National Council of Jewish Women Bergen County Section Hosts Author and Activist Letty Cottin Pogrebin

Pogrebin Will Discuss Her Critically-Acclaimed Book “Shanda: A Memoir of Shame and Secrecy”

TEANECK, NJ (November 2)- The National Council of Jewish Women Bergen County Section (NCJW BCS), a grassroots organization of volunteers and advocates who turn progressive ideals into action, will host Letty Cottin Pogrebin, acclaimed author of Shanda: A Memoir of Shame and Secrecy Tuesday, November 15, 2022 starting at 12:30 p.m. at Temple Emeth, located at 1666 Windsor Rd, Teaneck NJ. This event is free to members and $10 for non-members. No pre-registration is required.

During the event, Pogrebin will open up about her extended family and their powerful past laid out in her newest book, Shanda. The word “shanda” is defined as shame or disgrace in Yiddish. In her discussion Pogregbin will share how three generations of her family had to suppress the truth about their sexual identity, politics, and personal traumas due to their Jewish faith and recount their ability to reinvent themselves through all their tribulations. 

“We are excited to hear Letty share a deeper perspective of her personal story from her new book, Shanda: A Memoir of Shame and Secrecy,” says Karen Kurland, a Program Chair of the National Council of Jewish Women Bergen County Section “She is a wonderfully intelligent author and advocate and the themes of Shanda not only resonate within the American Jewish immigrant community but are universal to anyone who has felt shame and pressure in order to assimilate. We are looking forward to learning more about how her family overcame their feelings of shame and secrecy.”

Letty Cottin Pogrebin, co-founder of Ms. magazine, is a nationally acclaimed writer, activist, and public speaker. The author of twelve books, her articles and essays have appeared in numerous print and online publications, including The New York Times, The Nation, and Huffington Post. She is a co-founder of the National Women’s Political Caucus and the Ms. Foundation for Women; a past president of the Authors Guild and Americans for Peace Now; and has served on the board of the Harvard Divinity School Women in Religion Program and the Brandeis University Women’s and Gender Studies Program. Among her many honors is a Yale University Poynter Fellowship in Journalism, a Matrix Award for excellence in communication and the arts, and an Emmy Award. Pogrebin lives with her husband in New York City and Stockbridge, Massachusetts.

To learn more about the National Council of Jewish Women Bergen County Section and upcoming events visit https://www.ncjwbcs.org/index.html#.

About National Council of Jewish Women Bergen County Section

Celebrating its 100th anniversary, National Council of Jewish Women Bergen County Section (NCJW BCS) is a grassroots organization of volunteers and advocates who turn progressive ideals into action. Inspired by Jewish values, NCJW BCS strives for social justice by improving the quality of life for women, children, and families and by safeguarding individual rights and freedoms.