The Jewish Women's Archive (JWA) is a national

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

whose mission is to document "Jewish women's stories, elevate their voices, and inspire them to be agents of change." JWA was founded by Gail Twersky Reimer in 1995 in

Brookline Brookline may refer to: Places in the United States * Brookline, Massachusetts, a town near Boston * Brookline, Missouri * Brookline, New Hampshire * Brookline (Pittsburgh), a neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania * Brookline, Vermont See ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

with the goal of using the

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

to increase awareness of and provide access to the stories of American Jewish women. JWA makes a growing collection of information, exhibits, and resources available via its website. Its activities include the conception, production and dissemination of: :* Community-based

oral history Oral history is the collection and study of historical information about individuals, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews. These interviews are conducted with people wh ...

projects :* Online exhibitions :* Original academic research :* Educational materials including

curricula In education, a curriculum (; : curricula or curriculums) is broadly defined as the totality of student experiences that occur in the educational process. The term often refers specifically to a planned sequence of instruction, or to a view ...

, a poster series and an

guide :* Training Institutes for educators working in formal and

informal Formal, formality, informal or informality imply the complying with, or not complying with, some set of requirements (forms, in Ancient Greek). They may refer to: Dress code and events * Formal wear, attire for formal events * Semi-formal attire ...

settings :*

Documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

Starting in 2010, JWA also began holding an Annual Luncheon in New York City at which it honors three women for their activism and achievements. In 2010 the focus was on the Triangle Fire (2010 was the centenary of that tragedy). Honorees included Ruth J. Abram (co-founder of the Tenement Museum), Kate Frucher (attorney and entrepreneur), and journalist

Lynn Sherr Lynn Sherr (born March 4, 1942) is an American broadcast journalist and author, best known as a correspondent for the ABC news magazine ''20/20''. Life Sherr was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and attended Lower Merion High School in Ardmo ...

. In 2011 the luncheon was titled "Making Trouble / Making History."

Gloria Steinem Gloria Marie Steinem (; born March 25, 1934) is an American journalist and social-political activist who emerged as a nationally recognized leader of second-wave feminism Second-wave feminism was a period of feminist activity that began in ...

presented the awards, which were given to Elizabeth A. Sackler (The Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, Brooklyn Museum),

Rebecca Traister Rebecca Traister (born 1975) is an American author and journalist. Traister is a writer-at-large for ''New York'' magazine and its website ''The Cut'', and a contributing editor at ''Elle'' magazine. Traister wrote for ''The New Republic'' from Fe ...

(author, ''

Big Girls Don't Cry Big Girls Don't Cry may refer to: Music * ''Big Girls Don't Cry'' (Lynn Anderson album), 1968 * ''Big Girls Don't Cry'' (The Weather Girls album), 1986 * "Big Girls Don't Cry" (Fergie song), 2007 * "Big Girls Don't Cry" (The Four Seasons song), ...

'', journalist), and

Letty Cottin Pogrebin Letty Cottin Pogrebin (born June 9, 1939) is an American author, journalist, lecturer, and social activist. She is a founding editor of ''Ms.'' magazine, the author of twelve books, and was an editorial consultant for the TV special '' Free to B ...

(author, "Deborah, Golda, and Me," etc., journalist, founding editor, "Ms magazine").

Major programs and projects

Curricula and educational resources

JWA's most recent curriculum, Living the Legacy, focuses on the role of Jewish women in the

Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, Racial discrimination ...

and

labor movement The labour movement or labor movement consists of two main wings: the trade union movement (British English) or labor union movement (American English) on the one hand, and the political labour movement on the other. * The trade union movement ...

, seeking to highlight their often-neglected but central role. Additional educational resources include 18 "Go & Learn" lesson plans, book and film guides, primary source materials and mother-daughter workshop materials. Previous curricula include Making Our Wilderness Bloom.

Online encyclopedia

''The Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women'' edited by Jennifer Sartori, formerly ''Jewish Women: A Comprehensive Historical Encyclopedia'' edited by

Paula Hyman Paula Hyman (September 30, 1946 – December 15, 2011) was a social historian and the Lucy Moses Professor of Modern Jewish History at Yale University. She served as the president of the American Academy for Jewish Research from 2004 to 2008. Sh ...

and

Dalia Ofer Dalia Ofer (in Hebrew: דליה עופר; born 8 January 1939, Jerusalem) was the Professor of Holocaust and East European Studies at the Institute of Contemporary Jewry, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Early life and education Ofer graduate ...

, is accessible for free via JWA's website. The encyclopedia features approximately 2,000 articles on the lives and achievements of Jewish women. Articles are also disseminated via

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

Film

In 2007 JWA produced ''Making Trouble'', a documentary film about three generations of female Jewish comedians and the complexity and challenges of their relationship to comedy, Judaism and gender. The film profiles

Molly Picon Molly Picon ( yi, מאָלי פּיקאָן; born Malka Opiekun; February 28, 1898 – April 5, 1992) was an American actress of stage, screen, radio and television, as well as a lyricist and dramatic storyteller. She began her career in Yidd ...

