Ultra-Orthodox Researcher Fights for Change, Runs for Knesset
Translated & summarized from Kan News by baba
Ultra-Orthodox researcher Nehumi Yaffe is running for the Knesset, seeking to represent her community while advocating for societal change. After a childhood marked by exclusion, Yaffe pursued higher education secretly and attended institutions like Princeton and Harvard. She established a Haredi "war room" after October 7th and has faced personal backlash for her activism, being called "our nightmare." Yaffe aims to bridge the gap between the Haredi world and broader Israeli society.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Ultra-Orthodox researcher Nehumi Yaffe is running for the Knesset.
- Yaffe aims to bridge the gap between the Haredi community and Israeli society.
- She secretly pursued higher education at institutions like Princeton and Harvard.
- Yaffe established a Haredi "war room" following the October 7th attacks.
- She faced backlash, with a supervisor calling her "our nightmare."
Nehumi Yaffe, an ultra-Orthodox researcher specializing in her community, is running for the Knesset, aiming to bridge the gap between her background and broader Israeli society. Yaffe, who was expelled from the men's section of her synagogue at age 12, describes herself as someone who pursues her goals relentlessly. At 34, while working on a new curriculum for Haredi girls at the National Library, she felt alienated by the secular students around her, a feeling she described as "they stole mine." This experience fueled her to secretly pursue higher education, eventually leading her to prestigious institutions like Princeton and Harvard.
In a new episode of the podcast "Ad HaKatzè," Yaffe discusses her journey from the insular Sorotzkin neighborhood in Jerusalem to academia and her current political aspirations, all while striving to maintain her Haredi identity. She recounts establishing a Haredi "war room" after the October 7th attacks and the subsequent estrangement she experienced. Yaffe also touches upon the personal cost of her activism, including being labeled "our nightmare" by a supervisor in the Haredi education system.
The podcast features an interview with Yaffe by Keren Neubach, exploring her research on the Haredi society and her efforts to foster change within it.