In the Forward’s opinion section, you’ll find analysis and essays from diverse corners of the Jewish world.
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Opinion
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Opinion
Ukraine ‘Euromaidan’ Protests Must Shun Anti-Semitism
(JTA) — From the moment of its spontaneous combustion on Nov. 21 and for weeks thereafter, the mass pro-European Union encampment in the center of Kiev appeared to represent the epitome of 21st-century European values. The activities of the vast, multi-ethnic crowd in Maidan Square quickly came to be called Euromaidan and celebrated themes of…
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Opinion Rose Fostanes, Israeli X-Factor’s Unlikely Winner
It was one of the most moving moments I can remember in Israeli television. Last night, Israel’s most popular human export crowned the country’s most adored import. Supermodel Bar Refaeli, whose career took off in foreign fashion centers, delivered the best imaginable news to a woman who unexpectedly found fame far from home, in Israel….
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Opinion After ‘Selma,’ Asking How Many of Us in ‘We Shall Overcome’
How big of a “We” were the Jews in “We shall overcome”? Since the nationwide release of “Selma” a week before the national holiday commemorating the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., I have wondered about the extent of Jewish participation in the civil rights movement. Was it just the Selma marches? Was our support also…
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Opinion Polar Vortex Is Nothing To Laugh At
The new year elevated our national conversation to new heights of unreality, if that’s possible. Democrats in Washington presented 2014 as the year we tackle economic inequality, Congress permitting, which it won’t. Progressives fought to ensure we don’t forget immigration reform, gun safety and protecting abortion rights. Conservatives hoped to stand firm on budgets and…
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Opinion It’s Jew vs. Jew as Iran Sanctions Fight Gets Ugly
Sanctions bill sponsor Sen. Robert Menendez addresses AIPAC annual policy conference, Washington Convention Center, March 5, 2013 / Getty Images The debate over the Menendez-Kirk Iran sanctions bill in the Senate just keeps getting uglier. And now the nastiness is seeping – make that pouring – right into the heart of the Jewish community, as…
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Opinion What York University Can Learn From Israel
Aerial photo of York University, Toronto, in 2010. / City of Toronto The ongoing dilemma of accommodating religious beliefs in a liberal and multicultural society is again glaringly apparent. News reports reveal that at York University, a large, publicly-funded post-secondary institution in Toronto, a student in a sociology course requested that he be exempt from…
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Opinion Scarlett Johansson: ‘No Guilt’ About SodaStream
Scarlett Johansson poses for photographers on November 10, 2013, in Rome. / Getty Images Scarlett Johansson signed on this week as the new “global ambassador” for the West Bank-based Israeli company SodaStream and will be featured in the company’s 2014 Super Bowl advertisement. For SodaStream, this deal makes sense: Johansson is remarkably sexy, eco-friendly, loves…
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Opinion What If Ariel Sharon Had Died 8 Years Ago?
If today has proven one thing, it is that time can be a healer here in Israel. Imagine that Ariel Sharon had died the day after his stroke in 2006, instead of clinging on to life, unable to communicate. On the personal level, it would have probably been far easier for his family. But on…
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Opinion Israel’s Got No Business Banning Nazi Symbols
A swastika symbol painted on the wall of a synagogue in Petah Tikva, Israel. / Getty Images Israel’s Ministerial Committee for Legislation voted for a bill yesterday that, if it passes three readings in the Knesset, would impose penalties on those who use the term “Nazi” as a comparison, employ Nazi symbols, or call in…
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Opinion Tunisia Makes Progress on Minority Rights — And the World Ignores It
“News of disaster is the only narrative people need. The darker the news, the grander the narrative.” This observation, made by a character in Don DeLillo’s novel Mao II, has never seemed truer than today. Just ask the citizens of Tunisia, who are marking on January 14 the third anniversary of the overthrow of Zine…
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Opinion Gary Shteyngart, Tiger Mom and the Pope
Welcome to probably the only place you can find the Tiger Mom, the Modern Language Association and the Pope all hanging out together. Watch out!
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