Fanny Brice Fania Borach (October 29, 1891 – May 29, 1951), known professionally as Fanny Brice or Fannie Brice, was an American comedienne, illustrated song model, singer, and theater and film actress who made many stage, radio, and film appearances. S ...

Sophie Tucker Sophie Tucker (born Sofia Kalish; January 13, 1886 – February 9, 1966) was an American singer, comedian, actress, and radio personality. Known for her powerful delivery of comical and risqué songs, she was one of the most popular entertaine ...

Joan Rivers Joan Alexandra Molinsky (June 8, 1933 – September 4, 2014), known professionally as Joan Rivers, was an American comedian, actress, producer, writer and television host. She was noted for her blunt, often controversial comedic persona—heavi ...

Gilda Radner Gilda Susan Radner (June 28, 1946 – May 20, 1989) was an American actress and comedian, and one of the seven original cast members of the "Not Ready For Prime Time Players" on the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''). In he ...

, and

Wendy Wasserstein Wendy Wasserstein (October 18, 1950 – January 30, 2006) was an American playwright. She was an Andrew Dickson White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University. She received the Tony Award for Best Play and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1989 fo ...

as well as contemporary comedians

Judy Gold Judy Gold (born November 15, 1962) is an American stand-up comedian, actress, podcaster, television writer, author and producer. She won two Daytime Emmy Awards for her work as a writer and producer on ''The Rosie O'Donnell Show''. Life and care ...

and

Jackie Hoffman Jacqueline Laura Hoffman (born November 29, 1960 in Queens, New York City) is an American actress, singer, and comedian known for her one-woman shows of Jewish-themed original songs and monologues. She is a veteran of Chicago's famed The Second ...

. The film has been screened at over 70

film festivals A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually in a single city or region. Increasingly, film festivals show some films outdoors. Films may be of recent date and, depending upon ...

and other venues.

Podcast

The Jewish Women's Archive produced a podcast called ''Can We Talk?'' hosted by Nahanni Rous. Rous is also joined by Judith Rosenbaum and Ibby Caputo. The show released its first episode on January 26, 2016 and continued to release episodes on a monthly basis. Each episode is only about twenty minutes in length. The show interviews Jewish women about news, politics, and culture. In one episode the hosts interview

Anita Diamant Anita Diamant (born June 27, 1951) is an American author of fiction and non-fiction books."Anita Diamant." ''Contemporary Authors Online''. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2015. Retrieved via ''Biography in Context'' database, 2017-09-22. She has ...

about her book '' The Red Tent''. The show was featured in Steve Olsher's "Ultimate Directory of Podcasters" as one of the top ten podcasts about Judaism as well as one of the top ten religion and spirituality podcasts.

Online exhibits

''Katrina's Jewish Voices'' is an online exhibit of photos, blog posts, podcasts, and email messages documenting the experience of the Jewish community during and after

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

, produced in collaboration with the

Center for History and New Media Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media (RRCHNM), formerly the Center for History and New Media (CHNM), is a research center specializing in history and information technology at George Mason University (GMU) in Fairfax County, Virginia ...

George Mason University George Mason University (George Mason, Mason, or GMU) is a public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia with an independent City of Fairfax, Virginia postal address in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. The university was origin ...

In partnership with the Institute for Southern Jewish History, JWA conducted 85 interviews with members of the

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-sma ...

, and

Gulf Coast The Gulf Coast of the United States, also known as the Gulf South, is the coastline along the Southern United States where they meet the Gulf of Mexico. The coastal states that have a shoreline on the Gulf of Mexico are Texas, Louisiana, Mississ ...

Jewish communities which are included in the exhibit. Other online exhibits include Jewish Women and the Feminist Revolution, History Makers: Women of Valor and Women Who Dared: Contemporary Activists.

Other resources

''We Remember'' is an online collection of personal reflections and reminiscences about recently deceased notable American Jewish women. ''This Week in History'' is a calendar of events that matches the current date with events in Jewish women's history.

Leadership

The Executive Director of JWA is Judith Rosenbaum. Barbara Dobkin was the Founding Chair of JWA's Board.

Brandeis University , mottoeng = "Truth even unto its innermost parts" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = NECHE , president = Ronald D. Liebowitz , pro ...

Professor Joyce Antler chairs the Academic Advisory Council.

References

External links

JWA Website
{{Authority control Feminism in the United States History museums in Massachusetts Jewish-American history Judaism and women Jewish educational organizations Jewish feminism

Women A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or Adolescence, adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female hum ...

Jewish museums in the United States Jewish organizations based in the United States Jews and Judaism in Massachusetts Organizations established in 1995 Virtual museums Women's museums in Massachusetts Women's organizations based in the United States Jewish websites 21st-century encyclopedias 20th-century encyclopedias Oral history