Shalom Task Force - Promoting Peaceful Relations & Healthy Marriages

YU Study Finds Higher Marital Satisfaction For Shalom Workshop participants

A study was recently conducted at Yeshiva University to determine whether or not there were differences between those who attended a Shalom Workshop premarital workshop, another premarital workshop, or no premarital workshop and their overall marital satisfaction. Read more

Healthy Relationships on Both Sides: The Shalom Task Force Men’s Program

For the past five years, Shalom Task Force’s groundbreaking work in creating healthy relationships and preventing domestic abuse has been brought to yeshivas throughout the metropolitan area, in a program for bochurim called Panim el Panim. Read more

Nearly 1 in 5 Women in U.S. Survey Say They Have Been Sexually Assaulted

An exhaustive government survey of rape and domestic violence released affirmed that sexual violence against women remains endemic in the United States and in some instances may be far more common than previously thought.

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I’m So Confused, Am I Being Abused? New book by Lisa Twerski, LCSW

Domestic abuse is a reality that some unfortunately face in their marriages, and one that can be quite confusing and difficult to grapple with.

In her new book, I'm So Confused, Am I Being Abused?, Lisa Twerski, LCSW explains how to differentiate between dysfunction, disorders and domestic abuse.
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The Impact of Domestic Violence In Our Community

Family violence and domestic abuse have a significant impact on the lives of women and children and the long-terms costs facing our community. Read more

The Need For More Marriage Education

Are we doing enough to prepare our children for marriage? I'm not talking about matters of Jewish law that couples learn about with their Chasson and Kallah teachers before they get married. Read more

STF Contributes To “Charades” - the final in a series on relationships in Mishpacha Magazine

In an ongoing series in Mispacha Magazine callled "Charades" a couple gets back together with the appropriate boundaries in place so an abusive situation will not recur.

Click here to read entire article.


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Question: Is battering the only form of domestic abuse?

In discussing the occurrence of domestic violence, we must first understand what is meant by the terms "domestic violence" or "domestic abuse.” Most of us still have the image of an abused woman as bloodied and battered, a victim of physical violence; this is a misperception.
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In Memory of Leiby Kletzky z’tl

An eight-year-old boy, Leiby Kletzky, was on his way home from day camp in Brooklyn when he mysteriously disappeared. A frantic search, spearheaded by the FBI and aided by the entire community, failed to find him for two full days. And then his mother and father had to endure every parent's worst nightmare. Leiby was found dismembered.
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26% Of British Jewish Women Abused, Study Finds

One in four Jewish women are victims of domestic abuse, according to the largest survey of its kind. The Jewish Women's Aid study, You know a Jewish woman suffering from domestic abuse: Domestic abuse and the British Jewish community, found that 26 per cent of the 842 people surveyed had personally experienced domestic abuse.
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Question of the month: How Do I Know If I’m Being Abused?

In an abusive relationship the abusive spouse believes that he is entitled to be in control of his spouse, in every way important to him, and will use a variety of tactics to gain and maintain that control. While most people think that it isn't abuse if there is no physical violence, the reality is she can be afraid of what her spouse might do, in any number of ways, even if she is not actually afraid that he will be physically violent. Read more

Sarah’s Voice - Introducing Free Legal Aid for Victims of Domestic Abuse

Sarah's Voice is a new legal aid service that provides a multi-disciplinary approach to addressing domestic violence issues in the Orthodox community. Sarah's Voice ir run by a full-time lawyer and social worker are working hand in hand to ease the process as clients come forward to receive legal aid. Read more

STF Hotline Growth and Expansion

Mrs. Sharron Russ, Hotline Director for Shalom Task Force, prays every day that her job will cease to exist. Alas, her prayers have yet to be answered. During hours, two female volunteers (of a staff of 70 trained advocates) are ready to respond to the urgent emotional and physical needs of Jewish women in crisis and Mrs. Russ is on the case.

For the last fifteen years, thousands of Jewish women have summoned up the courage to reach out to the Hotline. They rely on Shalom Task Force’s guarantee of anonymity and privacy and are aware that a an Orthodox Jewish wife will delay efforts to seek advice since she is fearful of embarrassment and potential negative consequences for her and her children. When she finally gathers the courage to face her dilemma, she calls the hotline as her first step towards help.
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Making Shalom

Domestic abuse in the Orthodox community is a pressing problem, yet one which must be handled with sensitivity and awareness of halachic issues. Fifteen years ago Nechama Wolfson founded the Shalom Task Force to do just that.

Read the Founding of Shalom Task Force in PDF Format

A Story of Survival

My husband, who I thought would be loving and respectful, turned out to be controlling and eventually abusive towards me. Read more