Opinion

• Opinion

  Why Are Jews So Pro-Choice?

  The Senate voted on a bill Monday to ban most abortions after 20 weeks; it failed along party lines. Just a few days earlier, the latest Pew data estimated that a whopping 83% of Jews believe that in all or most cases, abortion should be legal, putting us at the fourth most pro-choice group surveyed…

  By Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg

  4 min read
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  Opinion

  Poland Still Hasn’t Learned One Of The Holocaust’s Most Important Lessons

  Welcome back to Jane Looking Forward. If you wish to continue reading this weekly newsletter, please subscribe here. And spread the word! The outrageous move by the Polish legislature to punish anyone blaming Poles for the crimes of the Holocaust is wrong on so many levels. It is an anti-democratic attempt to limit free speech…

  By Jane Eisner Jan 30, 2018 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  How Anti-Semitism’s True Origin Makes It Invisible To The Left

  The Anti-Defamation League publishes an annual report on incidents of anti-Semitism in the United States. This year’s audit, made available in November, showed a significant increase in relation to the previous year: 2017 saw a 67% rise in anti-Jewish hate speech, harassment, vandalism and violence. It’s a disheartening measure of a terrible phenomenon. Yet in…

  By John-Paul Pagano Jan 29, 2018 | 9 min read

Columnists View All

• Jay Michaelson What can really be done to prevent antisemitic attacks like Bondi Beach?

  

• Rob Eshman Australia shooting terrifies Jews worldwide — and strengthens the case for Israel

  

• Nora Berman Did crypto-Jews invent the modern tarot deck?

  

• Dan Perry The 3 responses to the Bondi Beach Hanukkah attack that could make Jews safer

  

• Emily Tamkin The fundamental miscalculation behind the GOP’s antisemitism crisis

  

The Latest

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  Opinion

  Sorry, Naftali Bennett: ‘Normal’ Democracies Don’t Ban Nonviolent Resistance

  Last week, Israeli Member of Knesset Naftali Bennett wrote an op ed in the New York Times defending Israel’s new blacklist. The blacklist bans members of 20 European and US organizations from entering Israel, based on their support for the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israel. This ban is just, argued the leader of…

  By Issa Amro Jan 29, 2018 | 6 min read
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  Opinion

  At Davos, Trump Turns Middle East Peace From A Promise Into A Fantasy

  There was never going to be an “ultimate deal” between Israelis and Palestinians in the current environment. But on Thursday in Davos, President Donald Trump made it into even more of a fantasy when he brought up Jerusalem. “We took Jerusalem off the table, so we don’t have to talk about it anymore,” he said….

  By David A. Halperin Jan 26, 2018 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  George Soros Issues A Wake Up Call

  This week, Jewish billionaire George Soros came out storming against the internet. At the global gathering of the financially and politically powerful at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Soros gave a long, withering speech on the state of the world. Part of his analysis was directed at the politics of Russia, the EU, China…

  By Dan Friedman Jan 26, 2018 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Liberal Jews: Lay Off Mike Pence

  This past week, Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen Pence made a historic visit to Israel. Unsurprisingly, it was largely pilloried by liberal Jews. What was the Vice President’s offense? Being a pro-Israel evangelical Christian, a perspective some Jews find suspicious. In these pages, Jane Eisner has warned of the dangers of evangelical…

  By Bethany Mandel Jan 25, 2018 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  By Rejecting Jews, Intersectionality Betrays Itself

  Last week, American Zionists were told they could not be part of the feminist movement — again. A number of pro-Palestinian groups, most notably the Palestinian American Women’s Association, boycotted Saturday’s L.A. Women’s March. They wouldn’t attend due to the fact that actress Scarlett Johansson, known to be a proud Zionist, was one of the…

  By Sharon Nazarian Jan 25, 2018 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  The Secret Hidden In Mike Pence’s Grin

  Vice President Mike Pence has been noted for his “close-cropped helmet of white hair,” his “folksy Midwestern drawl” and the “devotional gaze” he trains on President Trump. But his most striking feature is surely his smile. It’s not really a smile. It’s actually more of a grin. He brought this very grin to the Israeli…

  By Batya Ungar-Sargon Jan 25, 2018 | 6 min read
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  Opinion

  No, Israel Is Not Sliding Into Fascism

  There’s a new meme afoot warning of an existential crisis threatening Israel. According to a growing number of home-bred critics, Israel is no longer a democracy. Nor, according to these people, is Israel in the category of other oppressive regimes, like Saudi Arabia or Iran. Israel has even surpassed merely racist regimes like Apartheid South…

  By Ofir Haivry Jan 24, 2018 | 5 min read
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  Opinion

  Mike Pence’s Israel Trip Was An Affront To Women

  Women were segregated at the Western Wall this week. During Vice President Mike Pence’s visit to the Kotel, female journalists were relegated to the back. The segregation came not during a religious event but rather during a diplomatic visit. And the women who were sent to the back of the pack were not praying women…

  By Elana Stzokman Jan 24, 2018 | 3 min read