Rackman Center

22/06/2026

We are delighted to congratulate Adv. Sheli Blatt Zak, CEO of the Rackman Center , on her selection to Elluminate's "The Collective" program — one of ten exceptional Jewish women leaders from the United States and Israel chosen for the program's eighth cohort.

Elluminate has selected ten exceptional Jewish women nonprofit leaders from the United States and Israel to join the eighth cohort of The Collective, the organization's flagship leadership advancement program.

The women selected for Cohort Eight lead organizations addressing a range of critical issues, including gender equity, disability inclusion, reproductive justice, educational opportunity, LGBTQ+ equality, community resilience, and the prevention of violence against women and girls. Through innovative leadership and bold vision, they are expanding opportunity, strengthening communities, and advancing a more just and equitable society.

Learn more about the women in Cohort 8 here: https://elluminatewomen.org/cohort8announcement/

07/06/2026

Equal opportunity in the IDF is not a favor it's the law.
Rackman Center CEO Adv. Shelly Blatt Zak spoke to JNS about the Supreme Court ruling requiring the IDF to open combat roles to women:
"The ruling is unequivocal: Equal opportunity in IDF service is a binding legal obligation. The exclusion of women from combat roles must be limited to exceptional cases, for which the army is required to provide detailed justification."

She added that this marks a necessary shift in the burden of proof, restrictions must be grounded in substantive, evidence-based reasoning, not in stereotypical assumptions about women's capabilities.

24/05/2026

Israel's rabbinical courts are funded by public money, hold power over the personal lives of millions — yet operate with zero transparency, zero female judges, and zero accountability.

In a new op-ed in The Jerusalem Post, Rackman Center, Head Prof. Ruth Halperin-Kaddari calls out the rabbinical courts for what they are: an extra-territorial entity that the state built, funds, and keeps expanding — without demanding accountability in return.

The Rackman Center is demanding change: transparent appointments, real public oversight, and a woman appointed as Director-General of the Rabbinical Courts — not as a symbol, but as a basic requirement of any democratic institution.
Ruth Halperin-Kaddari

28/04/2026

April 27, 2026 — a historic day in Israel and the Jewish world.✨

For the first time ever, women were allowed to sit for the Chief Rabbinate certification exam.
This moment didn’t happen overnight. It came after years of legal struggle, a petition to the High Court, and a landmark ruling that made it clear: excluding women from these exams is unlawful discrimination. Despite repeated attempts to circumvent that ruling, justice prevailed.

The Rackman Center is proud to have been part of this effort.
At the same time, this milestone came with serious concerns:

• Women were forced to wait more than four hours before receiving the exam. During this delay, the Rackman Center—together with the petitioners and our partners Itim and Kolenu—filed an urgent motion.
• The exam was administered in gender segregated locations. While this may be presented as logistical, we remain clear: separate is not equal. We will continue to monitor this closely.

Even with these challenges, today marks real progress.
We are proud of the women who sat for the exam and honor their courage and determination. Their achievement is a meaningful step forward for equality and women’s rights in Israel.
Photo - Daniel Grubeis, Gal"t

15/04/2026

Last month, amid an ongoing war on multiple fronts, the Knesset voted and approved, in its second and third readings, the bill to expand the jurisdiction of rabbinical courts.

What it means: Rabbinical courts will have the authority to adjudicate civil disputes — contracts, labor relations, property — according to Jewish religious law (Halacha). At the last moment, a particularly dangerous clause was inserted: the ruling will be immediately enforceable, with no need for judicial approval and no possibility of appeal.

Who will it harm? Women, workers, and vulnerable populations. While it is officially framed as "consensual arbitration," reality shows that those in positions of economic dependence will not always be able to refuse — "consent" under such circumstances is effectively coercion. It is also important to note that women do not serve as judges in rabbinical courts.
Why is it dangerous? This creates a parallel judicial system — without transparency, without appeal, and without civilian oversight. A system that is not bound by the principles of equality and human rights.

Prof. Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, Head of the Rackman Center for the Advancement of Women's Status, Faculty of Law, Bar-Ilan University: "This is a deeply ideological move that expands religious authority at the expense of civil rights, creates a parallel justice system, and harms primarily women, workers, and vulnerable populations — under the guise of 'consent' that is not truly free — and paves the way for a Halacha state."