Activism

Content type
Collection
Adam and Eve Cast from the Garden of Eden by angel

Beyond Crime and Punishment

Mica Maltzman

America’s prisons, police forces, and courts seem beyond repair. Imagine how the world might look if God hadn't jumped to punish Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. 

Topics: Voting Rights, Bible
Shoshanna Hemley Speaking at a Climate Action in Iowa City

From Singapore to Iowa: A Teen Activist on Protest and the Fight for Recognition

Shoshanna Hemley

When I brought up the idea of a protest, teachers and peers alike scoffed at first. I was living in Singapore, where protesting was illegal.

"Lady Lilith" by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, 1866.

My Many Moms Are My Matriarchs

Sasha Azizi Rosenfeld

Matriarchal leadership is often portrayed negatively, like in the story of Lilith. My moms have proven to me that we need more of it.

Forverts Columns and Headlines from 1917 about Suffrage

"Froyen Interesen": How Yiddish Newspapers Addressed Suffrage Before and After Women Won the Right to Vote

Sarah Quiat

JWA's Program Manager, Sarah Quiat, does a deep-dive into Yiddish newspapers from the 1910s to see what people had to say about women's suffrage.

Justice Scale

On Individuals, Ethical Leaders, and the Pursuit of Justice

Maddy Pollack

In Austin, lack of housing is a huge, persistent issue. It's not only up to us to choose ethical leaders; we must act individually to fight injustice as well.

Family members gathered around baby sitting in a chair

My Aunt Tiki and My Disability Rights Activism

Dahlia Soussan

My Aunt Tiki inspires my disability rights activism; yet sometimes, I fail to speak up.

Close up image of a cow

Progressive vs. Passive: Why Being Uninformed is the Last Straw

Hannah Landau

It’s our responsibility to be informed consumers; livestock are responsible for 14.5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Topics: Activism, Food
"Don't start with me, Karen" sign

Calling Out the Karens in the Jewish Community

Allison Abrams

How do white Jewish women contribute to anti-Blackness?

Black Lives Matter Poster on wall

A Message to Fellow White Jews

Belle Gage

The bottom line is that as white Jews, we can (and do) perpetuate racism and benefit from white privilege.

Topics: Activism, Protests

Can We Talk? Spring 2020 Season Wrap

As they wrap up another season of Can We Talk?, Nahanni Rous and Judith Rosenbaum look back on episodes and interviews from this season. They reflect on how the podcast has been a vehicle for connection, commiseration, and change during this difficult time—and they look ahead to a new season in Fall 2020.
Ritu Weds Chandni Book Cover

Through the Window: Interview with Author Ameya Narvankar

Ambika Sambasivan

As part of the Association of Jewish Libraries’ program Through the Window: A Diversity Exchange, we interview Ameya Narvankar, author of LGBTQ children's book Ritu Weds Chandni.

Composite image of Hebrew and Harry Potter glasses / scarf

How Midrash Helps Me Grapple with J.K. Rowling's Transphobia

Rakhel Silverman

How should we grapple with J.K. Rowling's transphobia? Midrash offers some answers.

Topics: LGBTQIA Rights

Episode 43: Black Lives Matter (Transcript)

Episode 43: Black Lives Matter (Transcript)

Episode 43: Black Lives Matter

A wave of protests is sweeping the country following the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis. In this episode, we speak with Atlanta-based educator and activist Tarece Johnson about her work for racial justice and about confronting racism inside the Jewish community. As Tarece says, "As Black people, and as Jews, we endure racism in our Jewish community... anti-Blackness is very real." We also talk with Sara Greenhalgh, who has been on the front lines of protests in Minneapolis, and share a protest prayer by April Baskin.

Margaret Sanger and Fania Mindell on courthouse steps, 1917

Suffrage and the Fight for Reproductive Justice

Nina Henry

Many Jewish suffragists (and anti-suffragists) also belonged to the nascent birth control movement.

Ruth swearing her allegiance to Naomi

"Wherever You Go, I Go": Queerness in the Book of Ruth

Elana Spivack

This Book of Ruth is a clarion call for women loving women.

Judith Butler

Judith Butler is the Maxine Elliot Professor of Comparative Literature and the Program in Critical Theory at the University of California, Berkeley. Butler’s work treats gender, hate speech, the precarity of life, the precarity of one’s position as a Jewish thinker in light of Israeli policy towards Palestinians, alternative kinship structures, non-violence, vulnerability, and other, equally complex and important aspects of human existence.

Bruria Benbassat de Elnecavé

Bruria Benbassat de Elnecavé was an ardent activist who dedicated her life to educate Jewish Argentines in general and Jewish Argentine women in particular about Zionism and the State of Israel. 

Berta Blejman de Drucaroff

Berta Blejman de Drucaroff was a prominent activist of the Yiddisher Kultur Farband (YKUF/ICUF) and a communist militant in anti-fascist organizations. She was president of the YKUF Women's Organization (OFI) and the main promoter of the reading circle network (leien kraizn) in Argentina.

Leike Kogan

Lía Gilinski de Kogan, known as Leike Kogan (1911-2001), was a prominent activist in the Yiddisher Kultur Farband (YKUF/ ICUF) and its women's movement (Organización Femenina del ICUF, OFI), linked to the Yiddish-speaking section of the Argentine Communist Party. She stood out as a leader and teacher in the schools belonging to this network.

Emma Goldman in Union Square, 1912

Voting Isn't Enough: A Look Back at Emma Goldman's Radical Anti-suffrage

Justine Orlovsky-Schnitzler

Is voting the be-all and end-all of civic engagement? Emma Goldman didn't think so.

"Courage" Spelled in Felt Letters

Gathering the Energy to Fight: Redefining Moral Courage

Eleanor Harris

In my view, moral courage isn’t really about courage; it’s about gathering up the energy to fight. This looks different for every person.

Topics: Activism
Woman measuring her stomach

It's Ok to Gain Weight during the Pandemic

Larisa Klebe

A pandemic is no time for fat-shaming.

Elizabeth Warren on stage in a purple suit, microphone in hand.

A Thank-You Note to Smart Women

Ella Plotkin-Oren

I'm writing this note with a hopeful but heavy heart. In March 2020, I voted for the first time. I believed that this would be a tremendous year for women. 

Teen Sitting on Steps of a Monument

A New Yorker Teen on Coronavirus, Homelessness in the City

Ilana Drake

I hear other teenagers throw around comments about getting rid of “these people.” Thousands of teenagers in New York City are homeless or facing food insecurity.

Topics: Activism

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