Author Argues Right-Wing Politics Can and Should Embrace Feminism
A growing number of young, particularly female, members of the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) community are leaning leftward, according to an op-ed by Didi Shor, an educator and activist for Haredi women's rights. Shor attributes this shift to the Haredi community's rigid, hierarchical structure, which she likens to feudalism, and the left's emphasis on rights, equality, and personal freedom, which appeals to young people seeking to change societal racism and chauvinism. Shor argues that the right-wing's focus on conservatism preserves the existing problematic structure, leading feminism to be perceived as solely a left-wing movement, leaving Haredi women, who lack any representation in the Knesset, with no political home.
Shor challenges the notion that feminism and right-wing politics are mutually exclusive, a view she encountered from both ideological right-wingers and feminists. She contends that feminism, defined as advancing women's status, should exist across the political spectrum. Shor explains her own right-wing voting preference by prioritizing national security as a prerequisite for quality of life, citing that in 2025, more Jewish women in Israel were killed by domestic violence than by terrorism. She asserts that national security and women's advancement are not contradictory, and that the left's pacifism, particularly its silence on Hamas's sexual violence and its opposition to military action against oppressive regimes, is misguided.
She criticizes both the global and Israeli left for their perceived hypocrisy, citing their silence on the October 7th Hamas attacks and their focus on anti-colonialism over the plight of women in oppressive societies. Shor also points to instances where Western institutions allegedly ignore violence against white girls by Pakistani gangs due to fears of being labeled racist. She argues that the Israeli right also exhibits a "double blindness" by criticizing female soldiers and downplaying sexual assault when the perpetrator is Jewish or aligned with the right. Shor concludes that the right-wing's alliance with Haredi parties, which enforce absolute exclusion of women from political and legal spheres, hinders women's advancement and alienates potential right-wing voters. She calls for the right to recognize feminism not as a left-wing Trojan horse, but as a direct implementation of individual liberty and national responsibility, warning that failure to do so will continue to push young Haredi individuals towards the left.
