Flatbush Jewish Journal publishes 50 pages of obituaries in most recent issue
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
By Irene Katz Connelly April 27, 2020
The Flatbush Jewish Journal, a weekly Orthodox publication based in Brooklyn, published fifty pages of obituaries in its most recent issue.
The obituaries painted a picture of a community devastated by coronavirus. Several pages were devoted to the Novominsker Rebbe and the Sasregener Rebbe, heads of two Hasidic dynasties who died of coronavirus in April. Other tributes memorialized respected rabbis and yeshiva leaders, as well as Noach Dear, a Brooklyn councilman and judge.
The publication noted that “due to the enormity of the crisis,” it was unable to document every death that occurred in the past few weeks.
The Flatbush Jewish Journals “Yahrzeits and Tributes” section is normally much shorter. An issue in April 2019 contained about fifteen pages of tributes. Most were written to mark the yahrzeit, or anniversary, of a community member’s passing, rather than a recent death.
Obituaries that commemorated men were accompanied by one or several photos. However, only one woman’s obituary included a photo. Another woman was represented by a photo of her husband. Some Orthodox publications refrain from publishing pictures of women, citing concerns for modesty.
“Our women deserve better,” one commenter posted on Twitter.
Irene Katz Connelly is an editorial fellow at the Forward. You can contact her at [email protected].
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
