The League of Jewish Women in Germany (german: italic=no, Jüdischer Frauenbund, JFB) was founded in 1904 by

Bertha Pappenheim Bertha Pappenheim (27 February 1859 – 28 May 1936) was an Austrian-Jewish feminist, a social pioneer, and the founder of the Jewish Women's Association (''). Under the pseudonym Anna O., she was also one of Josef Breuer's best-documented pat ...

. Pappenheim led the JFB throughout the first twenty years of its existence, and remained active in it until her death in 1936.Dick/Sassenberg, S. 306 The JFB became increasingly popular through the 20th century. At its peak in 1928, the organization had 50,000 members from 34 local branches and 430 subsidiary groups. At the time, the JFB was Germany's third largest Jewish organization, with 15-20% of Jewish women in Germany becoming members.

Growth out of the Women's Movement

The JFB followed the 1899 founding of the German Evangelical Women's Association (german: italic=no, Deutsch-Evangelischer Frauenbund}), as well as the founding in 1903 of the German Catholic Women's Association (german: italic=no, Katholischer Frauenbund).Kaplan 1997, S. 26 It was the part of the period of activity some call "

First-wave feminism First-wave feminism was a period of feminist activity and thought that occurred during the 19th and early 20th century throughout the Western world. It focused on legal issues, primarily on securing women's right to vote. The term is often used s ...

", in which women in some countries, including Germany, led movements aimed to increase women's rights. The foundation of the JFB shaped a distinct movement situated at the intersection of German society and Jewish tradition.Carlebach, S. 63 From 1907 the JFB was a member of the Union of German Feminist Organizations (german: italic=no,

Bund Deutscher Frauenvereine The Bund Deutscher Frauenvereine (Federation of German Women's Associations) (BDF) was founded on 28/29 March 1894 as umbrella organization of the women's civil rights feminist movement and existed until the Nazi seizure of power in 1933. Its crea ...

, BDF), which had been developed as an umbrella organization for the various women's associations.Kaplan 1997, S. 73

Goals and work

The JFB was a community with a primary interest of improving women's experiences in the Jewish community. It was open about its desire to bring women into closer contact with Jewish tradition. Many members of the organization came from relatively assimilated Jewish families who had drifted far from tradition, and some were encouraged by their husbands to further conceal their Jewish identities.Carlebach, S. 63 Some of these women reacted by developing a feminist practice of

tzedakah ''Tzedakah'' or ''Ṣedaqah'' ( he, צדקה ) is a Hebrew word meaning "righteousness", but commonly used to signify '' charity''. This concept of "charity" differs from the modern Western understanding of "charity". The latter is typically u ...

, or the charitable giving mandated by Jewish law.Kaplan 1997, S. 66 The philanthropic contributions from local women's organizations supported centralized social outreach as well as the maintenance of relationships with international collaborators. This work led to the founding of the Central Office for the Welfare of Jews in Germany (ZWSt) in 1917. The organization, particularly in its early years, focused on fighting for women's right to vote within the Jewish community. The organization made combating antisemitism a main priority, even though it put less emphasis on the issue as many Jewish men's groups. The JFB provided social and educational resources for Jewish women and strove to end what was defined as "female slavery", prostitution, and moral degradation in Germany and abroad.

Pappenheim Pappenheim is a town in the Weißenburg-Gunzenhausen district, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the river Altmühl, 11 km south of Weißenburg in Bayern. History Historically, Pappenheim was a statelet within Holy Roman Empire. It ...

traveled to

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whic ...

on various occasions, which motivated her to push the organization toward combating prostitution and improving the lives of Jewish women in Eastern Europe. The JFB shifted its efforts away from helping Jewish women abroad at the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. After World War I, JFB struggled to appeal to younger Jewish women, and mainly prioritized Jewish issues over feminist issues.

Role during World War I

The JFB, like many other woman's organization in the BDF (german: italic=no,

), mobilized to assist the war effort on the home front. The JFB collaborated with the Red Cross to provide first aid services on the home front as well as in military hospitals. The JFB also helped support wives and families of soldiers who died in the war.

Members

Rahel Straus Rahel may refer to: * Rachel, a biblical figure * Rahel Varnhagen Rahel Antonie Friederike Varnhagen () (née Levin, later Robert; 19 May 1771 – 7 March 1833) was a German writer who hosted one of the most prominent salons in Europe during the ...

References

External links

* Lara Daemmig
''Kampf um Gleichberechtigung: Der Jüdische Frauenbund in Berlin''
at ''

HaGalil ''haGalil'' is an online magazine published in German relating to the issues of Judaism, German Jewry and Israel. It is considered as the most widespread magazine of its kind in German, with over 380,000 monthly visitors (August 2009). Overview T ...

'' (in German)
"Kochbuch für die jüdische Küche"
digitized cookbook published by the League of Jewish Women at the

Leo Baeck Institute, New York The Leo Baeck Institute New York (LBI) is a research institute in New York City dedicated to the study of German-Jewish history and culture, founded in 1955. It is one of three independent research centers founded by a group of German-speaking J ...