Opinion

• Opinion

  When Israelis Kill Innocents for the Crime of Looking Arab

  “If I would have known he is not the terrorist, believe me, I would have looked after him like I look after myself. In moments of fear people do things they are not aware of. I didn’t sleep all night… I feel disgusted with what happened.” These words — , one of the Israeli Jews…

  By Sigal Samuel

  4 min read
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  Opinion

  Donors Shouldn’t Dictate Young Jews’ Opinions On Israel

  The American Jewish community has a problem. Our institutions — Hillels, Jewish community centers, synagogues, day schools — are increasingly beholden to a group of wealthy donors whose politics are far out-of-line with the majority of the American Jewish community. For instance, though American Jews supported the Iran deal by wide margins, 55 Jewish federations…

  By Caroline Morganti Oct 19, 2015 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  How to talk to your kids about the violence in Israel and Gaza

  Editor’s Note: With Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip engaged in their most intense battle since their devastating summer-long fighting in 2014, and Israel itself convulsed by Arab-Jewish clashes some are likening to a civil war, we are republishing this essay from a few years ago. It’s just as relevant in May 2021….

  By Sivan Zakai Oct 19, 2015 | 4 min read

Columnists View All

• Jay Michaelson What can really be done to prevent antisemitic attacks like Bondi Beach?

  

• Rob Eshman Australia shooting terrifies Jews worldwide — and strengthens the case for Israel

  

• Nora Berman Did crypto-Jews invent the modern tarot deck?

  

• Dan Perry The 3 responses to the Bondi Beach Hanukkah attack that could make Jews safer

  

• Emily Tamkin The fundamental miscalculation behind the GOP’s antisemitism crisis

  

The Latest

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  Opinion

  One Thing 75 Jewish Leaders — From Right to Left — Can All Agree On

  An unusual document was released October 1, reflecting a rare consensus on how to strengthen the Jewish communal future. It was signed by a strikingly diverse assemblage of American Jewish communal figures representing a broad denominational and political spectrum, from right to left and from Orthodox to Reform. Titled “Statement on Jewish Vitality,” the 1,400-word…

  By J.J. Goldberg Oct 19, 2015 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Watch This Arab-Israeli News Anchor Slam Palestinian Leaders

  JTA — Arab-Israeli news anchor Lucy Aharish isn’t afraid to take on both sides of her fraught identity. She has spoken out against the racism that Palestinians face in Israeli society as well as against Palestinian violence. Aharish, 34, was interviewed on Tuesday on Israel’s Channel 2 about the wave of Palestinian terrorism that has Israel…

  By Gabe Friedman Oct 18, 2015 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  We Need a New Jewish Ritual for the Terminally Ill

  We live in a time when dying increasingly plays out in stages. More and more of those who fall seriously ill have, if not an exact schedule of life’s end, at least a realistic timeline. So it was with a friend of mine who’d been diagnosed with an unusual type of brain tumor in her…

  By Michael L. Millenson Oct 18, 2015 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Who Is To Blame for the Bloodshed and Despair in Israel? Everyone.

  Just when the Israeli-Palestinian political situation seems like it can’t get any worse, it gets worse. And everyone is to blame. First blame lies with the Palestinian murderers who are stabbing innocent people on the streets of Israel. While these actions are the predictable results of Israeli policies, they are also inexcusable, ghastly and horrible….

  By Jay Michaelson Oct 16, 2015 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  When ‘Homeland’ Calls Itself Racist — in Arabic

  Homeland, Homeland, Homeland. How many times do I have to tell you? You need to hire an Arabic speaker. Like, yesterday. Otherwise, you might end up in some pretty sticky situations. You might call your own show “racist.” In Arabic. By accident. Oops! In the most recent episode of the hit TV spy drama, a…

  By Sigal Samuel Oct 15, 2015 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Ruth Messinger, Jewish Madonna of Human Rights

  Ruth Messinger and I were sitting in synagogue talking, as is our custom (much to the dismay of the rabbi, my husband). She and I get a lot done in between praying on Shabbat mornings, and it isn’t all gossip. This was during the height of the crisis in Darfur. Ruth had brought American Jewish…

  By Joy Levitt Oct 15, 2015 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Why Was Israel Missing From the Democratic Debate?

  They discussed gun control and ground troops; college debt, climate change and capitalism; what to do about Syria and how to counter Vladimir Putin. They treated the nation — those who were watching, anyhow — to a quick course in the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933. For two and a half hours on October 13, the…

  By Jane Eisner Oct 14, 2015 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  The New York Times and the Big Lie About the Temple Mount

  (JTA) — Last week, I opened The New York Times to Rick Gladstone’s article, “Historical Certainty Proves Elusive at Jerusalem’s Holiest Place,” happy that the newspaper of record would explain to its audience the historical context of this embattled piece of real estate. As I read on, I was horrified. “The question, which many books and…

  By Steven Fine Oct 13, 2015 | 2 min read