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
How Jewish Skepticism on Refugees Boils Down to Double Standards
Deborah Lipstadt, a prominent and respected Holocaust Studies professor who often provides commentary for leading radio and television magazine programs, that she believes we should think carefully before we indulge a rash and emotional response toward migrants and refugees. She says she has four questions about the current migration crisis that require nuanced responses. But…
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Opinion Building Alliance With Israel Is Good Business Too
Relations between the United States and Israel embody significant history and shared values. And, as we all know, sometimes those relations consist of disagreements and obstacles. Especially now, when we see neighboring countries collapsing and thousands of people risking their lives in search of a better future, we should remind ourselves that the ability to…
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Opinion My Year of Living Jewishly
“Did it change you?” That’s what people ask me, those who have followed this year of holiday reporting — my first foray into the complete Jewish calendar. The answer is yes. And no. Yes, because I now understand the substructures of every holiday — ancient and modern, mournful and exultant. No, because I’m not rushing…
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Opinion 4 Reasons We Should Think Before Acting Rashly on Migrant Crisis
I have watched the unfolding refugee crisis with horror. Who could not be moved by the sight of families risking their children’s lives in rickety boats and on rafts designed for leisure and not for escape routes on rough waters? The picture of little Aylan Kurdi in blue shorts and red shirt dead on the…
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Opinion My Jewish Responsibility To Help Refugees
(JTA) — As our car rolled slowly toward Budapest, we saw a huge group heading in the opposite direction on the highway just outside the city: Hundreds of people quietly walking in the breakdown lane, marching toward freedom and peace. I couldn’t tell if the other drivers were lifting their heads or not, but I couldn’t…
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Opinion What the ‘Auschwitz Showers’ Fiasco Teaches Us About Holocaust Tourism
(JTA) — Pawel Sawicki gets to his desk every morning by 7, but he works no regular office job. Sawicki is an information officer at the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Memorial and Museum, the sprawling complex in southern Poland that encompasses the largest and most notorious Nazi death camp. More than 1.1 million people, mostly Jews, were murdered…
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Opinion Why Sandy Koufax’s Sitting Out on Yom Kippur Still Matters
(JTA) — Jesse Agler was pretty talented as a catcher and pitcher in Little League, yet his parents benched him regularly. That’s because the Aglers had a no-baseball-on-Shabbat rule, one cloaked in sports royalty. “It was a source of frustration as a kid, but I appreciated later what they tried to do,” said Agler, a 33-year-old…
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Opinion Haunted by Holocaust, Israel Ponders Whether to Crack Door Open to Refugees
The world has been affected by the images of desperate refugees fleeing Syria, but for Israelis, the crisis cuts close to home, not only because the conflict they are fleeing is right across the border, but because pictures of the crowds at the Keleti train station and the marches across Europe are playing on the…
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Opinion What American Jewish Fear Looks Like Through Israeli Eyes
In recent weeks I’ve had many conversations with friends from the United States, some while they were visiting in Israel, others through correspondence and phone calls. In all these talks the issue of Iran came up. “What do you think?” they asked me, the Israeli. “Are you afraid?” Like many other confused lay people, I…
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Opinion What Syrian Refugees Have To Say About Coexistence With Israel
The refugee crisis is making headlines the world over. Here in Hungary, most refugees arriving treat the country as a stop, part of a longer journey to Western Europe. Thousands are taking temporary shelter in one of Budapest’s three main train stations. The lower level of the Keleti train station links directly with the entrance…
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Opinion Has the American Jewish Left Lost All Sense of Boundaries?
Helped by Michael Douglas and J Street, I have recently become increasingly painfully aware, in the most personal and intense way, of the growing rift between traditional Judaism and everything else that calls itself Jewish. Mind you, I’ve been a Jewish journalist for more than 40 years and I’ve associated professionally and spiritually with almost…
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