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
Trump’s Lying About Comey And Russia — Ask Anyone In The Shtetl
A Jewish folk tale recounts a dim-witted bandit who stole something from a stall in a busy market in the shtetl, before disappearing into the crowd. Then some genius came along and shouted “Oyfn ganef brent dos hitl” – “the cap on the thief’s head is burning” – upon which our dopey crook gave himself…
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Opinion Linda Sarsour’s CUNY Speech: A Moral Disaster
One can have visions of shenere un be sere velt, a better and more beautiful world, as prophesied by the Workmen’s Circle, when reading the delusional praise of Linda Sarsour in the Forward by New York City Councilmember Brad Lander. Alas, his naive ilk bears historical precedence in bad Jewish outcomes. Before getting to the…
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Opinion Armed And Dangerous: After Firing James Comey, Trump Will Weaponize The FBI
It’s clear what Donald Trump got rid of in his “midnight massacre” firing of FBI Director James Comey: an investigation into his ties to Russia that is somewhere between pesky and a prelude to impeachment. Less well observed is what he gained: the weaponization of the FBI, soon to be headed by a Trump loyalist,…
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Opinion Remembering Deborah Cotton, Who Lived To Forgive The Men Who Took Her Life
While covering the Mother’s Day second line parade in New Orleans — a festive tradition in the city — on May 12, 2013, two young brothers sprayed bullets into the crowd. The shooting wounded 19 people, including reporter Deborah Cotton, a longtime correspondent for the local alt weekly Gambit and a cultural writer for Nola.com….
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Opinion The Bible Is Packed With Tough Guy Jews
This article was originally published in the Forward on August 8, 1997. In his eagerness to embrace what he terms Judaism’s “sissy heritage” (“Deconstructing the Jewish Man,” June 27), Daniel Boyarin seems to deliberately ignore another, equally valid side of the Jewish heritage that happens not to fit his ideology. The Zionist “tough guy” machismo…
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Opinion The Complicated Relationship Between Jews And Tattoos
This article originally appeared in The Forward on July 4, 1997. The first tattoo, speculates Peter Trachtenberg, was the mark of God placed on Cain “lest anyone finding him kill him.” In other words, muses the author of “7 Tattoos,” “From the very beginning tattoos were associated with wrongdoing.” but that was not their only…
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Opinion The Time For Peace With The Palestinians Was After The Six Day War
On Friday, June 10, 1967, when the enormity of Israel’s stunning victory in the Six Day War became clear, I presented a memo to Israel’s foreign minister, Abba Eban. Now was the time, I argued, for Israel to propose a bold initiative to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. My recommendation was that we use the dramatic…
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Opinion Don’t Force-Feed Palestinian Hunger Strikers
The Jewish Voice for Peace Health Advisory Council expresses its support for over 1600 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails who have embarked on a hunger strike in protest of the dehumanizing conditions of their incarceration. We also affirm their right to conduct a hunger strike without the threat of force-feeding by Israeli authorities. We applaud…
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Opinion Jews Should Emulate Scientology To Recruit Celebs
This article originally appeared in the Forward on March 5, 1999. If Gwyneth Paltrow wanted to belong, who would kick her out of any club? Given her long rabbinical lineage, you’d think the Jews would be happy to have the Oscar-nominated blond bombshell as a member of the tribe. Ah, but the rabbis come from…
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Opinion When Prayer Becomes Leisure
It is no surprise that many American Jews are proponents of what they call greater spirituality. This is characteristic of what Ronald Inglehart has termed the “postmaterialist” generation. In his study “Culture Shift in Advanced Industrial Society,” based on survey data from 25 industrial societies, Mr. Inglehart argues that economic, technological and sociopolitical changes have…
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Opinion What The Long-Lost Diaries Of The First U.S. Ambassador To Israel Teach Us Today
What lies ahead for the US relationship with Israel, under President Trump, his son-in-law confidant, Jared Kushner, and his ambassador to the Jewish state, David Friedman? All are surely eager to overturn recent Israeli diplomatic setbacks, such as the passage of UN Security Council Resolution 2234 condemning Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Much has…
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