Description
The
Jewish Feminist Conference (JFC) records and audiotapes document the activities of the organizational committees and the responses
of JFC participants. The records are divided into two series, Administrative and Workshop documents.
Background
The 1983
Jewish Feminist Conference (JFC) was a women’s collaborative effort to strengthen the cultural, ethnic, and gender commonalities
within the
Jewish community and beyond. The organizers of the conference varied in ages and in socio-economic status but were united by a desire
to address feminist issues in the
Jewish community.
The Conference was held on two separate weekends at Berkeley (California) High School. Part one (September 23-24, 1983) was
open to
Jewish women only and focused on
Jewish-specific topics, with workshops on issues such as internal identification, the role of
Jewish women in the community and beyond, the Holocaust, and the labor movement.
JFC part two (October 30, 1983) was open to all women focusing on the sharing of culture and common attributes from women
within the
Jewish community and beyond. The activities included affinity groups, song and dance celebrations, and workshops on feminist issues.
Part two of the conference provided a unique experience for both
Jewish and non
Jewish women because it acknowledged several issues that the organizers felt had not been addressed in past conferences. First,
“the organizers strived to give special recognition to lesbian participation in women's issues that had not been acknowledged
in the past.” Second, the JFC committee established an event which would be inclusive of women in all areas. Workshops and
other activities were structured to focus on feminism within the
Jewish community and to acknowledge that the liberation of
Jewish women was contingent upon the success of the feminist movement in general.
Availability
The collection is open for research.
Funding for processing this collection was provided by the National
Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC). Selected audio recordings were digitized through California Revealed
and are available online at https://archive.org/details/glbthistoricalsociety?sort=-publicdate&and%5B%5D=creator%3A%22jewish+feminist+conference%22