Author Archive: New Israel Fund

Summer of ’89

By Ruti Kadish, October 2013 In the summer of 1989, at the age of 25, I celebrated my bat mitzvah at Jewish summer camp. Growing up in Israel, reaching the age of mitzvot was marked by a meal with extended family in our home. In my secular Ashkenazi home, heavily informed by my mother’s kibbutz…

Women of the Wall, Judaism, and you!

I want your help to bolster Israel’s women’s rights movement. You can bolster this front-line work by demonstrating the depth of support for the notion that women should be full partners in modern Jewish life.

Torah and Half-a-Torah

When I was Bat-Mitzvahed in a Conservative synagogue a long time ago, girls did not read from the Torah. Bat Mitzvahs took place on Friday night, not Saturday morning. Girls did not wear a tallit, and their speeches about the meaning of the Haftorah portion they read were truncated. As a Hebrew Day school student,…

Taking Our Place: Faye Moskowitz

October 2013 I can still picture myself, a little girl, sitting among my aunts, my bubbie, and my mother in the balcony of the small Detroit schul where from time to time we looked down to pick out our family’s men as they prayed. I have earlier impressions of a time when I was still…

Briefing on Israeli High Court ruling on Asylum Seekers

In September, Israel’s High Court struck down a law that imprisoned asylum seekers for years without trial. The ruling was a big win for Israeli democracy.

From Boston to Jerusalem

From Boston to Jerusalem As everyone the world over knows, last week was a very hard week for the Boston region where we are quite unaccustomed to suffering from acts of terror. I live in Watertown, MA, ground zero for the final manhunt for the perpetrators of the bombing and other crimes. The last gun…

Women of the Wall Confernce Call

On Friday, April 12, Anat Hoffman briefed NIF supporters who had signed this statement in support of Women of the Wall’s struggle for religious freedom and equal rights.

Aloud and Clear

April 11, 2013 American and other overseas NIF supporters and Israeli NIF supporters share a set of values and a vision for Israel, but we don’t always see all of our issues in exactly the same way. Pluralism and freedom of (and from) religion is a case in point. Some Israelis are bemused and a…

The Race of Victimhood and Incitement

“The Race of Victimhood and Incitement” Thoughts for International Women’s Day from MK Merav Michaeli 8 March 2013 In honor of International Women’s Day, here is the inaugural speech of Member of Knesset Merav Michaeli (Labor) subtitled in English.  NIF is a non-partisan organization with no formal connection to Ms. Michaeli, but we believe the…

A View from the New Knesset

A View from the New Knesset (Tamar Zandberg, a new Member of Knesset from the Meretz party, is our guest columnist this week.) What a couple of years we had! In the summer of 2011, I was marching in the streets, together with hundreds of thousands of Israelis, calling for a more just and equal…