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This question is tied into Chernin's evolving Jewish identity as well as into her being female. "I began to question a lot of the practices [associated with Orthodox Judaism]. At the New Jewish High School, which is pluralistic, I learned a lot more about the other movements. I would have to say I would identify more as Conservative today because I have trouble identifying as Orthodox due to the suppression of women. You know women can't count in a minyan, they're not supposed to make kiddush, and they have to sit in the back of the shul. I also discovered that in Israel, a lot of people aren't Orthodox. So I would identify now as Conservative because of those issues [related to being a woman]."
Being female is inextricably tied into Rebecca's activism on behalf of victims and survivors of domestic abuse. "Being female means you're more likely to be a victim of abuse in a relationship. Females are stereotyped as passive and easy to dominate. Women are easy targets; they're not supposed to fight back."
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