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.
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.
Israel has become a defining fact of Jewish life for Zionist and anti-Zionist Jews alike
Last April, Israel’s Interior Ministry sent letters threatening 51 members of our community — including those for whom Israel is the only home they’ve ever known — with deportation within 60 days. Since then, an administrative appeals court has issued a temporary stay, but the threat remains. With it comes an overwhelming sense of déjà…
I recently joined a rally to protest the horrific conditions at Rikers’ Island, where 14 people, all awaiting trial, have died in the past year. I walked away in tears at the pain of these families and individuals, and angered yet again by the racist structures that put a disproportionate number of people of color…
On the way to school, 10-year-old Ruth Winkelmann saw Nazi stormtroopers painting a Star of David onto the back of a religious Jew’s coat. In an interview with the BBC, Ruth said: “I thought, ‘My dad is with me and nothing bad can happen to me,’ but it was a very disturbing sight, and I…
In Nov. 2020, I came across a minor story on an inside page of an Israeli newspaper, reporting that Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, former Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom “and one of the most important thinkers of our time,” had passed away. I had never come across his name before, so I thought that…
A shorthand voters’ guide for Tuesday’s mayoral election in Minneapolis could have defined the choice of candidates as left, left and lefter. The winner, incumbent Mayor Jacob Frey, was one of the lefts, even if he ran to the right. “For Minneapolis, Jacob Frey is a Republican,” Carin Mrotz, executive director of Minnesota’s Jewish Community…
This piece originally appeared in German in Berliner Zeitung. English translation by Léon Dische Becker. A psychologist recently introduced me to the concept of “learned helplessness.” It describes what I’ve experienced in the past few weeks: moments of pure panic that left me frozen in the moment, unable to breathe. I was living in fear…
On Oct. 29, a video emerged of an anti-vaxxer ranting at a local school board meeting in Phoenix, Arizona, where she used a public comment period to espouse hateful conspiracies about Jews, whom she accused of controlling the pharmaceutical industry. Her accusations dripped with many of the classic conspiratorial tropes that have dogged Jews for…
At Shabbat dinner Frank LaMere, a HoChunk Nation Elder and lifelong Native American Rights Activist, implored those gathered to “do something about those Braves.” I hosted this particular Shabbat dinner in Atlanta in 2016 at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. The event featured Native and Jewish leaders as well as elected officials….
For me, family and synagogue have always been intertwined. Growing up with unhappy parents, shul became a refuge where I felt contained and coddled by ancient stories and unchanging rituals. I looked forward to raising my own children with a close connection to a congregation. However, when I married a resolutely secular Israeli, he made…
“You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to desist from it.” This quote from Pirkei Avot is recited so often among Jewish activists that it can feel like a cliche. Many of us have heard it in moments of exhaustion, pessimism or despondence. Last month, Sunrise DC, a local…
A lot of antisemitism — perhaps even most — has little or nothing to do with the State of Israel. While anti-Zionism often serves as a helpful cover for overt bigots, conflating the two not only misunderstands and misstates the problem, but is also dangerous. Last week, the American Jewish Committee published a survey about…
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