Speech: On the Organization (National Council of Jewish Women)

Indeed, woman is only just awakened to the realization of her true part and function in the economy of the universe, she has only begun to feel her real power and to exert it for the progress of her fellow creatures. She has been a passive agent, like the child that follows the path laid out for it with no responsibility, no duty but obedience, but which, when the time comes for it to throw off this yoke of obedience, and act for itself, becomes a responsible agent with duties to fulfil, with the duty paramount to properly exercise its newly gained freedom and power. Individual Jewish women have understood the meaning of the new, bright star in the galaxy of heaven. Individual Jewish women have been in the van of every movement of the time; but as a body, Jewish women are behind the times, and have done nothing.

Is there any reason why they should do anything?

Jewish women have been accused of being bound down to the narrow limits of their own homes, of having no interest outside of them, of having no interest in the interests of women as women, of not being in sympathy with their time. No greater mistake was ever made. The Jewish woman—every Jewish woman—is interested in all that interests woman, is in perfect sympathy with the time; but custom and tradition, and the misunderstanding, misconception and excluding prejudice of the world have militated against her showing this publicly. It is the bounden duty of the Jewish woman, on account of this misunderstanding of her true nature and interests, to make these manifest; it is her duty, as it is that of all Jews, to make prominent her qualities in conjunction, that they may cast in the shade her qualities in opposition. It is not enough that she be in sympathy with her time, she must be running hand and hand with it.

The question whether Jewish women should have an organization cannot be answered in a word, and I beg leave to present certain matter for your consideration.

This Congress has a unique place among the various congresses. Never before have Jews been given a place on a plane with other men, not to defend themselves and their doctrines, but to present them. This Congress holds a unique place among Jewish congresses. Never before in the history of Judaism has a body of Jewish women come together for the purpose of presenting their views, nor for any purpose but that of charity or mutual aid; never before have Jewish women been called upon to take any place in the representation of Judaism. [ . . . ]

It was determined that the Congress should not be a mere ephemeral success, but that its memory should live in a lasting monument—a National Jewish Woman’s Organization; an organization which shall unite in true fellowship and noblest endeavor all thinking Jewish women, which shall be a means and medium of interchange of ideas and thoughts, and projects and services; which shall encourage jousts and tournaments of mind on ground where she o’erthrown shall rise like Antaeus, with strength renewed from touch of mother earth; which through knowledge and experience shall beget wisdom, and from whose head shall spring Minerva-like a free and fiery spirit, animating, actuating, directing to all things good and true and beautiful.

We need a wider organization. We have some organizations ’tis true, but you have seen that they are all confined to charity, they do for others—we need to be taught our duty to ourselves; they go and give—we need to be taught that to go and get is of equal importance, we need to be taught the value of the word mutual. The extremes of society receive more than their share of the world’s attention. For the poor in pocket, in mind, in spirit, much is done; the rich in purse and intellect do much for themselves; the average woman is neglected. Her we desire and aim to reach. It is the average woman whose time is occupied in household duties, who needs an outside force to pull her out of her rut on the broader way of life. She has never done anything outside of her home, not because she did not want to do anything; but because she had not time to do much, she has done nothing. Prove to her the possibilities for happiness to herself and others of her wasted half hours, and one round has been climbed on Jacob’s ladder. Show to the individual the resources within himself. Wake what lies dormant. Rouse the desire to do. Provide an outlet for the new-born energy. Then through the individual, you have leavened the mass. [ . . . ]

It shall be our purpose, not to increase the number of existing institutions to their detriment, drawing nourishment from the old and worthy to the new, thus crippling both, but to concentrate, organize and aid those deserving with our might, to plant new ideas in them, and to start new institutions where there is a crying need for them. In doing this, it shall be our business to further and emphasize so-called preventive work, it shall be ours to proclaim to all, the truth which the popular mind has crystallized into the homely proverb, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”