Op-Ed

In an explosive op-ed published in the Times of Israel, a modern-Orthodox father of four explains how he was able to cut down his Jewish expenses to “just” $40,000 a year.

Ede Fox at the Rebbe's Ohel in Queens

Col. Jacob Goldstein, who served for 34 years as Chairman for the Crown Heights Community Board, explains why he believes community members should support Ede Fox in tomorrow’s Democratic primary for City Council, and not Laurie Cumbo.

In response to this op-ed published earlier this week on CrownHeights.info on racism in Chabad, one community member responds that the only true racism is not holding up our African-American neighbors to the same standards as everyone else.

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An anonymous member of the Crown Heights community submitted this op-ed, suggesting a simple and practical solution to the ongoing tuition crisis – a solution that restores power to the parents, and takes us back to the way things used to be long ago.

A parent who functions as a friend is denying that child a functioning parent, says author Shoshanna Silcove in this op-ed she penned for CrownHeights.info.

Protesters clash with counter-protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia, on August 12, 2017.

Following the horrific events in Charlottesville, VA, this past weekend, Bracha B. a Crown Heights resident, says she can no longer remain silent in the face of a grave issue within our community.

“What kind of cushy lifestyle have we gotten accustomed to that so many want to thrive off the culture of victimhood?” asks D.J. Granovetter in this op-ed he submitted to CrownHeights.info.

“While the enforcement of a student’s tznius style can be easily imposed from within the classroom, determining whether a child’s mother maintains the required standards is often based on sketchy observations, unintentional misunderstandings, hazy perceptions, distorted hearsay, and untrue gossip,” says the anonymous author of this op-ed submitted to CrownHeights.info.

The catastrophic numbers of drug users, deaths and overdoses only pale in comparison to the nightmare of a 90% relapse rate. This plague has not passed over the Jewish people. Does Judaism have anything to offer in the recovery of those battling addictions? Rabbi David Nessenoff believes that it does.

Rabbi Leibel Estrin, well-known to many as the writer of the popular Mendy and the Golem comic books during the 80s and 90s, penned the following op-ed on what the Alter Rebbe has to say about checking one’s phone during davening.

Mushky, a young Crown Heights mother, composed this poem to express her thoughts and feelings on the Tznius issue facing our community, with whom she chose to share it.

When somebody says the word tznius, the first thing that comes to mind is what we wear. Our apparel reflects our culture, our nature, our mood, and our social status. For us, clothing is the most external expression of ourselves. However, people don’t often think that how we dress can affect how we are from the outside, in.

Following the recent rash of arrests in Lakewood over Medicaid and welfare fraud, an anonymous member of the Orthodox-Jewish community in the tri-state area penned the following op-ed to the broader community, laying out the case for keeping things kosher.

Feeling a bit empty as the years wore on without the Rebbe leading us in a revealed way, a Crown Heights mother accompanied her children to a rally in front of 770 on Gimmel Tammuz, and had a sudden realization.

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A Shliach from a small town was visiting Crown Heights to stock up on months’ worth of kosher food, only to face an urgent problem that happens well too often in our neighborhood – a problem which can be entirely avoided with a little bit on consideration.

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As we enter the summer months, we share with our readers a letter written to Mrs. Shaindel Teichtel 19 years ago by mother of a then high school girl who was a peer and friend, herself a renowned Crown Heights educator, after she expressed grave concern to her on the level of Tznius in the local girls’ schools and in the wider community. Every word of the letter is still relevant today.

“We are so focused on the clothing aspect of tznius that we may be missing the forest for the trees,” writes a member of the Crown Heights community in this op-ed shared with CrownHeights.info.

“We need Tznuis role models who look nice, classy and yes ‘with it,'” says a Bnos Menachem mother in this op-ed response after receiving a controversial letter from the school requiring all parents to agree to strict Tznius guidelines, including no long shaitels, dark nail polish, or denim.