crimes Committed In Youth
On Thursday, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford testified that President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, tried to rape her in 1982. Her testimony, some of which has been public for weeks, sparked a vociferous debate about sexual assault. Democrats, who opposed Kavanaugh from the get-go, see in the accusation a tarnished name that would impede…
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Life The Mikveh Is The Trendy Place To Be, In Manhattan’s Upper West Side
ImmerseNYC, a non-profit start-up founded by Rabbi Sara Luria, will be merging with the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan, the JCC has announced. ImmerseNYC is a pluralistic, feminist project which facilitates “welcoming, tranformative mikveh immersions” through volunteer mikveh guides and educational programming around Jewish ritual bath immersions. The merge will mark the JCC as the first…
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Life ‘My dark secret’: Orthodox women reveal their abortion stories
Abortion is never simple — no matter the state, the stage of pregnancy, or the reason. While the nation is besotted with headlines, as Roe v. Wade is once again brought to the forefront of debate, we often overlook the actual stories of women who go through this experience. But there is one group of…
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Life Top Nine Holocaust Movies To Watch On The Ninth Of Av
If you’re a graduate of the traditional Jewish summer camp system, you probably think of Tisha B’Av, the Ninth of Av, the commemoration of the destruction of the Temple, as “Holocaust Movie Day.” Observant Jews dwell on mourning on the Ninth of Av. Not only do we fast and refrain from any bodily pleasures, but…
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Life Torah Study Is Becoming One Big Crowdsourcing Project, With Launch Of ‘929 English’
Israeli website “929” — devoted to the study of all 929 chapters of Tanakh (Scripture) — just announced that it is launching an English-language website on Monday. The website, and its app, invites participants to “read the Tanakh from cover to cover, one chapter a day – five per week”, and currently gets around 270,000…
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Life The Jews Who Ignore Immigrants While Employing Them
The room sparkles, a montage of brilliantly colored wigs, gleaming cufflinks, the Sabbath china set. The men recite the prayers with such gusto! Bravo, what a Yeshivishe accent, every ‘oy’ pronounced loud and clear, your rebbe would be proud! We serve tuna tartare and foie gras and brisket, open a bottle of Glenmorangie. Someone shares…
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Life These Incredible Photos Show What Hasidic Life Is Actually Like
Joshua Haruni spent years documenting life in Israel’s Hasidic communities — from the Rebbe’s office to the tisch’s with thousands gathered to sing, from cheder graduations to the moments in the kitchen on Friday afternoon. Avital Chizhik-Goldschmidt, life editor, spoke to Haruni about his forays into this community. This interview has been edited and condensed…
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