Letter | It’s naive to expect that politics wont come up in synagogue
Dear Editor,
In a recent Forward article, Adrienne Skolnik accused her former congregation of being unwelcome to Republicans. As a member of that same synagogue, I strongly disagree with her characterization of my community.
While Skolnik claims that “for not conforming to a specific political groupthink, [she] was censored, silenced and squeezed out of a Jewish religious space,” I have not experienced this, nor am I aware of it.
Moreover, how could she be surprised that here in Asheville, once described by a conservative legislator as the “Cesspool of Sin,”, the Jewish community is more liberal than conservative?
And some of her accusations, including that she was called racist by a new friend, have nothing to do with the local synagogue. The synagogue’s weekly and monthly bulletins carry regular announcements of activities by several of the synagogue’s conservative political groups. I also find her assertion that political discussions have no place during Shabbat luncheon as naïve.
I’m disappointed in the Forward for publishing this.
Sincerely, Leonard Koenick
Asheville, North Carolina
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
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 the protests on college campuses.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.