The Hadassah Foundation is committed to ongoing learning about the field of gender equity, the needs of women and girls in Israel and the United States, and the best practices in philanthropy. And we are committed to sharing what we learn in order to strengthen and grow the ecosystem of feminist organizations. As part of this work, we have curated several recent news articles that are relevant to the work we do. While these articles are not about our grant recipients, many focus on issues that our grant recipients address. For example, Forum Dvorah is leading the effort to get more women into key decision-making roles in the military and national security, while Itach Ma’aki‘s work includes training women to conduct political negotiations from a gender perspective. In addition, Israel Women’s Network’s work includes promoting pay equity, and WePower is empowering Israeli women to run for public office.

We plan to make “What We’re Reading” a regular feature on our website, so stay tuned for future posts. Within each category, articles appear in chronological order from newest to oldest. Please note that the Hadassah Foundation does not endorse every view expressed in the articles below.

Women in Israel and the U.S.

Shunned for Her Stance on Israel, a Jewish US Abortion Activist Starts Her Own Fund
Times of Israel, August 12
Allison Tombros Korman explains why she left her job as chief executive with the DC Abortion Fund (DCAF) to start the Red Tent Fund, an abortion fund that is under Jewish auspices but assists women of all backgrounds. Like many others in the abortion rights field in the U.S., DCAF has been vocally anti-Zionist while never acknowledging the October 7 attacks.

Sidelined by War, Fight over Gender-Segregated Prayer in Tel Aviv Resumes in Court
Times of Israel, August 12
A petition filed in Tel Aviv District Court re-introduces the polarizing debate over whether sex-segregated prayer in public spaces should be allowed.

Women Less Likely to Get Correct Treatment in ER Because They’re Viewed as ‘Hysterical and Exaggerating’
The Daily Mail, August 7
Reports on a study conducted by researchers from the Hadassah Medical Center, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Ben-Gurion University that looks at discharge notes for more than 21,000 patients in the United States and Israel — and finds that men are more likely to receive pain treatment than women. “Women are viewed as exaggerating or hysterical and men are viewed as more stoic when they complain of pain,” notes one of the researchers.

The Lethal Price of Misogyny in Security and Defense
New Lines Magazine, August 7
Author Luba Kassova explores sexism in both the U.S. and Israeli defense and security sectors, noting that this culture of discounting or ignoring women has led to numerous major intelligence failures. In Israel, she writes, “multiple warnings were issued by female intelligence officers and soldiers (watchers) to their colleagues in the Israeli military about a planned attack by Hamas militants, even up to a year before the Oct. 7 atrocity took place. Tragically, their meticulously researched reports and observations of Hamas border drills were disregarded as far-fetched by senior male leaders.”

Knesset Gives Protections Against Sexual Harassment to Manpower-agency Employees
Haaretz, July 24
The Knesset unanimously voted to extend sexual harassment protections to people employed through manpower agencies, instead of only to people directly employed by a company or individual. The amendment also extends the provision barring discrimination against people who complain of sexual harassment to workers employed through such agencies. The new law is expected to affect service workers in numerous fields, including home healthcare aides, cleaners, and security guards.

Meet the Teenaged Girl Who Read the Talmud in Just 2.5 Years, Flouting Gender and Speed Norms
Jewish Telegraphic Agency, July 19
After listening in on her father’s men’s-only Talmud class, Elke Bentley of Brookline, Massachusetts decided to join the ranks of people who had completed learning the Babylonian Talmud by the age of 20. She reached her goal with two years to spare and plans to “do it again, and again, and again, and again,” she told JTA. “It’s quite unusual to have completed a study of the entire Talmud at such a young age, for men or for women,” one of her teachers. “But for women, obviously, it’s especially unusual, considering that women traditionally have not had access to thee texts or to the skills necessary to spend [time] with them.”

State Comptroller Finds Wage Gap, Underrepresentation of Women in Local Government
Times of Israel, July 16
A new report finds that the average monthly salary of female employees in Israel is only 69 percent that of their male counterparts. It also found that only 20 percent of local elected officials and 26 percent of senior officials in the local authorities are women.

Philanthropy

Grant Makers, Here’s How to Support Nonprofits Led by People of Color
Chronicle of Philanthropy, August 13
As this article notes, four years after the George Floyd murder sparked a national reckoning, of nonprofits serving people of color are “facing urgent needs and less support.” Many of the directives in this article  — such as urging funders to provide connections, networks, access, opportunities and other resources in addition to grants” while following “the lead of grantees instead of imposing expectations”  are valuable advice not just for helping nonprofits led by people of color, but for working with all types of grant recipients.

Welcome to the State of VUCA, aka Our New Normal
eJewish Philanthropy, August 12
“We are in a state of VUCA — volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity,” writes the CEO of the Jim Joseph Foundation, noting that funders need to adapt their practices and strategies in order to thrive amid ongoing crises and rapid change. He urges funders to substitute “good enough” for “perfect,” be ready to respond quickly when needed, and make other adaptations.

Trust-Based Philanthropy Isn’t an Excuse to Ignore Metrics — It’s the Opposite
Chronicle of Philanthropy, August 7
The CEO of the Overbrook Foundation, explains how “rather than being mutually exclusive,” trust-based philanthropy and performance measurement “can work hand in hand.”

Melinda French Gates Is Ready to Take Sides
New York Times, July 28
In this Q&A, the mega-philanthropist, who announced recently that she is planning to invest all her charitable dollars into women’s causes, talks about the needs women and girls face, women philanthropists, how her funding approach has shifted, and more.

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