JEWISH MOMS ARE AWESOME

Join writers Elissa Strauss, Yael Goldstein-Love, Deena Aranoff and Lauren Schiller as they examine the power and depth of Jewish motherhood, rejecting old misogynistic stereotypes and elevating mothers to a place of respect and profound curiosity they have long deserved. They’ll discuss the worrying, the kvelling, the feeding, and those encounters with the divine that happen when caring for children. Wine reception and book signing to follow. 

Elissa Strauss is a journalist, essayist, opinion writer, and the author of When You Care: The Unexpected Magic of Caring for Others. Her work has appeared in publications like The Atlantic, The New York Times, Glamour, ELLE and elsewhere and she was a former contributing writer at CNN.com and Slate where she covered the culture and politics of parenthood. For the past fifteen years, she has co-directed LABA: A Laboratory for Jewish Culture, a global arts incubation fellowship, and is currently the artistic director of the LABA hub in the Bay Area. She lives in Oakland with her family. 

Yael Goldstein-Love is the author of the novels The Passion of Tasha Darsky and The Possibilities, a speculative thriller about the psychological transition to motherhood. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Boston Globe, and Slate, among other places. She also maintains a private psychotherapy practice in Berkeley.  

Deena Aranoff is Faculty Director of the Richard S. Dinner Center for Jewish Studies at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, CA. She teaches rabbinic literature, medieval patterns of Jewish thought, and the broader question of continuity and change in Jewish history. Her recent publications engage with the subject of childcare, maternity and Jewish life. Her book, Mother’s Milk: Essays on Childrearing, the Household and the Making of Jewish Culture is forthcoming with Indiana University Press. 

Lauren Schiller is an award-winning audio producer, live event moderator, and co-author of It’s a Good Day to Change the World: Inspiration and Advice for a Feminist Future. She has created numerous podcasts and radio shows—including the nationally syndicated Inflection Point, about how women build power and lead change.  

All seating is first come, first served.

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