The Commission on Women in Jewish Leadership expressed solidarity with oppressed women worldwide by gathering on a bridge in West Hampstead outside the Pears Foundation JHub to mark both International Women’s Day and the festival of Purim.
The event was organised as part of the ‘Join Me on the Bridge’ campaign. The campaign started in 2010 when women from Congo and Rwanda joined together on the bridge connecting their two countries, showing that they could build the bridges of peace and hope for the future. This action sparked a massive global movement and last year they were joined by thousands of people on hundreds of bridges worldwide.
Commission Chair Laura Marks said:
"At Purim, we recall the story of two strong women: Queen Vashti, who refused to ‘dance’ for her husband and his friends; and Queen Esther, who saved the Jewish people from a plot to destroy them. Both have become symbolic of the need for freedom and equality for women."
“It is a tragedy that so many women around the world continue to suffer terrible injustice and oppression on a daily basis. We are so fortunate in the UK to enjoy the freedoms and opportunities which are denied to so many.”
“This event gives us the opportunity to stand in solidarity with the millions of women in Afghanistan, Iraq, Congo, Rwanda, South Sudan and other war-torn countries where women sadly don’t have basic rights. We want to show women around the globe that we stand with them and that we support their demands.”
The CWJL, an initiative of the Jewish Leadership Council, was set up to address the underrepresentation of women at the top of Jewish organisations and is currently conducting a community-wide consultation on the issue.
Representatives from key Jewish organisations participated in the event, including Jewish Care, the Jewish Museum, the Community Security Trust (CST), the Jewish Community Centre for London (JCC), the Jewish Volunteer Network (JVN), Moishe House, LEAD (Jewish Leadership, Excellence and Development), Women’s International Zionist Organisation (WIZO), The Jewish Social Action Forum, the Jewish Leadership Council (JLC), United Synagogue Women, Tzedek and Mitzvah Day.
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