Gender and feminism

Pnina Pfeuffer speaking at B'nai Jeshurun in New York, February 4, 2020. (Gili Getz)

From J’lm to NY, Orthodox activists are mobilizing against sexual abuse

After harrowing allegations about a revered Haredi educator prompted a painful dialogue among Orthodox communities, two activists discuss the grassroots push for systemic change.

By Natasha Roth-Rowland February 2, 2022

Labor party leader Merav Michaeli at the party's conference ahead of the Israeli elections in Hod Hasharon, March 14, 2021. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)

Can she handle it? How the Israeli media covers women politicians

Women running for the Knesset have to overcome not only voters' gender stereotypes, but a media landscape that is heavily skewed in men's favor.

By Noa Balf March 23, 2021

A woman casts her ballot in the Knesset elections at a voting station in Jerusalem, on March 2, 2020. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)

‘I don’t know her’: How Israeli elections disregard women voters

By ignoring women's policy preferences, Israeli parties are not just deepening gender inequality — they're shifting the country further right.

By Noa Balf January 11, 2021

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israel's Defense Minister Ehud Barak change the epaulets of Israeli Chief of Staff Benny Gantz, February 14, 2011. (Abir Sultan/Flash90)

Why are Israeli generals such terrible politicians?

The popular myth that army generals have the skills to excel in politics will continue so long as Israeli society idealizes the military and masculinity.

By Noa Balf December 11, 2020

Israelis protest gender-based violence following the killing of a 50-year-old woman by her husband, Bat Yam, May 4, 2020. (Tomer Neuberg/FLASH90)

The coronavirus crisis is a ‘pressure cooker’ for domestic violence

Directives to shelter at home may be flattening one curve, but they have led to a spike in domestic and gender-based violence, and the Israeli government is yet to offer timely solutions.

By Henriette Chacar May 4, 2020

Palestinian women, joined by Israeli and international solidarity activsits, march to the Qalandiya checkpoint during a protest against the Israeli occupation on International Women's Day, West Bank, March 8, 2012. (Ryan Rodrick Beiler/Activestills.org)

Palestinian women walk the tightrope of toxic ‘shame’ and occupation

The murder of a young Palestinian woman at the hands of her family highlights what many Palestinian women have been saying all along: The struggle against patriarchy and gender-based violence cannot be separated from the fight against Israel’s occupation. By Nooran Alhamdan Israa Ghrayeb, a young Palestinian woman from the Bethlehem area, lived her life like…

By +972 Magazine September 23, 2019

Hundreds of Palestinians protested against LGBT violence in Haifa following the stabbing of an Arab transgender teen in Tel Aviv last week. August 1, 2019. (Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

Queer Palestinian community holds ‘historic’ protest against LGBT violence

Hundreds of demonstrators gathered in Haifa on Thursday to protest against LGBT violence, following the stabbing of a transgender Arab teen. ‘The protest represents a voice calling for liberation without restraints – not of the occupiers, and not of the patriarchy.’ The queer Palestinian community organized an unprecedented protest in Haifa on Thursday, as approximately…

By Oren Ziv August 2, 2019

Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza weeks into Operation Protective Edge, on August 9, 2014. (Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org)

How Israel’s blockade exacerbates violence against women in Gaza

Women in Gaza deal with patriarchal gender norms and intra-Palestinian political divides, but addressing their needs cannot be realized without Israel lifting its blockade. By Anwar Mhajne Violence during military operations affects both men and women, but women often face a unique set of challenges. For Palestinian women in Gaza in particular, the interaction between patriarchy,…

By +972 Magazine May 17, 2019

A Palestinian protester takes part in a mass rally against government inaction toward gender violence, Rabin Square, Tel Aviv, December 4, 2018. (Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

The many costs Palestinian women pay to fight oppression

As if defying gender norms in their own communities isn’t enough, Palestinian women are forced to fight prejudices and racism masking themselves as feminism in Israel and the West. By Anwar Mhajne Tens of thousands of women protested against gender violence in Israel earlier this month, demanding the allocation of more resources to combat it.…

By +972 Magazine December 12, 2018

A protester takes part in a mass rally against government inaction toward gender violence, Rabin Square, Tel Aviv, December 4, 2018. (Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

Why I didn’t join the protests against gender violence in Israel

‘My identity as a woman is not detached from my identity as a Palestinian, so I can only rally behind a movement that calls to free women from all systems of oppression.’ By Maryam Hawari I first encountered Alice Miller v. Minister of Defense in my first year of law school. In 1994, Miller took…

By +972 Magazine December 5, 2018

Tens of thousands take part takes part in a mass rally against government inaction toward gender violence, Rabin Square, Tel Aviv, December 4, 2018. (Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

Tens of thousands of women hold mass protests against gender violence in Israel

Women across the country take part in a general strike to protest the government’s inaction over gender violence. Twenty-four women have been murdered since the beginning of the year. By +972 Magazine Staff Tens of thousands of women in Israel participated in a general strike across the country on Tuesday, declaring a “state of emergency” to protest the…

By +972 Magazine December 4, 2018

Feminist activists paint hundreds of pairs of shoes red to protest gender violence, Tel Aviv, December 4, 2018. (Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

‘Gender violence pushed Jewish, Palestinian women into a corner — together’

Women across Israel were set to strike to protest the government’s inaction toward gender violence. Samah Salaime, a prominent feminist activist, speaks about building solidarity between Jewish and Palestinian women and why this moment feels so urgent. Tens of thousands of women in Israel were expected to participate in a general strike and demonstrations across the country on Tuesday, protesting the government’s…

By Edo Konrad December 4, 2018

Women Behind the Wall is a podcast which explores what life is like for Christian Palestinian women living under occupation.

This Palestinian Life: Uncovering the stories of women behind the wall

A podcast highlighting stories of Christian Palestinian women aims to inform new audiences on how occupation impacts their personal lives. A mother in the West Bank struggling to explain to her child, on reaching a checkpoint, that no, they have not yet arrived at the zoo. A grandmother in Beit Sahour who wishes to join…

By Henriette Chacar August 29, 2018