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Rising Voices Blog Posts

Rising Voices

Learn more about the Rising Voices Fellowship, JWA's thought-leadership program for young Jewish women and non-binary teens.
Image of Star of David Necklace Over Star of David Background

How My Star of David Necklace Helped Me Understand My Jewish Identity

Sofia Isaias-Day

The Star of David and its history helps me understand the different layers of my Jewish identity; the symbol represents the different cultures we’ve embraced as part of the diaspora.

Collage of Illustrated Woman's Profile Over Pomegranate Wallpaper

"Other": Experiences Around My Racial Identity in Jewish Teen Spaces

Hayley Asai

I'm no more or less Jewish than I'm Asian, queer, or just me. And so, when the world asks me, "What are you?" I say, "I am a Jew."

Collage of Illustrated Women Facing the Western Wall

"We Hear Us": Finding My Voice in Response to Sexism at the Western Wall

Mallie Lifsitz

The woman who helped me onto the benches that day at the Western Wall helped me to begin to find my voice.

Sarah Gorbatov in Her Grandmother’s Traditional Belarusian Clothing

"Invisibility Cloak": Uncovering My Identity as a Descendant of Soviet Jews

Sarah Gorbatov

I’m the daughter of an immigrant family, and nothing appealed to my Soviet Jewish family more than the idea of invisibility.

Collage of Michelle Wu standing in front of an orange line train

Michelle Wu: The Power of Community Activism and a Hopeful Future for Boston

Talia Bloom

As I look back on my Jewish feminist foremothers and their respective activist efforts, I see many parallels with Michelle Wu’s work on the Orange Line in Boston.

Passover-Themed Collage Featuring Matzah and Decorative Bowl

My Charoset Bowl: From Female Ancestors, to My Mom, to Me

Mira Eras

Mira Eras describes how a charoset bowl passed through generations of women in her family keeps her feeling connected to her mother's love for holiday traditions.

Topics: Feminism, Food, Passover
Collage of Images From Georgia Fried's Bat Mitzvah

Fighting to Include the Imahot at My B'nai Mitzvah

Georgia Fried

I decided that I, a thirteen year old, would convince the rabbi of my synagogue to change a rule no one else had successfully challenged.

Blue Figure Wearing Tallit in Foreground, Background of Outlined Tallitot Wallpaper

Celebrate Women Engaging in Jewish Practice—Including Wearing Tallitot

Ilah

There's a difference between being tolerated and being wanted and, for me, wearing a tallit proves that I’m wanted in the Jewish world.

Mezuzah with Clay Figures in Foreground; Pomegranate Patterned Background

My Mezuzah is a Symbol of Feminist Welcoming and Protection

Ellie Friedman

"The mezuzah represents my identity as a Jewish feminist because of its emphasis on the act of welcoming."

Illustrated Figure Holding Star of David in Hands Standing in Righthand Corner

"Jewish Enough": Hanukkah for a Small Town Interfaith Teen

Abigail Gilman

For most of my life, I’ve felt like I’m not Jewish enough.

Outlined Women Sitting in Forefront; Background of Outlined Hands Holding Protest Signs

Radical Self-Acceptance as a Jewish Lesbian Feminist

Lilly Rochlin

I’ve gathered that—to some—my presence as an openly Jewish, queer, feminist person is interpreted as a disruption that needs to be fixed.

Illustration for "With All Your Heart" Weekly Prayer Book: Image drawn with crayon of woman with red hair, bordered by color blocking in blue and maroon

A Young Feminist's Siddur

Elle Rosenfeld

When I stared down at my siddur for the first time, the one I would come to memorize, I ran my pudgy fingers over the fiery red woman featured on its glossy cover.

Topics: Feminism, Prayer
Photo of Maddie Nowack with Camp Havaya Friends Over Background with Pomegranate Pattern

Marking My Growth as a Feminist, Asian, and Jewish Woman with My Camp Shirts

Maddie Nowack

My camp shirts represent a timeline of my growth into a proud, strong Chinese and Jewish woman.

Collage of Photos from Lucy Waldorf's Internship at Adamah

Growing My Identity and My Feminism Through Jewish Farming

Lucy Waldorf

The new movement of Jewish agricultural and regenerative farming has been at the center of my identity development.

Photo Collage of Amelia Posner-Hess reading Torah at her Bat Mitzvah

Wrapped in the Tallit of Jewish Matriarchs

Amelia Posner-Hess

My prayer shawl, which is titled “The Garden of Eden,” was designed specifically for Women of the Wall.

Collage of Torah, Jade Chai Necklace, and Image of Amanda Xinhui Malnik

My Necklace is a Symbol of My Jewish-Chinese Feminist Identity

Amanda Xinhui Malnik

My jade chai necklace has become my most prized possession as a Jewish-Chinese feminist.

Collage of Zoom Youth Phone-Banking Call Screenshot and Shabbat Candles, Pomegranate Symbol

The Power of Jewish Community: From Synagogue Services to Zoom Phone-Banking

Maddie Feldman

To this day, I’m astounded by congregants’ enthusiasm as they hopped on weekly—and eventually daily—Zoom voter phone-banking sessions.

Photo of Mirushe Zylali in her handmade entari

Reinventing Fashion: What’s Old Is New Again

Mirushe "Mira" Zylali

Fashioning my own dress in a traditional Ottoman style helped me reclaim my multilayered roots.

Photo of Painted Over Star of David

Fighting Contemporary Antisemitism: From High School Textbooks to the Halls of the Capitol

Rose Clubok

Since discovering subtle antisemitism in my AP Government textbook, I haven’t read any of the assigned pages.

Collage with Three Women in Underwear; Background of Squares overlayed with underwear

Commercial Femininity: A Jewish Reckoning with Victoria's Secret's Legacy

Goldi Lieberperson

Growing up, Victoria's Secret models represented my default (and only) view of femininity and what it means to be an adult woman.

"Survivor" Collage by Judy Goldstein

"Outwit, Outplay, Outlast": Where are the Jewish Women on "Survivor"?

Judy Goldstein

Out of 20 Jewish Survivor contestants, only six have been women.

Topics: Television
Photo of Books Arranged in an S-Shaped Pattern Across a Blue Background

Confronting Harmful Themes in Young Adult Fiction

Lily Pazner

The themes in the YA fiction I read in middle school fueled my internalized misogyny.

Topics: Feminism, Fiction
Image of Large White Columns

Injustice in the Justice System: An Inside Look at the US District Court House

Ma'ayan Stutman-Shaw

As an intern at the US District Court House, I recognized a pattern, both in the cases that were brought forth and in the defendants’ backgrounds.

Six year old in pink dress seated next to elderly man dressed in a suit, sitting in pews at a synagogue

My Grandfather: Guide in My Jewish Feminist Journey

Simone Feinblum

It may seem strange to credit my 87-year-old grandfather for the development of my Jewish and feminist identities, but he helped me gain the confidence to speak my mind and advocate for myself.

Drawn Figure With Coins in Background

Teen Access to Wealth: On Summer Camp, Systems of Oppression, and Guilt

Jessie Schwalb

I’ve come to understand that my access to wealth and privilege can be leveraged to fight the systems that gave me them.

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How to cite this page

Jewish Women's Archive. "Rising Voices Blog Posts." (Viewed on March 19, 2024) <http://jwa.org/blog/risingvoices>.