Makom member, Nechuma Schweitzer, has seen both sides – how Orthodox Judaism can be painful and abusive and how much love and healing is possible when you are connected to healthy approaches and people. She joins me to discuss her perspective and experience as it relates to “Unorthodox.”
They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and I believe that trauma is too. Human beings often have a hard time understanding where other people are coming from, especially if they went through similar experiences and but came out feeling differently. This was definitely the case when I started Jew in […]
In the last several weeks, there have been three suicides in Israel in the ex-Hasidic community. While I don’t know the particulars around these tragedies, I unfortunately, have learned a few things about suicidal ex-Hasidim in the last few years, due to our work with the members of Makom. I am proud to say that […]
With attacks on Hasidic Jews in Brooklyn up 50% in 2019 from 2018 and the recent shooting in Jersey City, observant Jews, and Hasidim in particular, are feeling very vulnerable in the New York City area. We asked a member of Makom to explain how she is feeling in this climate. Here’s what she said: […]
Deutsch’s Olympic Dreams in Limbo With Shabbat Marathon Israeli Olympic marathon hopeful Bracha “Beatie” Deutsch won’t be able to compete in the 2020 Tokyo Games after the women’s marathon in Japan was moved from Sunday to Saturday. Deutsch, the Shabbat-observant mother of five, had checked the Olympic calendar in January to ensure that there would […]
How the Pittsburgh Shooting Inspired Me to Put On a Kippah You can’t hide what they hate about you — so I won’t either. Rather, I will joyously celebrate life and my Jewish identity, and I will fight for a world free of bigotry, regardless of who is attacked. And I’ll do it with my […]
