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
-
Opinion
How Republican Jews Utterly Failed To Prevent Rise of ‘Toxic’ Donald Trump
There is no sugarcoating it — these are the darkest days for Republican Jews like myself. Donald Trump, the most likely Republican candidate for president, has built within our party the nearest thing America has ever seen to a European nativist working class political movement. Such movements, to put it mildly, have never been good…
-
Opinion ‘Sacrilege’? It’s a Pretty Low Bar in Israel These Days
Israel’s escalating culture wars turned surreal in late February, when a vitriolic battle of words erupted between right and left over this question: What is the biblical birthplace of the Jewish people? One side picked Jerusalem. The other side picked Egypt. Both sides were wrong. But days later the battle is still raging, from the…
-
Opinion Did Obama Just Make It Kosher To Boycott Settlements?
Last week, President Obama made the strongest statement to date that settlement boycotts are a legitimate tactic for liberal pro-Israel groups and activists to use. Although he certainly did not phrase it that way, his language suggests that a position considered beyond the pale when Peter Beinart advocated it just a few years ago —…
Columnists View All
The Latest
-
Opinion Why We Need To Dial Down Our Anti-Trump Rhetoric
To all those sensible people who are just as outraged as I am about the rise of Donald Trump: please curb your uproar. We all know Trump has gone farther than we would have liked, but our anger only legitimizes his success and gives fuel to his momentum. Criticism is a compliment in itself, garnering…
-
Opinion Donald Trump Is Playing ‘Mr. Neutral’ on Everything From Israel to the Klan — and It’s Working
There are a few topics in American politics that have unmatched power to excite and divide. The KKK is one. The Israel-Palestinian conflict is another. You might think that given the polarizing nature of both issues, it would be impossible to run for president without clearly delineating your stance on them. And yet Donald Trump,…
-
Opinion Dear Ted Cruz, Quit Using ‘Judeo-Christian Values’ To Exploit My Faith
Dear Senator Cruz, As I follow your presidential campaign, I’ve often heard you speak of how your faith informs your policy positions and how the United States is a nation based on what you call “Judeo-Christian values.” Upon winning the Iowa Caucuses, you declared in your victory speech that “Judeo-Christian values built this nation.” The…
-
Opinion What To Do When Media Shows Bias Against Israel
Even though Israel does not have a formal Constitution, like the United States does, freedom of expression is inherent in our Basic Laws. In 2014, Freedom House ranked Israel as having the only free press in the Middle East. Four other countries — Algeria, Kuwait, Lebanon and Tunisia — were ranked “partly free.” Yet a…
-
Opinion Coming Out as a Gay Orthodox Talmud Teacher
“What is it like to be a Soloveichik?” This question about my well-known rabbinic family name has accompanied me for much of my life. My grandfather was Ahron Soloveichik and my great-uncle was Joseph B. Soloveitchik. The questions about my identity became even more complex when, three years ago, I came out as gay in…
-
Opinion Bernie Sanders Keeps Talking About Being Jewish. Why Won’t We Listen?
There are plenty of things that Bernie Sanders’ presidential candidacy may represent in the arc of American Jewish history. He’s already the first Jew to win a presidential primary. He might even make history and win the brass ring, though it seems unlikely right now. But there’s one thing that is already certain: The Sanders…
-
Opinion Don’t Let Bullies Censor Artists on Israel
From time to time, the incidents flare up, like open wounds on the Jewish body politic. The Jewish National Fund of Canada withdraws support for a performance by the outspoken Israeli singer Achinoam Nini, known here as Noa. The Miami JCC shuts down the run of a controversial play about Israel. The Metropolitan Opera is…
-
Opinion 20 Years After a Bus Bombing, the Inspiration of Two Lives Unlived
My world changed on February 25, 1996. But how it changed a few months later was more important. On February 25, I was just back from a hike in New Haven’s East Rock Park when I got a phone call telling me that Matt Eisenfeld and Sara Duker had been killed in the bombing of…
Explore
Most Popular
- 1
Fast Forward Expelled Oberlin Chabad rabbi says he ‘made a mistake’ with explicit social media chats
- 2
Culture Louis Theroux’s Netflix documentary on the manosphere takes a detour into antisemitism
- 3
Fast Forward Illinois primary pits Jewish candidate with deep Israel ties against AIPAC spending
- 4
Opinion Trump has forced an impossible choice on American synagogues amid antisemitic attacks
In Case You Missed It
-
News Gaza protest slogans amounted to ‘racial slurs’ toward Jews, Trump administration alleges in new Harvard lawsuit
-
Looking Forward We need to talk about New Jersey’s Jewish master of literature. No, not that one
-
Culture Move over Thomas Edison, this deli savant is the Garden State’s newest inventor
-
Opinion We must rewrite the rulebook for fighting antisemitism — or conspiracists like Joe Kent will win the narrative wars
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
