Leah Berkenwald

Leah Berkenwald

Leah Berkenwald was born and raised in Northampton, MA, where "The coffee is strong, and so are the women."  As such, she was a feminist and equal rights activist straight out of the womb. She is particularly passionate about reproductive rights and sex education, despite her father's wish that she do something less controversial like "save the whales." Leah draws strength from the memories of her grandmothers - two incredible Jewesses with some serious attitude. After three years as JWA's Social Media Specialist, Leah moved on to Wentworth Institute, where she coordinates Wellness Education. You can read her blog at www.leahbee.net

Blog Posts

Leah Berkenwald

Stop Teaching Students That Sexual Assault Is a Potential Consequence of Drinking

Leah Berkenwald

Probably the only thing better than reading a thought provoking piece in a major publication is realizing it was penned by a colleague. Leah Berkenwald, the former editor of our blog, wrote a fantastic article about sexual assault and responsibility. Her message veers away from the traditional, and unfortunate, message of placing blame on women who drink too much and open themselves up for violence, and instead asks the reader to think about the sexual culture of college campuses. Today Leah is the Wellness Education Coordinator at Wentworth Institute of Technology, where she is implementing an original bystander intervention campaign to prevent sexual assault called "Be a WIThero."

Topics: Education
Leah Berkenwald

Farewell and reflections from a Jewess with Attitude

Leah Berkenwald

Dear friends,

After three invaluable years, I’m signing off as Communications Specialist and Blogger-in-Chief at the Jewish Women’s Archive.

Michigan state Rep. Lisa Brown: Jewish superhero for abortion

Leah Berkenwald

Michigan state Rep. Lisa Brown is a champion. A hero. A "Jewess with Attitude" to the n'th degree. 

Image of Father and Daughter

Our Fathers

Leah Berkenwald

In a blog post last week Gabrielle Orcha asked, "What about the Jewish father? ... Who is he really?"

So hot right now: Vagina is the new black

Leah Berkenwald

The word “vagina” is having a cultural moment, according to Rebecca Keegan of the Los Angeles Times. Once unmentionable, the word is popping up in movies, TV shows, magazine covers, and political debates. The Beauty Myth author Naomi Wolf's new book, Vagina: A New Biography, will be out in September, 2012. I don't mean to brag, but Jewish women deserve a lot of credit for bringing this once-hushed word to the fore.

Jewish women on the web: Link Roundup

Leah Berkenwald
Ruth Messinger, President of the American Jewish World Service, delivered the Baccalaureate sermon at Elon University, urging students to "be comfortable being uncomfortable."

Lily Winner and immigration, then and now

Leah Berkenwald
Ninety-one years ago today, journalist and playwright Lily Winner published an essay in The Nation entitled "American Emigrés."

"Dear Blu Greenberg": JWA blogger Talia Weisberg's award-winning letter

Leah Berkenwald

We are proud to announce that JWA blogger Talia Weisberg, a junior at the Manhattan High School for Girls, New York, won runner-up in the 2012 Letters About Literature contest in New York state. The program has student readers write to an author, living or dead, describing how that author’s work somehow changed the reader’s view of the world or himself/herself. The competition had 14,000 entries this year. State winners comepte at the national level, sponsored by the Library of Congress’ National Center for the Book.

"More Precious Than Pearls: A Prayer for the Women of Valor in Our Lives"

Rereading Eishet Chayil for Mother's Day with Sinai Live's "More Precious Than Pearls"

Leah Berkenwald

Mother's Day always makes me wonder: How do we convey the love, respect and gratitude we feel for the women in our lives – and for the fortitude and accomplishments of women everywhere?

How to cite this page

Jewish Women's Archive. " Leah Berkenwald ." (Viewed on October 4, 2023) <https://jwa.org/blog/author/leah-berkenwald>.