Blogs
Glee and the myth of the 'nice Jewish girl'
The show that is characterizing the American high school experience is no longer Beverly Hills 90210. It is not One Tree Hill, The OC, Dawson’s Creek, or any other television series that is comprised of a homogeneous group of blonde, white, and religiously hush-hush teenagers whose differences are minimized for the sake of a cohesive social hierarchy.
"Good job women" and other Women's History Month sentiments
- Don't miss Renee Ghert-Zand's piece about JWA's On the Map project [Truth, Praise & Help]
- As a part of "Plan A," the campaign for comprehensive sex education, NCJW released a new factsheet on comprehensive sex ed's critical role in preventing and eliminating teen dating violenc
Play a role in mapping Jewish women's history
There exists no guide to physical landmarks in Jewish women's history--until now.
Yesterday was an exciting day at the Jewish Women's Archive because yesterday we literally put Jewish women "on the map." A user-generated map hosted on jwa.org, On the Map showcases significant places in Jewish women’s history, including sites both marked and unmarked, familiar and obscure. You can put your own stamp on history by clicking on a location and adding a photo and description of the new landmark.
Shared birthday, connected lives
I remember precisely where I was in the Glenn G. Bartle library—what part of the stacks, which corner, what bench—when I realized that Lillian Wald and I shared the same birthday, on March 10th. I was a junior at State University of New York at Binghamton, enrolled in a U.S.
Tefillin Barbie's new career
"You know Barbie's getting a new job," says my friend Mimi to me. "People can vote for her new career."
Babe Ruth
Ruth Mosko Handler made two fortunes from plastic boobs.
First as the women who single handedly brought Barbie into our world. (Makes me think of Sophacles saying, “Nothing vast enters the lives of mortals without a curse.”)
And secondly, as a breast cancer survivor who created a prosthetic breast company. Thank you Ruth! What a powerhouse.
Happy International Women's Day
One hundred years ago, the German socialist Clara Zetkin originated International Women's Day to coordinate women's demands around the world. Zetkin, who proposed this new holiday at the 1910 second International Conference of Working Women, was inspired by the power and organization of women labor activists -- many of whom were Jewish -- who had provoked sweeping changes in the garment industry in the 1909 Uprising of the 20,000.
A big fish in a small, Canadian town
This piece was written as a part of JWA's discussion of the significance of physical places and spaces in Jewish women's history. Share your stories with us as we get ready to put Jewish women "On the Map."
AdDRESSING Women's Lives on display
Recently, Ethan Grossman, a student at the Weber Jewish Community High School, wrote a moving piece for Jewesses with Attitude about participating in the adDRESSING Women's Lives project. Now, the Covenant Foundation has highlighted the project in honor of Women's History Month!
Esther: Nice Jewish Girl, Married to a Goy?
This past weekend was Purim, and amidst the celebrating and partying one thing stood out in my mind that most people tend to ignore: the fact that the feminine hero of the story, Esther, is intermarried. Not only this, but as Esther is wooing the King, Mordechai specifically instructs her not to reveal to him that she is Jewish: “The girl found favor in his eyes and won his kindness…Esther did not divulge her race or ancestry, for Mordechai had instructed her not to tell.”











