In the Forward’s opinion section, you’ll find analysis and essays from diverse corners of the Jewish world.
To pitch an opinion piece, email our Opinion Editor, Talya Zax.
Opinion
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Opinion
Israel uses new surveillance technology to distance itself from the occupation. It’s not working
Up until a few months ago, Israeli Jews were convinced I was lying to them when I told them soldiers go into Palestinian homes to “map” the house and the people living in it. Every night, soldiers entered the homes of “uninvolved civilians” —meaning people who are suspected of nothing other than being Palestinian —not…
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Opinion Charlottesville’s Jews have seen white supremacy up close. Our work is far from over
My heart skipped a beat when the outcome was announced at the trial of the organizers of the 2017 Unite the Right rally here in Charlottesville. The white supremacists and their organizations were found guilty of conspiracy to commit violence, and are liable for over $25 million in damages to those who were directly wounded…
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Opinion Not all Jews hate Christmas. In fact, many of us celebrate it
Editor’s note: The letter below comments on the original headline of Jodi Rudoren’s Nov. 19 “Looking Forward” column. That headline was changed shortly after publication, unrelated to this letter. To the editor: It is not easy being part of a religious minority in the United States, a country with European settler colonial origins and a…
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Opinion Our Reform leaders sinned. Should we still sing songs they wrote?
Reform synagogues across the nation are struggling to make sense of the damning report released earlier this month showing nearly unfettered patterns of unwanted sexual contact between male faculty and female students at Hebrew Union College over five decades. Released on the anniversary of Kristallnacht, the report, conducted by an independent law firm, showed that…
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Opinion The kids are not all right — and Jewish educators on college campuses know it
Reports about Jewish life on campus often focus either on our laudable collective successes or on experiences of antisemitism. After a decade of working on college campuses with leading Hillel foundations, I believe a lot of good things are happening on campus for Jewish students and that these positives outweigh the challenges. But if you…
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Opinion A tragic murder in Jerusalem reminds us: Jewish Israelis face deadly antisemitism every day
Israel is often reminded by its critics that its status quo is unsustainable. Like a procrastinator in shul at the end of Yom Kippur, time is running out for it to do the right thing: to withdraw from the territories, midwife a Palestinian state, dissolve itself into nonbeing. To figure out the problem of its…
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Opinion Beyond the myths, Thanksgiving and Hanukkah share stories of resistance
Both holidays raise serious questions about cultural survival
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Opinion Why I was thrown off the Mayflower II
In a memorable moment of my journalistic career, I was thrown off the Mayflower II. More precisely, I was led off — as opposed to being forced to walk the plank — the replica ship in Plymouth Harbor by one of its crew member actors, who overheard me asking tourists about atrocities the Pilgrims committed…
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Opinion Harold Ramis’s 10 greatest comedy bits
Editor’s note: This chronicle of the best work of the great comic writer and actor Harold Ramis was originally published on Feb. 25, 2014, after Ramis’s death at age 69. We’ve republished it in honor of what would have been the actor’s 77th birthday; he was born on Nov. 21, 1944. Harold Ramis, the comedy…
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Opinion Rittenhouse verdict not a surprise — but not OK
The case was decided once the weapons charge was tossed
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Opinion A rabbi helped me understand the stigma addiction carries. ‘Dopesick’ makes his lessons even more essential
Waves of agony repeatedly knocked the breath out of me, as pressure built behind my eyes, producing visual auras that blurred my sight and made me nauseous. The pain was so unique, so all-encompassing, that I lost all rational capabilities, screaming and kicking as if possessed. My first such debilitating experience occurred when I was…
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Sports First Puka Nacua, now Mookie Betts: Why do sports stars keep getting antisemitic around a Jewish streamer?
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Fast Forward After MIT professor’s killing, Jewish influencers spread unverified antisemitism claim
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News Christians are displaying menorahs in their windows post-Bondi Beach attack. Why some Jews object
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Politics This politician refused to say ‘Happy Hanukkah,’ then blamed ‘political correctness’ for the backlash
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