Archive
Originally published in Ha’am. There are a surprising number of labels that a Jewish person can use to describe their Jewish identity. It can range anywhere from the typical “Orthodox,” “Conservative,” and “Reform” denominations, to “Jewish Science” observances. The practice of affixing labels to Jews has become so pervasive that the concept of separating those […]
On Dec. 3, 2017, an unspeakable act occurred in Jerusalem. Yonatan Razel, an ultra-Orthodox Jewish musician, saw that women at his concert wanted to dance. Faced with the conflict between these women’s wants and the laws of modesty (which state that men shouldn’t look at dancing women), he took extreme action against his female audience. […]
Happy 2018, y’all! Needless to say, it’s been a crazy year. New Voices published over 100 articles by more than 45 writers from 39 universities across the U.S. To celebrate, check out our 10 most-liked articles of the year, and keep sharing your campus Jews’ news and views in the year ahead. Top 10 […]
This just in: A Brandeis study on campus anti-Semitism and anti-Israel sentiment finds… information completely unshocking to anyone who’s ever read New Voices – or talked to more than three Jewish students. But still, we’re psyched. The details: Brandeis University’s Steinhardt Social Research Institute polled undergraduates – Jewish and non-Jewish – from four major campuses […]
As my cursor hovers over the “submit” button at the bottom of my graduate school applications, I stop to consider the environment I am going to inhabit at the cost of countless dollars and hours. I am understandably wary. In the time it took to raise me to the age of 18 with aspirations of […]
After Jewish summer camp, USY, and a Talmud Torah education, my friend told me he was disillusioned with Zionism. “I’ve always found the idea of Diaspora to be super meaningful,” he said. “The majority of Judaism is based on Diasporic tradition and the allegory of Diaspora. Modern Zionism sort of spits at this.” He explained […]
“Oh Allah, liberate the Al Aqsa Mosque from the filth of the Jews… Oh Allah, count them one by one and annihilate them down to the very last one.” In July, Imam Ammar Shahin said these words in a sermon to his congregation at the Islamic Center of Davis. The sermon was delivered shortly after […]
With the fall Jewish holiday season in the rearview mirror, I can’t help but miss the megillah we read annually on Sukkot and the epitome of philosophy, Kohelet, before it completely disappears beyond the horizon. For those of you that haven’t read it, Kohelet addresses big questions like does anything in life really matter? And […]
In Houston, Texas, Laverne Cox looked out on an auditorium of eager listeners at the 2014 National Conference on LGBTQ Equality. In her keynote speech, she made a statement that stood out to me. “The scarcity model is a myth,” she said. Cox was talking specifically about trans women of color working together instead of […]
Originally published in the Columbia Current. At a time when millions of dollars are funneled into hiring Jewish professionals to manage Jewish life on campus with little or no say from the students they claim to serve, the American Union of Jewish Students is attempting to take back the conversation of what it means to […]