(JTA) — A letter signed by more than 250 Jewish leaders is calling on the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations to bar any leader who has committed sexual harassment or assault. “In recent years, a number of important figures in our community have been revealed as… Read more »
Tagged sexual harassment
#MeToo event encourages community-wide conversation

It is our collective responsibility as members of this community to examine the part that we play in these frameworks,” Graham Hoffman, president and CEO of the Jewish Community Foundation of Southern Arizona, told the audience at a recent community event addressing sexual harassment in the Jewish communal world.… Read more »
Harvey Weinstein to pay $44 million in settlement deal with sexual harassment accusers
(JTA) — Harvey Weinstein and his former studio’s board members have reached a tentative settlement deal for $44 million with women who accuse him of sexual misconduct, The Wall Street Journal reported. The disgraced film producer, who is Jewish, has denied sexually harassing or abusing over 75 women. He… Read more »
Michael Steinhardt sexually harassed me. I spent the next 4 years trying to hold him accountable.

WASHINGTON (JTA) – It wasn’t funny the first time prominent philanthropist Michael Steinhardt asked me to have sex with him. It wasn’t funny the second time, either. It wasn’t funny the third time, or the fourth time in that meeting. It wasn’t funny when he attempted to auction me off… Read more »
Michael Steinhardt’s staff and son say sexual remarks were examples of his ‘well-known sense of humor’
(JTA) — Michael Steinhardt’s family and foundations responded to a New York Times article alleging a pattern of sexual harassment by the billionaire Jewish philanthropist, saying remarks that women said made them feel debased were made in “jest.” Seven women in Wednesday’s article, a joint investigation by The Times and… Read more »
Bernie Sanders staffers allege ‘sexual violence’ during 2016 campaign
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Veterans of Bernie Sanders insurgent 2016 campaign for the presidency want the Vermont senator to meet with them to discuss “sexual violence and harassment” on the campaign as he contemplates whether to run in 2020. “In recent weeks there has been an ongoing conversation on social… Read more »
The fall of a top sociologist could change the field of counting Jews

NEW YORK (JTA) — Over and over, across decades and cities throughout the United States, sociologist Steven M. Cohen painted a picture of American Jews using a consistent set of questions. How much do Jews love Israel? How many Jewish friends do they have? Do they attend a synagogue?… Read more »
For women in Jewish fundraising, harassment is an occupational hazard

NEW YORK (JTA) — She was young, Jewish and the founder of a nonprofit organization that aids deprived children in Southeast Asia. He was a potential funder more than twice her age, promising donations and introductions to influential people. “He dangled a lot of carrots,” she said in retrospect.… Read more »
OP-ED When women rabbis say ‘#MeToo,’ communities must pay attention

NEW YORK (JTA) — In a recent talk at Temple Emanuel here, former first lady Michelle Obama spoke about how women live with tiny cuts that build up over time, cuts that we endure without noticing, even as we bleed. That is what it is to be a girl… Read more »
Al Franken announces he will resign following sexual misconduct accusations
(JTA) — Sen. Al Franken announced he will resign from Congress in the wake of calls for him to step down following accusations of sexual misconduct by several women. Franken said late Thursday morning in a speech on the Senate floor that he would resign “in the coming weeks.”… Read more »
Seven female Democratic senators call on Al Franken to resign over sexual misconduct accusations
(JTA) — At least seven women in the Senate Democratic caucus, including potential 2020 presidential candidate Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, called on Sen. Al Franken to resign hours after a seventh woman came forward to accuse him of sexual misconduct. Following the calls for his resignation, Franken’s office… Read more »
OP-ED Why we waited before publishing that story about Elie Wiesel

NEW YORK (JTA) — If a woman called the JTA office and said she wanted to tell her story of sexual harassment by a prominent community figure, we’d have questions. Would she put her name to the accusations? Can she corroborate them? Can she provide specific dates and descriptions… Read more »
OP-ED Harvey Weinstein shows us how perpetrators pose as victims

(JTA) — In an interview with The Daily Beast, George Clooney described Harvey Weinstein as a very powerful man with a tendency to hit on young beautiful women over whom he had power. Despite the “rumors” he had heard about Weinstein’s openly predatory behavior, Clooney expressed sincere shock and outrage at… Read more »
Katsav rape conviction hailed as watershed moment

TEL AVIV (JTA) — For years it was considered an open secret in Israeli political and media circles that Moshe Katsav had a habit of sexually harassing women who worked for him. In a nation at arms with a decidedly machismo bent, sexual encounters between powerful male politicians and… Read more »