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
Real Troopers: Boy Scouts Find Judaism In The Wild
“Be as bold as a leopard, fleet as an eagle, swift as a deer, and strong as a lion to do the will of your Father in Heaven.” Rabbi Judah ben Tema’s 2nd century call for unflagging spiritual devotion in the service of God, recorded in Pirkei Avot (“Ethics of the Fathers”), fired my imagination…
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Opinion After Theresa May Trounces Corbyn, What Should The Labour Party Do?
How far can Britain’s Labour party fall? That appears to remain the only open question as the general election – which seems certain to return Theresa May’s government to power with a vastly increased parliamentary majority – kicks off. But if Labour’s condition across the country as a whole is critical — polls currently show…
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Letters Why Holocaust Remembrance Remains So Important
Trump Gives A Holocaust Speech — And The ‘Alt Right’ Screams ‘Betrayal’, by Sam Kestenbaum, highlighted why the days of remembrance are so important. The venomous words of the ‘Alt-Right’ are revolting. We live in a society that encourages free speech. Nevertheless, we realize that hate speech can have dire consequences. I attended the ceremony…
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Opinion Trump’s Washington Reminds This Rabbi Of Modern-Day Sodom
Trump, Pence, Ryan and the whole GOP are Sodomites. This doesn’t mean that they engage in sodomy, per se. Rather, the Republican leadership today is guilty of sins so grievous that God found necessary to destroy their (im)moral forebears in the Torah. The actual text of the Sodom story in Genesis 18 and 19 doesn’t…
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Opinion What Is The Omer And Why Should You Love It Like I Do?
First off, you should know that the Omer — or, as it’s more properly known Sefirat HaOmer, “The Counting Of The Omer” — is a calendar mechanism that takes us from matzo to cheesecake. Who doesn’t love that? But it’s not all sweetness and cheese. Over the seven weeks of the Omer we have to…
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Opinion Heed Joe Lieberman’s Warning On Biological Weapons
With the threat of chemical weapons in Syria and nuclear arms in North Korea, the risk of biological weapons has largely dropped off the international agenda. But evolving technologies and genetic engineering may open the door to new dangers. Other than the “anthrax in the mail” attacks that followed 9/11, killing five people, there have…
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Opinion Arthur Szyk’s Anti-Fascist Imagery Deserves Another Look
Through the stroke of a brush, artists have the power to promote understanding and influence public opinion. In an age when images and text bombard us from every corner, we too often devalue the cultural and political importance of art and its ability to bring people together. As Americans sought to understand the rise of…
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Opinion How Trump Desecrates Memory Of Holocaust Survivors — Despite Fine Words
Donald Trump ended his speech yesterday at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum by talking about Gerda Weissmann Klein. For good reason; hers is an amazing story. While being liberated by the United States Army in May 1945, Weissmann — then 21 years old, white-haired and weighing 68 pounds — met an American Jewish lieutenant…
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Opinion Fake History, À La Française: Marine Le Pen Plays Fast And Loose With The Holocaust
On July 16-17, 1942, some 9,000 French police rounded up and arrested 13,000 French Jews, the majority of them women and children. Held briefly in inhumane conditions at the Vélodrome d’Hiver stadium, these Jews would soon be deported East, most never to return. French police acted under the supervision not of the Nazis, but of…
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Opinion How Hadassah Hospital Coped With Casualties During The Six Day War
In 1967, Hadassah Hospital in Ein Kerem, Israel found itself at the front line of the Six-Day War, treating swells of wounded soldiers and civilians. The July 1967 edition of Hadassah Magazine included a harrowing account, excerpted below, of the first 60 “desperate and magnificent” hours at the burdened medical center. “I entered my office…
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Opinion Fault Lines Season 1, Episode 8
A compelling discussion about American Jews and Muslims in the age of Trump. Listen to “Fault Lines” on Spreaker. Let the world know what you think about Fault Lines – rate our episodes, and share your thoughts in a review on iTunes. Download episodes here. Subscribe to Fault Lines and listen anytime. Check out our…
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