Shira Silkoff, at The Blogs

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Jan 25, 2021, 12:10 AM

Jewish Values vs The Ultra-Orthodox Self

Jewish values are something that are spoken about in every denomination of Judaism, and in each community, they will be perceived as something different. Whether it be the idea of social justice and improving the world, or if it...

Sep 15, 2020, 12:15 PM

Confession and Affirmation – The Viddui Chronicles

I’ll always remember my first Yom Kippur. Not my first one ever of course, although one of my earliest childhood memories is of me and my sister eating chicken and ketchup sandwiches on Yom Kippur afternoon with gleeful abandon,...

Jun 29, 2020, 10:55 PM

Jerusalem, pride, and the struggle for acceptance

Over the last decade or so, as countries and cities worldwide become more open and more accepting of the LGBT+ community, various pride parades have rebranded themselves. Where once pride was a protest, a riot, a desperate struggle for...

May 20, 2020, 5:47 PM

Heatwaves and homework: Sexism in the classroom

High school girls in Raanana, Israel protest their classmates being sent home for wearing shorts, in violation of the dress code, despite the unusually high summer temperatures. (Facebook)

Across Israel, girls have been coming to school dressed appropriately for the weather, using their numbers to protest the dresscode

Apr 20, 2020, 2:50 AM

The romanticization of Anne Frank

If you’ve ever read the Diary of Anne Frank you’ll know that it was a tragic story. You probably cried reading it, and then afterwards you probably spent a while thinking about the other six million, and the stories...

Mar 31, 2020, 1:49 AM

The Lives and Lies of Benny Gantz

In a fractured world with an ever increasing divide between political factions, unity seems a strange and distant idea. And yet, somehow, the torn and broken political landscape in Israel seem to be inching ever closer to a government...

Mar 8, 2020, 1:43 PM

The woman of the quiet rebellion

Vashti Refuses the King's Summons, painting by Edwin Long, 1879 (PD via Wikipedia)

In the story of Purim, Vashti’s only crime is saying no to a man in a position of power. It’s a tale as old as time

Mar 6, 2020, 11:06 AM

Zionism: Empty Sentiment or Exclusionary Ideal?

When Rebecca Long Bailey, firm ally of Jeremy Corbyn, claimed she was a Zionist at a Jewish Labour event last month, the British Jewish community laughed and shook their heads. How ironic for the woman mired in accusations of...

Feb 9, 2020, 11:45 PM

The Reasons You Stay

“Why did you make Aliyah?” they ask you, eyebrows pinched together in confusion. They don’t understand why you would want to come here. What made you leave your home country to come all the way to Israel, where the...

Jan 11, 2020, 10:27 PM

We need to talk about Rafi Peretz

Education Minister Rafi Peretz attends a Hanukkah candle lighting ceremony at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City, December 23, 2019. (Flash90)

The education minister's comments endanger LGBT+ children and reflect a rise in homophobic discourse in the public square

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About Me

Shira Silkoff is a proud LGBT Olah Chadasha from the UK, who left behind their comfortable London life in 2017 in favour of the promised land. But promised to whom exactly? Their strong left-wing opinions have often left her wondering what Israel means to them, and she hopes to share these discoveries with the world at the same time as she stumbles upon them herself.

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