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
Hillary Clinton and the Myths Jewish Democrats Like To Tell Themselves
Some of my best friends are Democrats, and they haven’t embraced this party loyalty foolishly or without due consideration. In their minds, they have their own best interests — and the interests of this nation — at heart. When they vote Democratic, donate Democratic and affiliate Democratic, they act with the sincere belief that they…
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Opinion How Orthodox Jews Can Fight Islamophobia — by Taking a Lesson from Sikhs
Running my habitual ten minutes late (hey, it’s Standard Jewish Time), I tried to slip quietly into a packed Islamophobia seminar on the UC Berkeley campus. I shuffled my way to a seat, attracting a couple of glances — followed by double takes from a few classmates who knew me. I understood the quizzical looks….
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Opinion How Both the Left and the Right Get Israel’s Gay Rights Struggle Wrong
Jerusalem’s gay pride parade, in which I marched on Thursday, was full of contradictions. On the one hand, Israeli politicians competed to show their support for the march. Likud MK Gilad Erdan came with his posse of security guards, and party members waved Yesh Atid banners in the march’s staging area. On the other hand,…
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Opinion Sorry, Evangelicals, You Can’t Play the Trump Card and the God Card at Same Time
Did you catch Donald Trump on “60 Minutes” recently, when he gave the first interview with his new running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence? Lesley Stahl was asking about the “chemistry between you two” — it sounded as if she were interviewing them for a dating website — noting that Pence was very low-key and…
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Opinion One-Year-Old Iran Deal Came With a Hefty Price Tag — in Human Lives
A crazy, cunning man named Max is terrorizing your town. Max — who likes to go by “Supreme Leader” — has a long history of violent assaults, extortion and robbery. He’s been jailed, fined, publicly humiliated. But with a winning smile and an uncanny ability to sound reasonable, he manages to recruit followers who are…
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Opinion Laura Ingraham Didn’t Do a Heil Hitler — and Saying She Did Is Part of the Problem
We Republicans have a great deal of work on our hands to fathom how we nominated the worst Presidential nominee in American history and then how we let him lead our party over a cliff in Cleveland this week. Liberals, however, have some self-reflection to do as well. It couldn’t have been more evident than…
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Opinion Why Donald Trump’s Foreign Policy Might Not Be as Crazy as It Sounds
At a recent campaign rally, Donald Trump defended former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s record on terrorism, noting that Hussein was a “bad guy” who was nevertheless very efficient at “killing terrorists.” House Speaker Paul Ryan immediately distanced himself from Trump’s remarks, and leading Republican donors jumped in with criticism as well. Throughout his campaign, Trump…
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Opinion Donald Trump’s Messianic Vision for America
I do not recognize the America that Donald Trump described last night in his endless speech accepting the Republican nomination for President. I expect the nominee of the party out of power to rail about what’s gone wrong in the four or eight years of the incumbent administration — our system is set up as…
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Opinion 4 Ways President Donald Trump Would Be Israel’s Worst Nightmare
Despite grave reservations, many Jews — including, apparently, the billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson — are supporting Donald Trump because of Israel. They should do the opposite. A Trump presidency would constitute an existential threat to the Jewish state, destabilizing the region at precisely the time Israel yearns for stability. Let’s put aside a few…
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Opinion Donald Trump Wants To Make America Hate Again — and at RNC, He’s Succeeding
It’s been a heck of a ride these past few weeks: Orlando, Dallas, Nice, Baton Rouge. We’re scared and we’re angry, and we don’t know what lies ahead. It’s no wonder the Republicans in Cleveland devoted their opening night to the theme “Make America Safe Again.” That’s been their brand for years. This should be…
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Opinion By Boycotting Gay Pride, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat Is Endorsing Hate
One day before Jerusalem’s gay pride parade and one year after the murder of 16-year-old Shira Banki by an ultra-Orthodox homophobe, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat has announced that he will not attend the parade. His stated reason: not wanting to “be part of something that offends the ultra-Orthodox.” Barkat, give me a break. You must…
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