Image by Getty Images

By Josh Nathan-Kazis November 8, 2017

Hillary Rodham Clinton is scheduled to headline a gala dinner honoring Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum, a prominent critic of the Trump administration and the spiritual leader of the Manhattan LGBT synagogue Congregation Beit Simchat Torah.

The gala marks Kleinbaum’s 25th anniversary leading Beit Simchat Torah, perhaps the most prominent LGBT synagogue in the world.

Kleinbaum’s partner, American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten, is a longtime friend of Clinton’s.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Kleinbaum has been a vocal critic of the Trump administration, and was arrested for protesting the Trump administration’s travel ban in February.

“Let’s keep what we did in perspective, those of us arrested were white with excellent pro bono lawyers standing ready,” Kleinbaum wrote on Facebook at the time. “Honestly, I can’t take credit for profound courage. I’m not facing daily bombings or fleeing in terror. I don’t face police brutality because I am black or brown. That’s real courage. But I will use whatever voice I DO have to speak in the name of my God and my tradition against the injustices being done.”

Clinton has spoken widely since her defeat in the 2016 presidential election. She appeared last week at Temple Emanu-El in Manhattan to discuss her book “What Happened.”

Contact Josh Nathan-Kazis at [email protected] or on Twitter, @joshnathankazis.

The Forward is free to read but not free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’ve started our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we need 1,800 readers like you to step up to support the Forward by April 21. Members of the Forward board are even matching the first 1,000 gifts, up to $70,000.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism, because every dollar goes twice as far.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Make your Passover gift today!

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount