How Hasidic Sages Supported Transgender People — 200 Years Ago

Transgender activist Abby Stein. Image by Ovrim/Wikmedia Commons

By Forverts Staff July 5, 2018

Editor’s note: We are republishing this interview with Abby Stein in honor of her new book, “Becoming Eve,” being published this week.

This article originally appeared in the Yiddish Forverts.

Abby Stein, who grew up in a rabbinical family in Williamsburg, is the most prominent Hasidic person to come out as transgender after leaving her community. She recently visited the Yiddish Forward’s studios to discuss how Hasidic texts describe transgender people. Learn about that fascinating history in the following video, in Yiddish with English subtitles.

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