Rabbi Jay Michaelson is a contributing columnist for the Forward and for Rolling Stone. He is the author of 10 books, and won the 2023 New York Society for Professional Journalists award for opinion writing.
Jay MichaelsonContributing Columnist
By Jay Michaelson
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Opinion Why U. of California Should Dump ‘Three D’ Definition of Anti-Semitism
Pity the University of California. The UC system is the latest (and perhaps largest) organization being pulled in different directions by competing supporters of Israeli and/or Palestinian causes. At issue? Whether the UC system — which in the past few years has seen outrageous instances of anti-Semitism and (separately) contentious anti-Israel activities and resolutions —…
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Opinion 4 Reasons Why Sheldon Adelson Anti-BDS Campaign Will Backfire
And so, the great irony of Israel continues: Those who hold themselves out as Israel’s staunchest defenders are often, in fact, its worst enemies. Case in point, the Adelson/Saban donors’ conference, rumored to have raised $50 million for on-campus Israel advocacy, in a campaign they have ridiculously dubbed the “Campus Maccabees.” Unfortunately, the Campus Maccabees…
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Opinion The Profoundly Jewish Lesson of the Supreme Court’s Gay Marriage Ruling
One of the key points in today’s Supreme Court decision overturning state bans on same-sex marriage is that religious and civil marriage, like church and state, are separate. And yet, the court’s opinion, written by Justice Anthony Kennedy, is itself prophetic in its tone. For the 80% of American Jews who support same-sex marriage, it…
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Opinion Jewish Response to Dylann Roof? Dump Delusion of ‘Moderate’ GOP
What can be done to prevent another horrific massacre like the one that took place in Charleston, South Carolina, on June 17. Actually, there is a lot that can be done — but the Republican Party is on the wrong side of every issue that matters. Thus, while it’s all well and good to “come…
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Opinion The Jewish Leadership We Need
I’ve been part of a dozen Jewish leadership initiatives. Some have been excellent, others were gigantic wastes of time and money. But I wonder if we should move beyond “leadership” in the Jewish community, to value those idiosyncratic and introverted traits that don’t make for good leaders, traits that leaders themselves may not possess.** Recently…
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Opinion Is Jewish Reaction to Jerusalem Passport Case Opportunistic — or Delusional?
This week’s institutional Jewish responses to the Supreme Court case of Zivotofsky v. Kerry ranged from horrifying to opportunistic to deluded. This is the case, you will recall, of whether a Jerusalem-born American can list “Israel” as his country of birth on his U.S passport. Congress had passed a law mandating that, but the Bush…
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Opinion Why Caitlyn Jenner Is an American Triumph — and Challenge to Observant Jews
In ultra-Orthodox circles, Western culture, and the non-Orthodox Jews who embrace it, are often referred to as “Greek.” Though seemingly frozen in time, this epithet is actually quite apt. It points to the deeper meaning of debates surrounding religion in American life – and why progressives are winning them. Where Haredim say “Greek,” conservative Christians…
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Opinion Why Jewish Fundamentalism Is More Brazen Than Ever — and Not Just on the Plane
There’s a Hasidic man arguing with the gate agent at the Phoenix airport. He’s claiming that he can’t be seated next to a woman because of his religion – even though Hasidic men have sat next to women on airplanes and buses and in shared taxis for decades, until they gained enough political power in…
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