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Shulamit
On...
Her recent awards include both
Hadassah's Myrtle Wreath Award and
Woman of Distinction Award: she is
an elected member in the
International Women's Forum and
received the Spirit of Liberty Award
from People for the American Way.
She acknowledges it took courage to
create the Women's Studies Research
Center. It also required confidence,
friends and perseverance. "And it's so
much fun," she adds.
Much of that fun comes from
knowing how to work with individuals
involved in the project. "Each person
had a unique role to play," says
Reinharz, a master at tapping into
others' talents.
"Shula is the epitome of a woman
leader," says Bessie Hahn, Brandeis'
assistant provost and National
Women's Committee librarian. "She
listens to students, has ambition and
will carry out whatever needs to be
done."
Hadassah National board member
Rhoda Bernstein of Fort Worth, Texas,
who also chairs the HIRIJW board,
agrees. "Shula is one of the most
dynamic women I've ever met. And
the institute is already forging new
ground." Research on the effects of
different countries and cultures on
Jewish women, she says, has been
most valuable.
Lessons Of Love
Reinharz readily attributes her courage to
her parents, Holocaust survivors who hid
throughout Holland durinc, the war.
Born in Amsterdam, Reinharz immigrat-
ed with her parents to the United States
when she was 2.
"There are two ways to live after the
Holocaust," Reinharz says. "Focus on
what is lost, or on what remains — a
HISTORY on page 16
Author of four books,
Shulamit Reinharz heads Brandeis
Women's Studies Program, directs the
only international institute that studies Jewish
women and raised money to build a women's center.
What older Jewish
women can teach
younger ones and vice
versa.
"Those of us who are
clear in our identity,
more or less, have to
offer the younger genera-
tion all the enthusiasm
we have because we're a
product of the women's
movement and the
Jewish movement that
gave us new options.
We're pioneers.
"Young women have to
teach us what their chal-
lenges are. Jewish women
face difficult issues
regarding family forma-
tion ... They want to
have children and a lov-
ing partner, which isn't
easy.
"American Jewish
women are the most
highly educated group of
women in the U.S.A.
and education takes a
long time. We become
eligible for marriage
when we're older. There
persists in the minds of
men the lure of non-
Jewish women. And men
in general are not inter-
ested in making a com-
mitment early on to fam-
ily formation."
What women have to
watch out for.
"Erosion of abortion
rights. Not that abortion
is something that people
have to deal with in their
daily lives. But it's a sym-
bol that part of our body
belongs to the govern-
ment
'Another negative is
the globalization of the
economy. Poor paying
jobs are not a way to
improve the condition of
women's lives.
"A positive, there's a
small rumbling political-
ly around the world that
women belong in gov-
ernment and that we
should have responsibili-
ty for our communities.
And there's small rum-
blings that women have
a contribution to make
to peace
3/30
2001
15
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