Opinion

• Opinion

  Marc Gafni and the Misused Power of Religious Leaders

  With the recent New York Times profile airing the troubling past of Jewish spiritual guru Marc Gafni, issues of sexual impropriety by spiritual leaders in the Jewish community are again being brought to the surface. Past reports include Washinton D.C. Rabbi Barry Freundel’s covert filming of more than 50 women in the mikvah; New York-based…

  By Mira Sucharov

  4 min read
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  Books

  Protecting Anne Frank’s Voice — Even 7 Decades Later

  When Anne Frank wrote in her diary to pass the time, she probably never even thought about copyright law or the sticky question of who would come to own her words. She died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in 1945 at the age of 15, but her father Otto survived and eventually was persuaded to…

  By Roberta Rosenthal Kwall Jan 2, 2016 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  ‘Stalin Spins in Grave’ as Jewish Reporter Spends Hanukkah at the Kremlin

  (JTA) — Like many tourists in Red Square, I have often wondered what lies beyond the tall walls that separate this Moscow attraction from the Kremlin, the official residence of Russia’s president and the nerve center of the state. As a journalist long obsessed with Russia, I’ve wanted to take a peek inside the Kremlin for…

  By Cnaan Liphshiz Dec 30, 2015 | 4 min read

Columnists View All

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

  

• Jay Michaelson American Jews were played — now what?

  

• Rob Eshman A new humanitarian outrage is unfolding in the Middle East. It’s not in Gaza

  

• Nora Berman The left is turning on AOC over Israel — and imperiling its own agenda

  

• Dan Perry Actually, Trump made things between Israel and Iran way worse

  

• Emily Tamkin Zohran Mamdani’s victory proves it: The ‘gotcha’ mode of fighting antisemitism has to go

  

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  Opinion

  What Ted Cruz Attack on ‘Crazy’ Neoconservatives Means for the Jews

  (JTA) — Ted Cruz wants to make sure you understand: “Republican” and “neoconservative” are no longer synonymous. The Texas senator, inching up to second place behind front-runner Donald Trump in the polls just weeks before the Iowa caucuses, has launched a broadside against the “crazy” movement that not so long ago was inextricable from establishment…

  By Ron Kampeas Dec 30, 2015 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Proposed Israeli NGO Law Is Hypocritical Attack on Left

  (JTA) — Yet again the Israeli Knesset is considering legislation to single out and punish progressive nongovernmental organizations, particularly the human rights groups that are such a thorn in the side of those who favor the continued occupation of the West Bank. Carefully constructed to evade the inevitable legal challenges it would face if passed,…

  By Naomi Paiss Dec 29, 2015 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Unlike New Year’s Eve, Judaism Makes Endings Meaningful

  A few months ago, an acquaintance of mine slipped on some rocks while on vacation in Hawaii, fell into a river and drowned, dying tragically at the age of 32. Last week, her mother committed suicide. There’s no adequate response to tragedies like these — no consolations. But at times like these I’m grateful that…

  By Jay Michaelson Dec 29, 2015 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  How Jewish Leaders Can Keep the LGBT Debate Honest

  A funny thing is happening in Jacksonville, Florida. In the wake of one of the most dishonest civil rights debates in recent memory — Houston’s cash-soaked, lie-filled controversy over whether to expand its human rights ordinance to protect LGBT people from discrimination — the city of Jacksonville has taken a different route. They’re talking honestly…

  By Jay Michaelson Dec 28, 2015 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Stop Treating Divorced Women Like Second-Class Jews

  Standing under the wedding canopy, dressed in a white tulle gown sprinkled with silvery glitter, I laughed in bliss. I felt young, beautiful, loved and admired. My designer gown, my handpicked white calla lilies, my many friends — everything was perfect. As my husband slipped the ring on my finger, taking me as his wife…

  By Leah Paretzky Dec 28, 2015 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Can Jews Back Both Israel and Black Lives Matter? Of Course!

  Regarding the Forward’s December 21 article “Can Jews Back ‘Black Lives Matter’ and Be Pro-Israel?” we wish to state that the St. Louis Jewish community stands in solidarity with our friend and colleague Rabbi Susan Talve. Though we do not all agree with the opinions that she espouses or the stances that she has taken,…

  By Rori Picker Neiss and Andrew Rehfeld Dec 27, 2015 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  You’ve Heard About Muslims Getting Profiled. What About Jews?

  Trigger warning: This column may offend some readers. It concerns profiling of Muslims (for terrorism) and of Jews (for espionage). The issues aren’t as different as you might wish. Proceed at your own risk. Let’s begin with New York dentist Gershon Pincus. A Brooklyn-born Orthodox Jew, age 62, he applied in 2013 for a part-time…

  By J.J. Goldberg Dec 27, 2015 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  2015: The Year To Say No to Fear

  This was the year when fear had a face, And its own sound, an ugly drumbeat. It flowed right through the presidential race, Relegating all else to the back seat. Fear of the other, fear of the unknown, Seeped straight into the public square. Fear of terror, foreign and homegrown, Left a stench of hate…

  Dec 27, 2015 | 2 min read