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 Ignores Nonviolent Marches But Rewards Hamas’s Rockets
Last week’s escalation between Israel and Hamas was devastating. It was also avoidable, meaningless, and had little purpose aside from the respective flexing of muscles on both sides. 27 Palestinians and 4 Israelis paid for it with their lives. Thankfully, it all passed quickly. Hamas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reached another understanding; thus,…
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Opinion Israel Is Trying To Deport Me For Human Rights Work. Here’s Why You Should Care.
I cover Israel and Palestine for Human Rights Watch. A year ago, the Israeli government revoked my work permit and ordered me, a U.S. citizen, to leave the country within two weeks, claiming that I promoted boycotts of Israel. We challenged the revocation and the law it was based on, which forbids entry to boycott…
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Opinion Birthright Has Failed Young Jews, But Not For The Reason You Think.
Over the past few years, Birthright, the ten-day Jewish roots trip to Israel, has taken something of a beating. Activist groups like If Not Now and J Street U have made a habit of attacking the trip, which has become something of a sacred cow in the Jewish community; these attacks include campaigns criticizing Birthright’s…
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Opinion Israelis Want A 2 State Solution. Here’s How To Make It Happen.
The Israeli elections seemed to prove what everyone already knows: the Israeli electorate has shifted radically right. But this is not entirely true. Studies consistently demonstrate that the majority of Israelis support center-left positions like the two-state solution, social-democratic economic policies, public transportation on the Sabbath, and upholding equality and democracy as the core of…
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Opinion Enough With The Victim Narrative. Jews Have So Much To Celebrate.
There is a dissonance between the Jewish story and the way we tell that narrative. We are a people who have demonstrated an inverse relationship between numbers and impact for thousands of years. We represent an unparalleled catalyst for curiosity and growth. As we celebrate the 71st year since its rebirth, the State of Israel…
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Opinion Letter | After Poway, My Synagogue Won’t Be Locking Its Doors. We’re Keeping Them Open.
Like anyone who cherishes life and religious freedom, the news of the synagogue shooting in Poway, California a few days ago, was a scary reminder that we live in a nation where the flames of white nationalism burn bright and snuff out lives on an all too regular basis. As the second synagogue shooting in…
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Opinion Trump Has Brought Jews and Muslims Even Closer Together
Do you have a Muslim friend? Do you have a positive view of Muslims? Well, if you answered “yes” to both you are likely Jewish. Those are just some of the findings of the new poll released this week by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU) in partnership with Georgetown University’s The Bridge…
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Opinion The Left Needs To Stop Passing The Buck And Address Anti-Semitism
Just over a year ago, I wrote my first article for the Forward defending UK Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn against the claims of anti-Semitism that have beset the Party under his leadership. I still stand by everything I wrote. But one year later, it’s difficult to describe him as I once did, as the “leader…
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Opinion American Jews Are Teaching Americans To Oppose The Occupation
When I left Youngstown, Ohio for Palestine over two decades ago, serious conversations about Palestinians were fringe, if not taboo. Those who knew anything about the topic didn’t want to discuss it, while others were simply uninformed (I’ll never forget meeting Americans who thought I was from Pakistan). Fast forward to today, Palestine and Israel…
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Opinion How Palestinians Should React When Trump Unveils His Peace Plan
With the Donald Trump/Jared Kushner “peace plan” probably to be released in June, Palestinians are facing a terrible conundrum. To save their national project, they must defend the terms of reference for peace formally agreed upon in the 1993 Israeli-Palestinian Declaration of Principles. But it’s not going to be easy, because the whole point of…
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Opinion Here’s Why We Mourn Terrorism Victims, But Ignore Homicide Victims
Last week, during a gathering of Democratic-leaning activists in Houston, Texas, Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders was asked, “As President, what would do with the rise of white supremacist violence, to protect our communities?” Sanders invoked his involvement with the Civil Rights Movement to prove his anti-racist bonafides, and was booed by the attendees. Much…
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