Opinion

• Opinion

  Why Israel especially must stand for the Rohingya

  A woman watches as soldiers burn her baby alive. The government disparages an established ethnic and religious minority as a dangerous foreign influence. Families run for their lives with no place to go. While there are clear differences between the current experience of the Rohingya people and that of the Jews during the Holocaust, the…

  By Jill Jacobs and Avidan Freedman

  4 min read
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  Opinion

  The OU Is Right: Orthodox Women Shouldn’t Be Rabbis

  Most of a rabbi’s roles can be halachically and effectively assumed by women, and have been for many years. A rabbi must be learned in Jewish texts and the practical laws pertaining to daily Jewish life — and Orthodox women’s seminaries teach thousands of young Jewish women those laws, and do a top-notch job of…

  Oct 18, 2017 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  No, modesty won’t protect you from the Harvey Weinsteins. But this might.

  When I was in high school, we had a teacher, a long-bearded rabbi, who spent weeks of class time focusing on the intricacies of yichud, the Jewish laws forbidding an unrelated man and woman to be in seclusion together. Every configuration, every scenario in which a man and a woman might find themselves alone, was…

  By Avital Chizhik-Goldschmidt Oct 17, 2017 | 6 min read

Columnists View All

• Jodi Rudoren This is my last column as editor of the Forward

  

• Jay Michaelson Being Jewish in America today feels like walking multiple tightropes at once

  

• Rob Eshman A doctor in the midst of the Boulder attack: ‘This did not come out of vacuum’

  

• Nora Berman For new parents, the aid crisis in Gaza is hitting hard

  

• Dan Perry Don’t be grateful two hostages’ bodies were recovered. Be furious.

  

• Emily Tamkin The two things I fear most after the horrifying attack on Jews in Boulder

  

The Latest

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  Opinion

  How JVP fueled a far-right victory

  NEW YORK (JTA) — Last month, New York’s Center for Jewish History was the target of a right-wing campaign seeking to oust its new president, David Myers, over his dovish views on Israel. The campaign drew an appropriately outraged response from leading Jewish scholars, who rallied around Myers, a highly regarded historian who has publicly…

  By Daniel Treiman Oct 17, 2017 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Jane Looking Forward: When two Orthodox Jewish women disagree on birth control

  Welcome back to Jane Looking Forward. If you wish to continue reading this weekly newsletter, please subscribe here. And spread the word! As you might imagine, President Trump’s decision allowing many more employers to use a religious exemption to deny their employees insurance coverage for contraception ignited a passionate debate on our pages. But interestingly,…

  By Jane Eisner Oct 17, 2017 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  We Asked 17 Rabbis: What’s The Biggest Threat To The Jewish People?

  Welcome to our Rabbi Roundtable series, where we bring together leading rabbis from all corners of the Jewish world to offer their thoughts on the big questions. This week, we asked our rabbis, “What is the biggest threat facing the Jewish people today?” Here are their responses: Shmuly Yanklowitz, Open Orthodox, Author of “Torah of…

  By Forward Stafff Oct 17, 2017 | 6 min read
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  Opinion

  My disabled children were ostracized — by the Orthodox

  This essay is part of our ongoing series, Outside the Bubble: Class and Inequality in the Jewish Community. It explores the class divides in Jewish communities of all denominations, and the financial struggles belonging to these communities can incur. Please email your thoughts and essays to [email protected]. When my husband and I got married, we…

  By Karen Cohen Oct 17, 2017 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  My #MeToo Moment Still Haunts Me — Even Four Decades Later

  It started when I was 22 years old, first job fresh out of graduate school, alone in a strange city, ambitious, naïve. It did not end until many months later, when I was promoted and the editor who was sexually harassing me no longer was my boss. I kept the experience locked deep inside, sharing…

  By Jane Eisner Oct 17, 2017 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Palestinian Women Are Harassed And Humiliated At Checkpoints. Here Are A Few Of Their Stories.

  Since 1967, about 40% of the Palestinian male population has been detained by Israel. With their men in jail, Palestinian women are left to continue surviving and ensuring the well-being of their families. From confronting increased Israeli violations to earning a living while also being caregivers, Palestinian women have had to pick up twice the…

  By Mariam Barghouti Oct 17, 2017 | 13 min read
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  Letters

  Israel’s Arms Support Of Myanmar Is Greatly Exaggerated

  Dear Editor, Peter Beinart claims that Israel, as a Jewish state, has a special obligation to abstain from selling arms to Myanmar. However, his article fails to provide critical background information on which countries actually sell arms to Myanmar and how Israel’s sales compare to the total. The result was surprising. According to public data…

  By Abraham Wyner Oct 16, 2017 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  It’s Good Harvey Weinstein Was Stopped. But Let’s Not Start A Witch Hunt

  The dizzying downfall of Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, accused of sexually harassing and assaulting numerous actresses and other women, has produced a rare moment of consensus in America’s fractured culture. Virtually all agree that the once-powerful producer, who has been fired from his company and is being scrubbed from film and television credits, is a…

  By Cathy Young Oct 16, 2017 | 6 min read