In the Forward’s opinion section, you’ll find analysis and essays from diverse corners of the Jewish world.
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Opinion
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Opinion
Pittsburgh Shooting Is A Reminder: Jews And Muslims Are In This Together
Robert Bowers was angry at Jews. But the 46-year-old alleged killer of at least eleven people in a Pittsburgh synagogue seemed most angry at Jews for one particular reason: They were helping Muslim refugees flee to safety in America. In posts on Gab, the social media network favored by white supremacists, Bowers fixated on HIAS,…
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Opinion Will Synagogue Bloodbath Be Wakeup Call For Jews Who Enable Trump’s Hate?
On Saturday morning, a white nationalist walked in to the Tree of Life Synagogue in Squirrel Hill, Pittsburgh, and killed 11 people as of the last count. His declared reason for this carnage was a hatred of HIAS, a Jewish organization that advocates for refugees, founded in 1881. The organization does have a chapter in…
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Opinion What Has Trump Done To Us, America?
I have one daughter who is a freelance journalist and has reported from all sorts of dangerous places in the Middle East and Africa. I have another daughter who is a nurse practitioner and right now is delivering health care to the Rohingya, whose plight is creating the fastest growing refugee crisis in the world….
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Opinion For Centuries, Jewish Tradition Has Recognized Trans People
The idea that there are two and only two sexes is relatively new. This week, in a memo leaked to the New York Times, the Trump administration stated its goal to institute a federal definition of sex as “unchangeable, and determined by the genitals that a person is born with.” Furthermore, “any dispute about one’s…
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Opinion Israelis Are Divided Over Whether They Are ‘Jewish’ Or ‘Israeli.’
By now it’s accepted that the American Jewish community and Israel are in crisis mode. Once bound by the tightest of familial bonds, the two communities have grown ever apart, leading to much hand-wringing. The cause of the crisis is generally chalked up to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s policies – his embrace of the…
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Opinion We Palestinians Are Caught Between A Government That Tortures Us – And Israel
My first time visiting a Hamas operated police station prison was unforgettable. A rusty blue-colored gate led to a narrow corridor that bifurcated into two depressing, colorless rooms. Inside, tens of people were sitting in the corners of each room on a cold floor or a few rotting mattresses. It was the middle of winter,…
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Opinion How Ivanka Trump And Don Junior Weaponize Class — In Opposite Ways
Donald’s Trump’s money has been the subject of frequent discussion. Less often discussed is the question of class in relation to the President, or his family. But the class dynamics at work in the Trump clan — specifically, the way class is performed by the Trumps — provides a secret window into an important and…
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Opinion Israel Brands Us On The Left As ‘Traitors’ – Like The Palestinians
Last week, Hagai El-Ad, the director of Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem, had the distinction of being called a “collaborator,” an “embarrassment” and a “liar” — by his own government. This may sound shocking. But it’s actually symptomatic of how politically isolated we are on the Israeli left. This kind of incitement to violence and…
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Letters I Tried To Explain Anti-Semitism – And Was Accused Of Comparing Zionists To Nazis
A few weeks ago I was contacted via a friend by the chair of Dulwich and West Norwood Constituency Labour Party, which represents the London Borough adjacent to the one in which I live. The individual asked me if I would run a training session for them on anti-Semitism. Aside from my extensive involvement in…
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Opinion The Left Is Redefining Foreign Policy. What Does It Mean For Israel?
The youngest cohort of voters is pushing the Democratic Party left, inspiring mainstream political candidates to embrace policies once regarded as radical, including Medicare For All, abolishing ICE, and a $15 minimum wage. But the conversation about what the emerging left’s foreign policy should be is only just beginning. Bernie Sanders gave a speech earlier…
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Letters Wearing Tefillin Is Serious — And Only Those Properly Prepared Should Don Them
There is nothing more admirable in this world than the desire to get close to God. It is an innate part of every soul to want to return to the spiritual bliss found in the Divine Presence. Luckily, that Presence also wants to draw us close. That’s why Hashem bestowed on humanity both the Written…
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