Special Episode! Shoshanna sits down with Mark Trencher of the Orthomomics podcast, cross-posted here.

Our guest is Shoshanna Keats Jaskoll, a well-known Orthodox Jewish writer and activist whose work focuses on women's rights in Orthodox Judaism and the visibility of women in religious life. Born and raised in Lakewood, New Jersey, she moved to Israel with her family, where she has become a prominent voice challenging religious extremism, the erasure of women from public and communal spaces, and broadly advocating for Orthodox Jewish women.

In this episode we discuss a number of issues including the increasing erasure of images of women in Orthodox venues. the agunah problem (women who are unable to obtain a get – a Jewish legal divorce – and are chained to former spouses and unable to remarry), women's health issues, their growing roles in Jewish learning, and more.

She is a co‑founder of Chochmat Nashim, an organization that creates change in the global Jewish society by challenging dangerous trends in Jewish communities around the world. Using new and traditional media the organization sheds light on societal norms that exclude women and feed extremism.

She is also a founder of Rate My Deit Din, a resource and website that evaluates and improves Jewish divorce in the rabbinic court (beit din) system. Courts are rated via user and professional reviews and are offered ways to improve users' experiences.

Finally, she is a founder of the Laura Ben David Jewish Life Photo Bank, a dedicated resource for authentic images of Jewish women, families, and communities, aiming to counter erasure.

In this short Chanukah conversation, Shoshanna Keats Jaskoll sits down with Franciska to discuss her new release "Ko Amar"—a song written to shine light on the painful reality of Agunot, women halachically "chained" in marriages. Together, they explore why this issue cannot remain in the shadows, how music can serve as both protest and prayer, and what it means to bring light where there has been silence. A brief but powerful reflection on responsibility, compassion, and communal action.

Rare is the rabbi willing to make a public statement on the head coverings of Orthodoxy's married women, given how fraught the topic can be. Rav Yoni not only posted about it on Facebook, but he also breathed new life into an old conversation. Shoshanna and Anne talk to him about the post, the reactions, and even get him to give a basic p'sak.

Read Rav Yoni's Facebook post here.

Music: "Misery" by The Whips

Chochmat Nashim has been shining a spotlight on the insidious practice of erasing women for more than a decade -- and been frustrated by how hard it is to reverse the trend, especially when so many people agree that it's bad. In this episode, Anne and Shoshanna speak with Golda Daphna, who has an explanation for why men are putting obstacles in women's way.

Music: "Misery" by The Whips

Israel is in turmoil, divided on questions of how best to handle Gaza, how to answer the world, with its pointed fingers at Israel, and how best to resolve the IDF's need for manpower (and the Haredi avoidance of the draft). Shoshanna and Anne tackle these issues that seem urgent in Israeli society today - even when we know our discussion is limited in its ability to fix all that's wrong with the world today.

Music: "Misery" by The Whips

Sorrow at losing a loved one is said to be love with no place to go, but we have discovered that sharing loss grows community. Shira Lankin Sheps and Tzipora Lifchitz join Anne and Shoshanna to reflect on what happens when we grieve with friends and what it means to keep a person's presence alive -- in this case, our dear friend, Laura Ben-David z"l.

Music: "Misery" by The Whips

Where were you when Israel attacked Iran's nuclear program and Iran sent ballistic missiles at civilian population centers in return? Shoshanna and Anne compare their experiences. Plus, a reminder that making extreme changes to your personal modesty is not the Jewish way to help Israel or anyone.

Music: "Misery" by The Whips

Who are the women who fight for Israel? What are their challenges? Should they be welcome to every position? They garner tremendous support -- but not from everyone (why not?!). Shoshanna and Anne address these questions and more.

Music: "Misery" by The Whips

Some people chase meaning their entire lives; others have it as a constant guiding force. Chochmat Nashim board member and best friend Laura Ben-David talks to Shoshanna and Anne about why she joined she signed on as our first board member, what working toward a healthy Jewish community mean to her, and why she has invested so much of herself in the Jewish Life Photo Bank.

Music: "Misery" by The Whips

The recent election for the World Zionist Congress startled Shoshanna and Anne in two key ways: 1) Too many people were voting for parties that they didn't truly identify with; 2) Many in the Diaspora don't know much about Israeli society (including, most shockingly, that so many non-Haredi Orthodox Jews serve in the IDF). Here's Chochmat Nashim's cry for due diligence, which of course goes beyond this specific election.

Music: "Misery" by The Whips