by Carole Levine, NCJW vice president

Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women went out after her in dance with timbrels. And Miriam chanted for them…          

In the Torah portion for Shabbat Shira (January 26, 2013), we can not only visualize, but we can hear the voices of women, celebrating a victory over Pharaoh. While we don’t often hear the voice of women in the Torah, more and more writings and commentaries bring us a feminist perspective. The voices and impact of Jewish women have been a component of social justice throughout our history.

For me, elevating the voices of women is personal. Perhaps this is because I have been raising my own voice since the age of five when I expressed discomfort in having to recite the Lord’s Prayer every morning in my public school kindergarten. My habit of speaking out continued through middle and high school directed wherever I saw injustice and beyond. But I did not really understand the importance and value of women’s voices until I directed my activism to women’s issues and to broader social justice issues from a Jewish woman’s perspective.

I found my own voice through National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW). It is the voices of the amazing, articulate NCJW women who speak up and speak out for those who are oppressed and the victims of injustice that continually inspire me to raise my own voice.

The suppression of women was common in biblical times and that suppression continues to this day. When women speak, attention is paid to what they wear and not to their words. When women seek equity to their male counterparts, they are often ignored, held back, isolated or slapped down. As women in this country earn less than men in equal positions, and as the most personal of women’s medical and moral decisions are legislated away, the need for women’s voices becomes critical. The suppression of women, worldwide, is acknowledged and bemoaned by many, but few actually speak out to make change. And those women who do raise their voices often pay a very high cost, endangering their own lives and the lives of those they love. And yet they continue to speak out.

NCJW women will raise their voices together and speak out at Washington Institute, March 17-19, 2013. We will experience the power of our sisterhood as we speak out on key issues — immigration, reproductive justice, gun safety and more. We will speak truth to power when we visit our elected officials on the Hill and share our views. And, once again, I will hear the power and strength of women’s voices and see the impact that this sisterhood has on each of us… and on those whom our voices reach.

When women’s voices are heard, we often hear the voice of reason and we hear a focus on solutions over winning. We need to listen, encourage and support those voices. We need to add our own voices, female and male, to that chorus. Just as Miriam emerged from the shadows to lead the women in song at the Red Sea, other brave women are stepping out of the shadows and stepping up to be heard. Miriam’s voice, and the voices of women everywhere, signal a movement to a more just, equal and peaceful world. As I continue to speak up, my voice is informed by my Jewish values and by my woman’s perspective. The voices of women, like our Biblical sisters in this week’s parsha, together with ours, make a difference in the world. 

This piece was originally written as the Shabbat message for JCC of Chicago and has been adapted for NCJW’s Insider blog.

Carole Levine is Vice President of NCJW and Co-chair of Washington Institute 2013.