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Rebel With A Cause
Woman of the Wall
Anat Hoffman to speak of women’s
rights at the Wall and beyond.
Anat Hoffman at the Western Wall, Rosh Chodesh, July 17, 2015:
The action resulted in arrest, harassment and protest.
Lynne Golodner | Special to the Jewish News
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24 November 24 • 2016
hread, a new group dedicated
to bringing together Jewish
women for thoughtful pro-
grams, will present Anat Hoffman on
Thursday, Dec. 8, for “Rebel with a
Cause,” a night focused on exploring
what it takes to allow women full access
to tradition, society and faith.
A proponent of equal access for
women in Judaism, Hoffman is executive
director of the Israel Religious Action
Center (IRAC) and director/co-founder
of Women of the Wall, advocating for
more than a 25 years for women to have
the right to pray at Judaism’s holiest site.
Hoffman has endured buckets of
water poured on her as she dared to pray
near men. She has been verbally and
physically assaulted as she tried to bring
sacred scripture into worship near men.
She dares to speak up when others stay
silent. These lessons about standing up
for what you believe and more will be
part of her presentation in Detroit.
At IRAC, Hoffman works to promote
Jewish pluralism, tolerance and equal-
ity, and to combat racism, corruption
and religious coercion. She served as
a Jerusalem city councilwoman for 14
years in a city where women are tradi-
tionally consigned to a subordinate role,
and she has advocated for the right of
women to pray at the Western Wall and
for women’s equal pay for equal work.
“We are thrilled to have Anat Hoffman
here in Detroit to inspire our commu-
nity to action,” says Sherrie Singer, one
of three founders of Thread, along with
Jennifer Fishkind and Amy Shefman.
“We are facing challenging times — as
women and as thoughtful, open-minded
Americans — and we need the passion
and strength of such a great leader to
guide us forward in this troubling land-
scape.”
Rabbi Michael Moskowitz of Temple
Shir Shalom says, “Anat Hoffman gives
voice to the values most important and
concerning us today in Israel. She works
nonstop to make sure Israel lives the best
of what our Judaism should be. She has
helped create a grassroots movement so
essential for the future of our homeland,
most particularly with women’s rights
and the importance of equality for all.
Her work truly inspires and motivates.”
Driven by a mission of empowering,
educating and engaging Jewish women,
Thread was formed as an independent
group for Jewish women ages 30-55 in
Metro Detroit. Thread’s goals are to cre-
ate a better understanding of the roots
of Judaism, its significance today and
impact on the future; to embrace Jewish
traditions in a modern context; to inspire
more women to get involved in the
community; and to provide community
service and social action opportunities as
an expression of tikkun olam.
This program featuring Hoffman
is sponsored by Hadassah of Greater
Detroit, the Sisterhood at Temple Israel,
Temple Beth El, The Well, Congregation
Shaarey Zedek, Temple Israel, the
William and Audrey Farber Family
Foundation, the Jewish Community
Relations Council/American Jewish
Committee, Temple Shir Shalom,
Hillel Day School, National Council of
Jewish Women of Greater Detroit and
the Mandell and Madeleine Berman
Foundation.
*
Anat Hoffman will speak at 7:30 p.m. Thursday,
Dec. 8, at the Berman Theater in West Bloomfield.
Doors open at 7 p.m. Free, but registration is
required: www.threadcommunity.org. Lynne
Golodner owns Your People LLC, a marketing firm.