Opinion

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  Zionism Wasn’t Kidnapped. It Was Handed Over.

  A Jewish settler boy sticks his tongue out at peace activists protesting in Hebron / Getty Images This weekend, renowned Holocaust scholar Shaul Friedlander gave sharp expression to a feeling shared broadly by many Jews, in Israel and the Diaspora. “Zionism has been taken, kidnapped even, by the far right,” Friedlander said in an interview…

  By Emily L. Hauser

  4 min read
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  Opinion

  The Roberts Court: No Longer Just an Umpire

  By now you’ve probably heard about the controversial May 5 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, letting an upstate New York town open its monthly board meetings with an explicitly Christian prayer. You probably haven’t heard its most alarming implications, though. Buckle up. The case involves the Town of Greece, a stolidly middle-class suburb of…

  By J.J. Goldberg May 19, 2014 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  America Doesn’t See Its Religious Minorities

  The recent Supreme Court decision in Town of Greece v. Galloway upheld the constitutionality of the town’s prayer before its monthly board meeting. In reaching this conclusion, the majority’s opinion focused on the long-standing tradition of legislative prayers in the United States, dating back to the earliest years of our nation’s history. By this logic,…

  By Michael A. Helfand May 19, 2014 | 3 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 There’s a shocking new report on civilian deaths in Gaza. If only it were accurate.

  

• Nora Berman Is Netflix’s new show the most Jewish cartoon ever?

  

• Dan Perry Israel’s new gift to the far right could help end the Gaza war

  

• Emily Tamkin Entering motherhood — and an obsession with the works of an Italian Jewish literary hero

  

The Latest

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  Opinion

  India’s New Chief Sees Israel as Ally on Terror

  Israeli leaders are celebrating the upset victory in Indian elections of the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, whose leader, the reputedly anti-Muslim Narendra Modi, wants closer ties with Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu emphasized economic ties on Sunday when he told his cabinet about his Friday phone conversation with the Indian prime minister-elect. The Israeli…

  By J.J. Goldberg May 19, 2014 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  News Quiz: Abe Foxman, Barbra Streisand and Howard Stern

  Getty Images From farfel to Foxman, salami to Streisand, hummus to Howard Stern, we’ve got a lot going on in this week’s News Quiz.

  By Lenore Skenazy May 19, 2014 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  Donald Sterling’s Racism Shouldn’t Dampen History of Blacks and Jews

  Donald Sterling simply can’t leave bad enough alone. Having already irredeemably labeled himself as a racist by berating V. Stiviano — who happens to be of Latino and African-American descent — that she should not bring Blacks to his Los Angeles Clippers games, or pose for pictures with African-American icons like former LA Lakers superstar…

  By Marc Schneier and Russell Simmons May 18, 2014 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  What Is Apartheid Really?

  “Apartheid” is an ugly Dutch word that literally means “separateness.” In South Africa, different races were kept apart on ideological grounds. This meant that the majority of people were deprived of citizens’ rights in South Africa on the grounds of their race. Such is currently not the case in Israel, where Arab Israeli citizens have…

  By Ian Buruma May 17, 2014 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  The Lessons of the ‘Lavon Affair’

  Sitting around the Shabbat table, mourning once again a peace process gone bad, I casually mentioned, “This is not the first time this has happened. Sixty years ago, almost to the day, a ‘peace process’ was torpedoed by the Lavon Affair.’” “The ‘Lavon Affair’? What’s that?” Few remember the Lavon Affair, the cause célèbre in…

  By Jerome Chanes May 16, 2014 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  When ‘Apartheid’ Could Be the Word

  Palestinian students perform in a play against Israel’s separation barrier at the Arab American University in the West Bank. What’s all the fuss about? Secretary of State John Kerry has spoken the truth. He did so, first, in warning about apartheid. It does not exist at present: Israel’s occupation of the West Bank is a…

  By Benjamin Pogrund May 16, 2014 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  I Know an Apartheid State — And It’s Not Israel

  Getty Images As a child growing up in apartheid South Africa, I clearly remember the myriad daily humiliation and discrimination imposed upon black South Africans. I went to a privileged white school where no black pupils were allowed. Instead, black children were forced to attend atrocious township schools, where they received an inferior education. I…

  By Wendy Kahn May 16, 2014 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  Meet Pesach II: Unearthly Beauty of Second Chances

  If you missed the holiday yesterday, take a moment to give it a second look. Yesterday was, after all, the Jewish festival of second chances. If you haven’t heard of it before, take a moment to catch up. The formal name of the day is Pesach Sheni, or “Second Passover.” It’s decreed in the Bible…

  By J.J. Goldberg May 15, 2014 | 4 min read